Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is one of the oddest entries of the Metal Gear series, being an action game more than a stealth-oriented one. As cyborg Raiden (a far cry from how he was in Metal Gear Solid 2), players get to take part in high adrenaline battles against super-human soldiers and giant robots. However, the game can be difficult when it comes to controls.
This game is infamous for how poorly it explains its controls to the player. It is not unusual for players to get stuck for various reasons. Parrying is key but difficult to master, and most of the controls and mechanics are not outright laid out to the player in the beginning. This includes how to lock on, which is essential to some combat and the game's bosses. Here's how to master this skill.
How To Target Lock & How It Works
For those playing on console, the target lock-on is utilized with the controller's right bumper. On the PC, the lock-on is turned on by pressing E. While these controls are simple, using the target lock-on the right way is another story. While locking on to an enemy can make combos and dodging easier, it can definitely slow Raiden down when there are many enemies on the screen at once. This is due to the method of switching which enemy is locked on.
For a game with smooth combat, Revengeance does not have a smooth method of switching the lock-on on different targets (it only switches to enemies on camera, not whoever is closest). With this in mind, when there are mobs, it is advisable to instead free target. However, lock-on is not to be ignored or forgotten either. It is invaluable against single enemies, bosses, and flying enemies. Keep in mind that lock-on range is also limited. If an enemy is too far, the lock-on will deactivate.
When using target lock, it is important to remember how to move the camera. On PC, the camera can be moved with the mouse and on the console, it can be moved with the right analog stick. The action of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is quite fast-paced which can make it hard to keep up manually with the camera. Lock-on is very helpful in these cases.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is out now on PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.