It could be interpreted as how Raiden views him, but also as what Armstrong seeks to destroy.
When blood and sweat is the real cost, thinking ceases, the truth is lost.” Knowing what we know now, that’s essentially the opposite of Armstrong’s ideology. “Live in ignorance and purchase your happiness. Take a listen to Collective Consciousness, the song that plays during the fight with Armstrong’s Metal Gear Excelsus. But I hear you say, “Rycluse, how could you say such a thing? Armstrong doesn’t just have a boss song, he has two!” And that’s where you’re wrong, you unenlightened masses. Every other boss in Metal Gear Rising has a boss theme that gives some insight into their motivations and personalities. One of the things that makes Armstrong tricky to analyze is that he doesn’t have a song. “Every man, woman and child… we’re all sons of the Patriots now!” To start, let’s look at his three major dialogue scenes: before the Excelsus fight, before the final boss, and after the final boss.
So, for my second attempt in as many videos to pilot a potential new series, let’s take some time to analyze the character of Senator Steven Armstrong, and what he means in the story of Metal Gear Rising. Armstrong is a character of extreme significance both in the progression of these themes and in the progression of the main character, Raiden, and these three are so intertwined that I can’t talk about one without the other two. But to me, there’s something that just works about Armstrong in the context of Metal Gear Rising’s story and themes. Also a lot of people legitimately agree with him which… we really won’t get into. Despite how hammy his scenes and indeed the entire game is, he delivers with a passion and sincerity that are hard to find unappealing. Despite that, he’s definitely the one that left the most profound impression on people. Something something become president, something something reshape America into an objectivist utopia.Īrmstrong appears briefly appears early on in Metal Gear Rising, but only really shows up at the very end. Fake an assassination attempt on the president to kickstart war in the Middle East. Do some evil PMC things for a while, like destabilize war torn African countries and monopolize urban security. Become the secret head of the world’s most powerful private military corporation.