I've been busy, but I finally got the review done. Remember that the 'B' corresponds to the new Vik Scale in sig. Next is "Ratchet & Crank." Then afterwards, I don't know. I think I'll start polling you guys.
Grade: B
Pros
Shooting aliens with cool weapons.
Cons
Crappy textures.
Introduction
Resistance: Fall of Man is called the ?Halo Killer? on the PS3. I completely agree. While it may be difficult to compare this game to Halo: Combat Evolved because of the different shooter styles, this game can be directly compared to Halo 2, which Resistance destroys in every aspect. Well . . . I haven?t tried the multiplayer of either game; so in every single-player campaign aspect.
Story
Make believe WWII never happened, and instead an alien race, called the Chimera, has taken over all of Europe; all, except Great Britain. The English buy the aid of Americans. You?re a Ranger named Sergeant Hale. Ironic enough, and I assume, deliberate, Hale means ?free from disease or infirmity; robust; vigorous.? Many or all of these meanings actually tie into the story, including the whole ?one-man army? deal that we get with typical first-person shooters.
The story isn?t completely progressive. It?s mostly just completing objectives that may seem typical of war, or an excuse to play further. But there is an underlying fascination behind it. Maybe it?s the setting of the story. Maybe it?s the mystery behind the narrator. Maybe it?s the interest that builds in the Chimera. These small things made me want to see what the ending was.
The story is told via cut-scenes in between levels. Black and White sketches are shown and a woman, who you meet early on, narrates. I initially thought it was a cheap way of telling the story, but it grew on me. You also get to find extra, interesting information hidden throughout the game.
Gameplay
For the first few levels the game started out slow and crappy. It didn?t feel like a war. You are all alone and enemies are scarce, similar to DOOM3. Then the action picks up and it never quits. The game has a good level of challenge at Medium difficulty. I died a bunch of times, but . . . I also, didn?t die a bunch of times.
The health system is unique because it is a hybrid of the old, health pack system, and the new regeneration system used in the Call of Duty series. Full health consists of four bars connected horizontally. If you get shot, and your health doesn?t dip into the next bar, then you regenerate back to full health. But if it does dip into the next bar, then you can only regenerate to three full bars instead of four. The idea is that getting hit enough times produced irreparable damage. In this case, you need a health pack to get back to the fourth bar. I like it.
There are a variety of different enemies, which all get introduced at a nice pace. This is something that many games can?t quite get right. Other types of gameplay enhancements are vehicles sections, which you get to control various types of vehicles. And you have to be impressed again ? something else that other games can?t quite get right.
The guns are interesting. Well first let me say that when you pick up a new gun, the game pauses and you get to read a short summary about it. I love that. Taking into consideration that the game takes place around 1950 and that WWII never happened, we have some futuristic weapons here. The M5A2 Carbine is an automatic rifle, who?s style hints at WWII carbine. Then you have the very useful Double Barrel Shotgun, a sniper rifle, rocket launcher, and top secret grenade launcher. The only weapons that look futuristic are the rifle and grenade launcher. I didn?t like using the launcher. I did use the rifle for most of the game though. It was fun and it sounds great. You also get four fun alien weapons the first time you play the game. You can get more weapons by playing the game multiple times if you wish. All these weapons, except the grenade launcher, are fun to use. Each has a special place in battle.
Grenades are also very cool. There?s the regular grenade. Then there?s a grenade that when explodes launches arrows in all direction, which is very deadly, and looks cool. Finally, there?s a grenade that causes a huge fire explosion, which also looks cool.
Other Stuff
A major disappointment with the graphics is the texture quality. It is very low resolution. It is noticeable and bothersome. I?ve seen better textures on the Dreamcast. But all is not lost. The game is blessed with excellent geometry detail which you can clearly see in the buildings and environment.
Music is scarce initially, but becomes more of a presence as more action occurs. It can be subtle and creepy at times, and it can be loud and tension-filled during a battle.
Most sound effects such as guns and footsteps are great. However, when you bump into any object in the environment, including the wall, it sounds awkward.
Conclusion
As a single-player game, you will not be disappointed. I think Resistance set out to be a Halo Killer, and got much inspiration from various high-scoring shooters. What it borrows, it does well, with distinction. And the fact that Insomniac succeeded in that is impressive.
