The surprise to fans that Raiden was not Snake was admitted by Kojima to have been inspired by the plot twist of Terminator 2: Judgment Day where the titular character played by Arnold Schwarzenegger was not a villain in that movie.
The real reason why Raiden was called "Snake" is because he represents the player having taken the role of Solid Snake in previous games/VR missions/Tanker Chapter.
Raiden (雷電, Raiden?), real name Jack, also known as Jack the Ripper, White Devil, and Snake, was a Liberian-American mercenary and former special forces soldier.
Main appearance(s)
Raiden's parents were a couple who had a son together. Some time after their son's birth, they were killed by Solidus Snake. He took their son, named him Jack, and raised him as a child soldier in the Army of the Devil.
"Raiden's uncle is Solid Snake by law due to his relationship with Solidus Snake." Solidus didn't officially adopt Raiden; he found him and took him under his care, training him to be one of his soldiers.
6 Son of (Solidus) Snake
After revealing to Raiden that he is his adopted father, Solidus also makes the chilling revelation that he killed Raiden's biological parents so he can be trained as a soldier.
The Raikov Mask is a camouflage item used in the game Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater as well as Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence and its HD and 3D remakes. Hideo Kojima inserted the mask into the game as a way to allow fans of the series who had a lot of favor towards Raiden to technically "play" as him.
He's referring to the events of Twin Suns from Metal Gear Solid 4, where he had to lose his arms to save Solid Snake (specifically, he willingly cut off his right arm to save Snake from Outer Haven due to being otherwise unable to move in to aid Snake, and he lost the remaining arm when he was crushed by Outer Haven).
Raiden saves baby Liu Kang (Opening Scene) | Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms - YouTube.
The former Electro Archon, Raiden Makoto is the twin sister of Raiden Ei. Compared to Ei's more stressed personality, Makoto was known as a calm and peaceful goddess. In this way, the two have a very balanced dynamic.
Rose and Raiden finally decided to reconcile, and began their relationship anew as a family.
Raiden, whose real name is Jack, and also known as Jack the Ripper. Ivan Raidenovitch Raikov, an ex-GRU major and former second in command to Colonel Volgin. His name is a name of Slavic Christian origin that closely transcribes to John or Jack.
Sunny is the daughter of Olga Gurlukovich, who was kidnapped at birth by the Patriots. The Patriots sent Olga pictures of Sunny every month and eventually used her as ransom to force Olga to assist Raiden: if Raiden had died, no matter the cause, Sunny would have died along with him due to neural implants.
Snake first meets Raiden during a mission on the captured Big Shell in Metal Gear Solid 2. This mission is especially important for Raiden as it's his first big assignment under what he believes to be FOXHOUND, the same special forces unit that Snake worked for.
Raiden's replacement of fan favorite Solid Snake in Metal Gear Solid 2 proved controversial; GamesRadar considered the replacement a reason to dislike the series. The same site criticized Raiden's role in Metal Gear Solid 2 several times and called his inclusion one of the worst aspects of the game.
After escaping, Raiden covertly left Sunny in the care of Solid Snake and Otacon, who raised her aboard the Nomad. Having been used by the Patriots as a computer programmer, she became a child prodigy, helping to build both Metal Gear Mk.
Once it was done, Raiden was seemingly betrayed by Snake and handed over to Olga Gurlukovich, but later learned it was a ruse so Snake could sneak on board.
John, nicknamed Little John, is the son of Raiden and Rosemary.
Raiden is a god, therefore, he is immortal. In Shinnok's case, it is stated that he cannot be killed because he's a god. He could have his head lopped off and dropped in the Netherrealm, but he won't die.
Although not an eyepatch, Raiden utilized a cloth to cover his missing left eye, after a fight with Samuel Rodrigues resulted in his eye being injured and amputated, and because a cybernetic replacement eye wasn't fully created prior to his surgery, in 2018.
Although Raiden's head from the mouth-up was still flesh, the lower jaw was cybernetic, resulting in a skull-like appearance.
The electricity Raiden creates is blue and white. After his corruption, starting in MK11, Raiden now creates red electricity. The color of his lightning attacks can change color based on which shader is selected in his guest appearance in Injustice 2. His default shader retains the original blue lightning.
Raiden, having received cybernetic implants by the Patriots, used this kind of blood. After he was badly injured from battling Gekko and Vamp during the Guns of the Patriots Incident, he would have died had Naomi Hunter and Sunny been unable to find an infusion of white blood and begin dialysis in time.
Everyone knows Snake Eyes as the Joe's silent, deadly, black-suited assassin. He never speaks and he never takes off his mask.
He's got a gravelly voice, a steely stare and an extremely good aim. But for as perfect as the first Metal Gear Solid is — and in large part because of Snake's unshakeable bravado — he has nothing on his successor, Metal Gear Solid 2's Raiden. Yep: Raiden is better than Snake.