How to Deal with Custom Cyborgs in Metal Gear Rising
Custom Cyborgs are among the toughest enemies in all of Metal Gear Rising thanks to their extreme resilience, aggression, and chasing speed (unsurprising for enemies that are actually taller than Sundowner if you line up all the character models). Very specific tactics often have to be deployed against them in order to mitigate the threat they pose on the battlefield in groups—whether in variety or the lack thereof.
While it is very satisfying to engage and win in a Parry war with these towering menaces (especially when there is only one of them left on the field), it is often not advised to engage in such Parry wars when you’re trying your best to survive hordes of enemies as well as be efficient. Alongside the Heavily Armed Cyborgs, these guys provide a relatively strong counter to your Parry mechanic when compared to many other enemies. As such, there are better methods by which to hold your ground against these enemies, who unfortunately appear in abundance.
AS RAIDEN: Raiden has a few moves that he can use to exploit the weaknesses of the Custom Cyborg, with some being better than others. While other moves and tools can also be quite useful, none counter the Custom Cyborgs as strongly as the Sliding Tackle–Blade Mode synergy, the Ankle Slicer, and the Throat Slicer.
- By far the best method against the Custom Cyborgs is the Sliding Tackle–Blade Mode synergy. In order to utilize this, perform a Sliding Tackle against a Custom Cyborg. He will respond by putting on a parrying stance. Then, enable Blade Mode and cut at his parrying stance a couple of times. This will stun him, leaving him open for an Execution, but only if you have enough FC meter. If you do not have enough FC meter, use the Tornado Slash to quickly gain FC meter back and Execute the Custom Cyborg.
- u/LaggyLefty (also known quite well as LaggySnake on YouTube) has a great video demonstration of how to use this tactic: How to easily kill Armored Cyborgs - Metal Gear Rising
- If you find that your current situation makes it difficult to farm FC meter with a follow-up Tornado Slash, the Custom Cyborgs are also extremely weak against the Ankle Slicer. Because the Sky High, Sweep Kick, and Thunder Strike unfortunately get easily negated by the Custom Cyborgs, the next best option is to use the Ankle Slicer—which they can almost never block—to trip them. After tripping them, you can either put them through an Ankle Slicer torture loop or use the Throat Slicer, explained below.
- The Throat Slicer is a very powerful combo that can be used against Custom Cyborgs that have been tripped or launched horizontally or vertically. To reduce the cooldown of the combo’s finisher, aim the Defensive Offense forward and repeat the Throat Slicer so long as it is safe to do so.
- Many players also find that some of the Unique Weapons are also very handy for dealing with the Custom Cyborgs. The L’Étranger Pole-Arm, in particular, is good for handling them in crowds. The Bloodlust Pincer Blades, on the other hand, can be charged ahead of time to shut down Custom Cyborg aggression.
AS SAM: Jetstream Sam is arguably a harder counter to the Custom Cyborgs than Raiden is due to the fact that many of his major attacks don’t get negated nearly as easily as Raiden’s. These attacks in question include the Assault Rush, the Jaw Breaker, and his various Charging Slashes.
- The Assault Rush is by far the most convenient way to shut them down when they’re rushing at you since they cannot block this attack. It also does insane amounts of damage if you’ve Taunted them, but be careful about Taunting them when it is unsafe to do so.
- While it is possible for them to block the Jaw Breaker, they seriously struggle to do so. The Jaw Breaker also does more total damage than the Assault Rush with its two outputs. The Jaw Breaker can also be used to style on them by starting your air combo. However, be careful about ending the air combo with an Avalanche, as there is a very high chance that the Custom Cyborg will instantly rise from the floor to perform a riposte against the Avalanche, even if you’ve cut off their limbs and disarmed them. This is a very annoying bug.
- Only truly useful when there is only one Custom Cyborg advancing towards you, and you’re not already running from them, Sam’s Charging Slashes are a convenient way to instantly kill them. There may be cases where there are two Custom Cyborgs chasing you down, and the Blender would be the best move to use.
u/N0_Horny said the following, recommending a solution to the Parry wars that you may engage in with the Custom Cyborgs: “By the way, if you do get caught in the ‘endless parry exchange’ and want to get out of it—or if you sense someone approaching you from behind—you can do so by canceling the animation with Blade Mode and immediately using Defensive Offense afterward (you'll have about 0.3–0.5 seconds). It's advisable to do two of these, as someone could very well approach you from behind. A second dodge, just in case, will most likely get you back from this potential threat.”