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DejaVuPortableOps Cropped2 "Hmm, I don't remember that one. It mustn't be that important."
This article is about a subject from outside Hideo Kojima's core "Metal Gear Saga." Its canonicity within the continuity is disputed, therefore reader discretion is advised.[?]

Metal Gear EXCELSUS was a multi-legged Metal Gear that was developed around 2016. 

Description[]

EXCELSUS was hexapedal, with additional secondary devices mounted at the front, containing retractable blades, and a head with two large plasma cannons. The entrance into the machine as well as the cockpit was an egg-shaped elevator platform. The cockpit itself, similar to REX, utilized holograms and VR environments to allow the pilot to operate, as it was completely enclosed. Its controls amounted to some pedals as well as a small controller resembling a game controller. EXCELSUS is also capable of tunneling, as evidenced by its emergence from the Shabhazabad air base in Pakistan. In addition, it was designed to be able to bulldoze through urban environments, which Doktor commented was overkill. Like RAY before it, EXCELSUS was not designed as a nuclear launch platform.

History[]

Development[]

When SOP and the Patriots fell following the Guns of the Patriots Incident, PMCs acted on the development of what had been previously suppressed cyborg technology. The result was an abundance of cyborgs in the armies of PMCs. Due to the advantage of cyborgs capable of making decisions like other humans, the small unmanned gears such as the Gekko units were generating less favor in regards to urban combat. In response, AT Corp did a 180-degree turn and returned to develop a larger UG capable of overpowering cyborgs and tearing a path through urban terrain using its sheer size. It was also built in part to ensure a decrease in civilian casualties, as the weapon was deliberately designed to be massive to ensure that all but trained guerrilla fighters evacuated the premises when it was sighted. The result was a new Metal Gear codenamed "EXCELSUS", meaning "high" or "lofty," as well as being a species name of the Apatosaurus dinosaur. The vehicle was not armed with a nuclear weapon, instead being designed for the purpose of asymmetrical warfare in light of cyborg development. Although initially designed to be a UG, the final design required a pilot.

Unlike other Metal Gears, its development was not top-secret, even being the basis of several news reports, causing some to speculate whether they could be sold. Even though it lacked nuclear armaments, it was still referred to as a Metal Gear, primarily because it was redefined as being a large-scale weapon to differentiate it from UG-class walkers, due to nuclear deterrence becoming obsolete and people preferring weapons that could actually kill other people. Raiden's support team speculated that this was probably also simply for marketing reasons, as calling EXCELSUS a Metal Gear would make it sell better.

World Marshal Incident[]

See also: Raid at World Marshal, Ambush in Africa, Abkhazian Coup, Investigation in Guadalajara, Raid in Denver, and Operation Tecumseh
Super Metal gear

Raiden faces EXCELSUS in Pakistan, May 2018.

In 2018, Raiden fought against EXCELSUS, with Colorado senator Steven Armstrong piloting it. It bore Desperado's logo on the mech's frame, as Armstrong had intended to frame Desperado for the attack on the Shabhazabad Air Base in Pakistan as part of his plot, as well as implicate either the ISI of Pakistan or terrorists from an OPEC nation as being involved. Doktor speculated that, had Armstrong succeeded in his plot, "herds" of EXCELSUS would have overrun the FATA territories. Raiden managed to defeat it by cutting off its front legs, and then exchanging blows with one of its retractable blades after lifting it away from the pit, before cutting up and throwing the giant blade at the head. What remained of EXCELSUS was further destroyed when Armstrong emerged from its cockpit and used his nanomachines to engage Raiden in hand-to-hand combat on top of and around the wreck.

Behind the scenes[]

Metal Gear EXCELSUS appears in Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, and is fought by the player during a boss battle. While the name "EXCELSUS" is rendered in upper case in the corresponding mission objective, similar to other Metal Gear codenames, it is given in lower case in subtitled Codec dialogue. Some of Raiden's support team mentions that it was given the title of Metal Gear as part of promotional elements as calling it a Metal Gear would have it sell better. This is an unsubtle reference to complaints about how Metal Gear Rising was not a true Metal Gear due to the more action-oriented gameplay being emphasized over the stealth of prior games.

Metal-Gear-Rising-005

EXCELSUS as it appeared in the newbreview screenshots.

In the TGS trailer for Metal Gear Rising, EXCELSUS appeared as a then-unnamed mech of considerable size, preparing to battle Raiden. This implied that the mech would be piloted by Senator Armstrong as the final boss battle. The machine was eventually identified in some screenshots released by the gaming site newbreview.

Metal Gear EXCELSUS also appeared in the Versus Battle section on the official Metal Gear website.[1] It was pitted against Metal Gear D, and won 61.86% of the vote by fans.

"STRENGTHS: Plasma Cannons. Blades, Tunneling
WEAKNESSES: Big But No Nuke
FEATURED FACT: Excelsus was created to tear through cyborgs & urban warfare environments via its tunneling, bulldozing, and hexapedal limb capabilities
FEATURED GAME: METAL GEAR RISING: REVENGEANCE
"
―Versus Battle description of EXCELSUS at metalgearsolid.com

Elements of the design for EXCELSUS, including the overall boss fight, resembled that of the ARGUS Core from the game Vanquish, which was also made by Platinum Games.

Gallery[]

Notes and references[]

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