So this has always been a question that bugs me; why do most fans of Metal Gear Solid absolutely despise Raiden during MGS2? Granted, his sheer incompetence during the first half of the game (did you say "nerd"?) led me to despise him, and his girlfriend Rose was just as tolerable, but at the end of the game, Raiden becomes frustrated being chained to the orders of his superiors, and constantly questions the integrity of his commanding officers, much like Snake did in the first MGS.

In all honesty, most of the complaints I hear about Raiden concern either his feminine look (which somehow makes him a hateable character), his whiny personality (which I never really saw in him; seriously, I think Otacon in the first game was less tolerable), or the fact that he replaces Solid Snake as the main character (although abserving Snake's actions from the eyes of a less experienced soldier added Snake's appeal as a character to me; besides, if the theme of MGS2 was manipulation of the masses, then Snake, a man who works outside of the system, would have arguably done less to enforce the theme).

In addition, I felt that completely changing his character in MGS4 made him less likeable to me because, in all honesty, he adds more angst to what was already a downer of a game; he spends most of the game lamenting over what his life had become.

So anyway, those're my thoughts on Raiden. I really just want to understand why so many people seem to feel like he ruined MGS2. Granted, he was intolerable for a good chunk of the game, but he doesn't seem as bad as people say he is, and the reasons given barelly seem legitimate.