Metal Gear EXCELSUS

Metal Gear Excelsus was a Metal Gear that was developed around 2018.

Description
It was hexapedal, with additional secondary devices equipped 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.

Development
When SOP and the Patriots fell following Liquid Ocelot's Insurrection, PMCs acted on the development of cyborg technology which the information had been previously suppressed. 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. The result was a new Metal Gear codenamed "Excelsus". 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.

Operation Tecumseh
In 2018, Raiden fought against Excelsus, with Colorado senator Steven Armstrong piloting it. 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
In the TGS trailer of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Excelsus appeared as an unnamed mech of considerable size, possibly preparing to attack Raiden. This implied that the mech would be piloted by Senator Steven Armstrong as the final boss battle. The machine was eventually identified in some screenshots released by the gaming site newbreview.

Contrary to popular belief, the mech that appeared in the ending of the TGS trailer is not the Vodomjerka, shown in a leaked list of trophy/achievements, specifically the trophy/achievement "Pond Scum." Although the enemy icon possessed a passing resemblance to the mech, the Vodomjerka were actually much smaller than the one shown in the ending of the TGS trailer, as revealed in a long gameplay trailer.