Raiden has had a pretty epic evolution over the years. He first debuted back in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. While the game received unanimous acclaim, it wasn't without its controversies. The most infamous being replacing the series protagonist, Solid Snake, with Raiden. This was only temporary as the franchise's reins would be handed back over to Snake.

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Raiden would then make a drastically different, but awesome, comeback as a cyborg samurai! Gamers then stepped back into Raiden's metallic shoes in the hack and slash game Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. Raiden's badass redesign would then inspire Metal Gear fans everywhere to craft their own amazing cosplays.

10 Red Room Raiden

What better way to kick off the list than by showing you this epic cosplay by Xalias7! Raiden's cybernetic wardrobe upgrade served as a physical representation of Raiden's character development and how much Metal Gear Rising Revengeance deviates from the main Metal Gear Solid games.

Xalias7 looks wholly convincing as Raiden in this photo! The armor plates look so real that it's hard to believe they' really made from foam. Thankfully Xalias7 didn't leave out small, yet important details, like the eyepatch, sword, and that intimidating armor piece protecting his jaw.

9 Double Trouble, Slice and Dice

Do you know what's more awesome than one Raiden cosplay? Two Raiden cosplays! Skilled cosplayers Tsukas and Sky sail team up in this amazing photo taken by photographer Aris Tee . Both outfits by their respective cosplayers are incredible in their own right. The outfits look very similar but they do feature their own unique designs.

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For example, if you look closely you can see that Tsukas's eyes are red while Sky sail's are blue. Another detail to notice is Sky sail's sword is bright red. If Raiden had a long lost twin sister, who's also a cyborg, she would exactly like Sky sail. Hopefully, Hideo Kojima has that concept in mind when he's brainstorming for future games.

8 My blade is stained in red

Now let's move back to just one Raiden. Deep down, Raiden has a dark alter ego, and his name is Jack the Ripper. He lies dormant within Raiden, ready to unleash carnage once Raiden has awakened him. The black color scheme shown on Steven's cosplay is a clever reference to Raiden's dark side.

The cosplay itself looks stunning. Steven makes his cosplays himself, and from how intricate the cosplay looks it's clear he went all out when constructing it. The red blade is a cool touch and shows what it looks like once Jack is unleashed.

7 Cyborg Butler

Even a cyborg samurai-like Raiden needs to suits up, quite literally, from time to time. Italian cosplayer zekyu_hide brings you this different depiction of Raiden in her gender-bent cosplay. This is vastly different from what Raiden usually looks. To be honest it's quite refreshing to see a Raiden cosplay that wasn't the regular armor look.

zekyu_hide really looks convincing as Raiden. You wouldn't believe it's actually a gender-bent cosplay until you visit her profile page. While the outfit differs from the original, she hasn't neglected Raiden's eyepatch, jaw armor, and intense stare.

6 Mr Senator, let's fight

Cosplayer Mr. Raiden雷電 kicks some serious butt in this photo. Mr. Raiden and Canadian cosplayer sirfranku recreate the epic fight between Raiden and Senator Armstrong. Both cosplayers look remarkably like their characters. The attention to detail on Mr Raiden's cosplay, in particular, is astounding. It looks exactly like the original design.

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Metal Gear Rising Revengeance discarded the franchises' signature stealth gameplay, opting for the hack and slash approach. If there's for one thing the game definitely kept was the series's affinity for the bizarre. What other game makes you fight a US Senator, who is also jacked up as a result of nanotechnology?

5 The Classic Look

Mr. Raiden雷電 makes another appearance on the list, only this time he's bringing back Raiden's classic look. Before he went all Darth Vader, Raiden was just a guy trying to survive in a tumultuous world, with no cybernetic augmentations. It's quite hard to believe Raiden used to look like this, especially after Metal Gear Rising Revengeance put much emphasis on his cybernetic body.

Being a huge fan of Raiden (if it wasn't already apparent from his name), Mr. Raiden decided to pay homage to this long-overlooked design. To ensure it does not get lost in time.

4 Sharpening My blade

If he's going to be slicing evil robots into tiny pieces, it's essential for Raiden to keep his sword sharp. He'll need to if he wants to slice through his opponent's metallic armor to grab those rejuvenating cyborg spines.

The pose is powerful, intimidating and it's definitely what Raiden would do before dueling an opponent. The pose feels even more intimidating when you realize that eye is staring right at you.Bongiorno, Amigos! 

3 Bongiorno, Amigos!

Yes, there was a time in Metal Gear Rising Revengeance when a cyborg samurai actually tried to disguise himself in a poncho and sombrero. Just when the game couldn't get any more bizarre. Cosplayer Luc pays tribute to this ridiculous, but hilarious, moment in this very accurate outfit.

He even describes the whole scenario regarding Raiden's (lousy) disguise in great detail in the post's description. Anyone whose played Metal Gear Rising Revengeance would no doubt experience fond memories of Raiden masquerading in his disguise. And probably laugh a bit.

2 Fem-Raiden

This cosplay by Maria Lay is basically what if player Metal Gear Rising Revengeance went all Mass Effect and allowed gamers to choose to play as a male or female Raiden. Maria Lay really made this cosplay her own by adding small features such as the grey armor plating and high heels.

What's obviously missing is the eyepatch. The eyepatch's exclusion works because its removal contributes to its unique design.

1 No-Name, The Samurai

"Time for Jack, to let it rip!- Raiden". The armor itself looks incredible, but it looks far more epic when paired with those glowing red lines. The lines give off the impression that the armor is alive and ready for duty. Of course, let's not forget about those awesome lighting effects on the sword! That red lightning effect looks like it was taken from the game.

Alas, the identity of the cosplayer is still unknown. Nevertheless, this unknown cosplayer still did a tremendous job. This cosplayer exemplifies Raiden's power amazingly. Proving he could easily go toe to toe with the dangerously skilled swordsmen from Marvel and DC.

NEXT: 10 Anime To Watch If You Liked Metal Gear Solid