Grade: B
Pros
Shooting aliens with cool weapons.
Cons
Crappy textures.
Introduction
Resistance: Fall of Man is called the ?Halo Killer? on the PS3. I completely agree. While it may be difficult to compare this game to Halo: Combat Evolved because of the different shooter styles, this game can be directly compared to Halo 2, which Resistance destroys in every aspect. Well . . . I haven?t tried the multiplayer of either game; so in every single-player campaign aspect.
Story
Make believe WWII never happened, and instead an alien race, called the Chimera, has taken over all of Europe; all, except Great Britain. The English buy the aid of Americans. You?re a Ranger named Sergeant Hale. Ironic enough, and I assume, deliberate, Hale means ?free from disease or infirmity; robust; vigorous.? Many or all of these meanings actually tie into the story, including the whole ?one-man army? deal that we get with typical first-person shooters.
The story isn?t completely progressive. It?s mostly just completing objectives that may seem typical of war, or an excuse to play further. But there is an underlying fascination behind it. Maybe it?s the setting of the story. Maybe it?s the mystery behind the narrator. Maybe it?s the interest that builds in the Chimera. These small things made me want to see what the ending was.
The story is told via cut-scenes in between levels. Black and White sketches are shown and a woman, who you meet early on, narrates. I initially thought it was a cheap way of telling the story, but it grew on me. You also get to find extra, interesting information hidden throughout the game.
Gameplay
For the first few levels the game started out slow and crappy. It didn?t feel like a war. You are all alone and enemies are scarce, similar to DOOM3. Then the action picks up and it never quits. The game has a good level of challenge at Medium difficulty. I died a bunch of times, but . . . I also, didn?t die a bunch of times.
The health system is unique because it is a hybrid of the old, health pack system, and the new regeneration system used in the Call of Duty series. Full health consists of four bars connected horizontally. If you get shot, and your health doesn?t dip into the next bar, then you regenerate back to full health. But if it does dip into the next bar, then you can only regenerate to three full bars instead of four. The idea is that getting hit enough times produced irreparable damage. In this case, you need a health pack to get back to the fourth bar. I like it.
There are a variety of different enemies, which all get introduced at a nice pace. This is something that many games can?t quite get right. Other types of gameplay enhancements are vehicles sections, which you get to control various types of vehicles. And you have to be impressed again ? something else that other games can?t quite get right.
The guns are interesting. Well first let me say that when you pick up a new gun, the game pauses and you get to read a short summary about it. I love that. Taking into consideration that the game takes place around 1950 and that WWII never happened, we have some futuristic weapons here. The M5A2 Carbine is an automatic rifle, who?s style hints at WWII carbine. Then you have the very useful Double Barrel Shotgun, a sniper rifle, rocket launcher, and top secret grenade launcher. The only weapons that look futuristic are the rifle and grenade launcher. I didn?t like using the launcher. I did use the rifle for most of the game though. It was fun and it sounds great. You also get four fun alien weapons the first time you play the game. You can get more weapons by playing the game multiple times if you wish. All these weapons, except the grenade launcher, are fun to use. Each has a special place in battle.
Grenades are also very cool. There?s the regular grenade. Then there?s a grenade that when explodes launches arrows in all direction, which is very deadly, and looks cool. Finally, there?s a grenade that causes a huge fire explosion, which also looks cool.
Other Stuff
A major disappointment with the graphics is the texture quality. It is very low resolution. It is noticeable and bothersome. I?ve seen better textures on the Dreamcast. But all is not lost. The game is blessed with excellent geometry detail which you can clearly see in the buildings and environment.
Music is scarce initially, but becomes more of a presence as more action occurs. It can be subtle and creepy at times, and it can be loud and tension-filled during a battle.
Most sound effects such as guns and footsteps are great. However, when you bump into any object in the environment, including the wall, it sounds awkward.
Conclusion
As a single-player game, you will not be disappointed. I think Resistance set out to be a Halo Killer, and got much inspiration from various high-scoring shooters. What it borrows, it does well, with distinction. And the fact that Insomniac succeeded in that is impressive.
