For the first time ever, a game bearing the Metal Gear Solid title will be released simultaneously on three platforms (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC) when Metal Gear Solid : Rising hits store shelves.  Series heroic-protagonist Solid Snake will be absent in this outing and gamers will control one of the most popular characters within the MGS universe, Raiden.  Raiden made his debut as a playable character in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty on the PlayStation 2.  More recently he appeared as a non-playable cyborg in PS3 smash hit, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.

Apart from once again playing as Raiden (hopefully he’ll be just as bad ass as in MGS4), there may also be a substantial shift in gameplay with this outing. Hideo Kojima, during the Konami press conference this week, said that Rising would serve as a test bed for some changes he has in mind for the MGS series. Fans got the first hint of this during the brief teaser trailer shown this week which eschews the familiar “Tactical Espionage Action” for “Lightning Bolt Action”.

Whatever Rising may or may not be, its a sure bet 360 owners are sleeping better these days knowing that the Metal Gear Solid franchise has finally broken free of console-exclusivity and that all console fans are anxiously waiting to see where the next iteration of MGS leads. The release date for Metal Gear Solid: Rising is currently TBA, so stay tuned to the ‘Axe for any breaking news.