How Memes And An Immortal Soundtrack Have Revived Metal Gear Rising

gamespot.com:

Almost a decade after it first launched, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance recently found a new audience for its unique blend of over-the-top action, fast-paced soundtrack, and its legacy for spawning memes. As subtle as a napalm strike and sharper than Jetstream Sam's Masamune blade, people are once again experiencing what vengeance with a side of revenge feels like.

According to the NPD Group's executive director for games, Mat Piscatella, Twitch viewership for the game has reached the highest levels seen since January 10, 2015, and the recent Steam peak concurrent user count is higher than it has been at any point since December 20, 2014. «Sales started noticeably rising in December 2021, and since then January through April sales in 2022 are higher than the comparable months in any year other than the game's 2013 launch window,» Piscatella told GameSpot last week.

Data analysis group PlayTracker recently provided a chart showing how Metal Gear Rising's concurrent player count has climbed 1,000% since last April, with that surge in popularity largely being attributed to one meme in particular.

Although it is almost 10 years old, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is seeing numbers it hasn’t seen since launch.