Metal Gear Series/Raiden

A cosplay of Raiden as a Cyborg Ninja.

Liberian Civil War

As a child, Raiden was adopted by Solidus Snake, who (unbeknownst to him) had killed his parents. After being given the name "Jack" by Solidus, Raiden became a child soldier from as young as the age of six, in Solidus' "Army of the Devil" as part of the "small boys unit" during the first Liberian Civil War. Like the rest of his unit, he was regularly drugged in order to be conditioned and kept under control. Survival meant he was commended and rewarded, and killing to survive became his only purpose. He was trained personally by Solidus, to the extent that Solidus declared, "Your name... your skills... everything you know, you know from me." Due to Jack's outstanding kill record, he gained a number of nicknames, two of the most prominent being "Jack the Ripper" and "White Devil", the latter probably in reference to his pale skin and fair hair. When the war ended, Jack was one of the survivors, and Solidus lost track of him.

Later Life And Career

After the end of the Civil War, Jack left Liberia for the United States and eventually forgot his past. There he joined the Task Force 21 Corps, where he received further training, and possible mental reconditioning (or else he supressed his bloody childhood memories, as he had no recollection of them until Solidus jogged his memory when they met again years later) before being eventually deployed on the ill-fated Big Shell mission. He also trained through various VR (virtual reality) simulations, including some which were based on the Shadow Moses and Tanker incidents that Solid Snake was a major participant in.

On April 30th 2007, Jack met Rosemary, who eventually became his girlfriend. Jack loved Rose deeply, but his harsh experiences had left him melancholic and emotionally distant, and he constantly shut her out of his problems. Rose was persistent in getting Jack to open up to her, even during his missions, which became a constant source vexation for him. It isn't until the Big Shell incident that Jack regains his memories and finally opens up to her, explaining that his past had for a long time been a jumbled mess, and even though it haunted him he could never quite put it together to figure out why. Jack's revelation later brings Rose closer to him.

Big Shell

Events in this section takes place in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty.

Raiden is initially introduced in the Big Shell as "Snake", serving as a member of what appears to be a newly reinstated FOXHOUND. His features are concealed under a diver's mask. This deception is short-lived, as Jack removes the mask, revealing a youthful appearance completely the opposite of Solid Snake's. After his true identity is revealed, he is assigned the new codename, "Raiden", and infiltrates the Big Shell. His mission is to rescue President James Johnson from a terrorist group known as the "Sons of Liberty." In this mission, he is supported over his CODEC radio by the Colonel, his commanding officer, and Rose, who is an experienced data analyst for the military and Raiden's girlfriend.

Raiden goes on to team up with Solid Snake (masquerading as a U.S. Navy SEAL named "Iroquois Pliskin") and "Mr. X", and discovers that the Big Shell is actually a front for "Arsenal Gear", a mobile battle fortress with an AI (artificial intelligence) that controls the flow of information on the Internet (to protect the interests of an Illuminati-like group known as the Patriots), and that the Sons of Liberty were not mere terrorists, but instead trying to prevent its completion.

Arsenal Gear

Events in this section takes place in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty.

In the course of this mission, Raiden's forgotten past is revealed. Raiden also learns that if he perishes or fails his mission, which is to eliminate the Sons of Liberty, Olga's baby will die. After disabling Arsenal Gear and the Metal Gear RAYs, Raiden confronts Solidus, discovers that the entire scenario was orchestrated by the Patriots for their S3 (selection for societal sanity) simulation, and that his commanding officer is actually just a digital construct created by GW, the Arsenal Gear's AI. He then completes his mission by confronting and killing Solidus, and is subsequently reunited with Rose, who is pregnant with his child.