Raiden is 35 Years Old in Metal Gear Rising

As clearly stated in the Metal Gear timeline, Raiden is 35 years old during the events of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance in 2018. For most human fighters, the mid-30s is past one‘s athletic prime. However, as a cyborg ninja, Raiden may just be coming into his combat peak thanks to enhancements keeping him lethal.

Raiden‘s History: Forged in Child Soldier Brutality

Raiden‘s cruel childhood as a child soldier left him traumatized from an early age. Born in 1983 during the Liberian Civil War, he was enlisted by Solidus Snake into the Small Boy Unit at only 6 years old under the moniker "Jack the Ripper" and forced to participate in utterly horrifying atrocities no child should ever endure. By 10 years old in 1993, Raiden was regarded as the small boy unit‘s most efficient killer which kept him alive but continued a cycle of violence no child should endure.

As this brief timeline shows, Raiden was robbed of anything resembling a normal childhood and subjected to conditions that would break most adults. By age 10, he was a battle-hardened killer.

Cyborg Enhancements Keep Raiden Lethal at 35

Now at 35 in Metal Gear Rising, it is only thanks to cybernetic enhancements that Raiden can remain a formidable fighter. His synthetic body provides him with near-superhuman strength, speed, agility, and pain tolerance that make going blade-to-blade with killers like Jetstream Sam possible. Some of Raiden‘s cyborg capabilities include:

• Robotic muscle fibers granting incredible reaction time and dexterity for Iaijutsu sword fighting
• Artificial blood that prevents bleeding out from brutal wounds
• Augmented sensory input so battles feel like "time slowing down"
• Spinal cartridge storing combat memories and techniques for reference

Without these modifications constantly optimizing his body, it is unlikely Raiden could keep up with foes at age 35 purely on human conditioning and practice alone from everything he endured growing up. The expert cyborg work done on him by Dr. Madnar and later Doktor are why this battle-hardened veteran can slicing up Metal Gears decades after his child soldier origin.

Contrasting Raiden‘s Youthful Naivety Versus 35-Year Old Confidence Now

When contrasting Metal Gear Rising to Raiden‘s initial appearance as a rookie FOXHOUND agent in Metal Gear Solid 2 back in 2009, the difference in maturity and capability at 35 versus his mid-20s youth is stark. In MGS2, Raiden often came across as naive and lacking in confidence even with his early combat training against terrorists. Now at 35 with years more experience of trauma and training, Raiden thinks and acts decisively with all the competence of the battle-tested veteran cyborg ninja he has become. His calmer tone and combat mastery shows a seasoned professional type of soldier compared to the rookie dramatics back on the Big Shell.

The expert swordsmanship and fearsome reputation Raiden now wields by his mid-30s represents how far he has come since awkwardly wielding assault rifles and getting manipulated by the Patriots as a young FOXHOUND agent. Those unstable, less experienced years are clearly behind the now legendary cyborg ninja.

Speculation on Raiden‘s Cyborg Lifespan and Combat Future

Given Raiden‘s extensive cybernetic enhancements keeping fatigue, age-related decline, and wounds from compromising his elite combat performance at 35, speculation suggests his cyborg conversion surgery may grant him an extended healthspan compared to normal human limits.

Barring catastrophic bodily damage, Raiden could plausibly remain at his physical prime for years or decades more of his lifepspan supposing Doktor and other cybernetic experts supply him with sufficient biotechnical upkeep, repairs, and upgrades whenever mechanical fatigue sets in. Some theorize he may continue his run as an elite combat asset well into middle age based on this ongoing maintenance factor.

His synthetic biology could grant Raiden a functionally ageless ability to operate as a lethal living weapon by the logic of cyborg longevity. But even he has limits against the rapid evolution of mechanical threats in his world which is why his sword skills must also continue evolving.

To conclude, at 35 years of age in Metal Gear Rising, the traumatic history Raiden endured as a child soldier could have ruined his body long before now. But thanks to expert cybernetic intervention, Jack the Ripper instead still possesses the reaction time, strength, sensors, and processing of someone in their physical prime rather than rapidly declining health. This allows him to keep cutting down advanced threats despite the bodily abuse accrued over decades. Given his synthetic enhancements show no signs of wearing down yet, Raiden‘s future as the combat asset "Mr. Lightning Bolt" may stretch years longer at this theoretical peak fighting form.