Resistance 2 Reviews

I may be a little biased when it comes to platform exclusives, but Resistance 2 is even a better reason to buy a ps3 more so than Halo for xbox. Challanging, fun, creative game that has it all. Great weapons, great co-op, and great multiplayer. My only problem is that the final boss is a little easy, but the story keeps you on your toes, with unexpected twists and turns. Deffinately in my top 5 fav games.

First-person shooters are a dime a dozen nowadays. Therefore it takes a very unique, truly quality FPS to make even a dent on the ardent shooter enthusiast's radar. It takes something even more for piqued curiosity to evolve into a purchase.

As far as first-person shooters are concerned, Resistance 2 doesn't do anything particularly new with the genre. If you've been around long enough to play through the original Half-Life, it's expansions, as well as Half-Life 2 and its respective episode packs, you'll know just what to expect. That familiarity, however, isn't always a bad thing as Resistance 2 so matter-of-factly proves. Short on story but big on everything else, this isn’t a game that seeks to innovate a tried-and-true formula, but rather to do everything within the confines of said formula extraordinarily well. I give developers Insomniac Games major credit for delivering not only a stand-out FPS experience, but also delivering one that trudges through various FPS clichés without coming off the least bit contrived.

Everything you would expect from a post-Halo shooter is here; limited weapon slots, regenerating health, and hordes of odd-looking creatures/aliens to shoot your increasingly interesting weapons at. Battling the Kraken in R2's second chapter and finally bringing the monstrosity down offers to the player one of the most rewarding sights in video game history. And to think, there are at least five more boss fights of the same scale and spectacle. The reward for playing through Resistance 2's intense single-player campaign is definitely the lead-up to each of the game's bosses.

However massive the scale in these end-chapter battles, R2 is otherwise precisely what you'd expect from a first-person shooter post-Half-Life in which you utilize particular strategies in order to defeat these huge enemies. One particular boss fight sees protagonist Nathan Hale having to quickly move from generator field to generator field, trapping something called a Swarm in these fields’ electrical range, and then blasting it with the Pulse Cannon (which is basically a huge gun that shoots plasma electricity). What the Swarm is is never clarified, but it looks to be a bunch of electrically charged molecules that can decimate any living thing in its path (literally tearing them apart). Getting caught within it proves deadly and much of this end-chapter fight's lead-up has you running from it while spraying it with machine gun fire – disorganizing its cohesion - as it attempts to trap you within.

The boss fights are so huge and so epic that the rest of the game’s gunfights tend to pale in comparison. That in itself says a lot as most of R2’s skirmishes see you going up against at least 30 or more baddies in rapid succession. Traversing the streets of Chicago only to hear hatch pods burst open, followed up by dozens upon dozens of zombie-like Grims clawing bloody murder as they dart through the alley ways, crash through windows, and leap out from the inside of dumpsters with the sole intentions of taking you and your squad out is impressive to behold.

If Insomniac could have made any narrative changes, I would have preferred a more involving, perhaps even articulate story. As many publications have already pointed out, there is no narrator this time around (Resistance: Fall of Man had one) and Nathan Hale isn’t exactly the game’s most exciting character. Cut-scenes are brief and simply act as set-ups for the ensuing chapter. Nothing too big is revealed (I guess that’s what Resistance 3 is for) and there’s surprisingly less story being told here than there was in the first Resistance. Understandably, those seeking an involving plot won’t find one, but R2 does sport an unremittingly grim ending that will definitely have even the most jaded players talking about it long after they’ve finished the game.

Resistance 2 isn't running on the most groundbreaking hardware, either. But the amount of enemies the engine is capable of throwing at you while still maintaining its excellent frame rate is something worth mentioning. Some textures are a bit blurry and understandably low-res, most notably on in-door environments, but enemies and bosses are well-animated and detailed. The best looking environments tend to be those set in exteriors as opposed to interiors. Even given the scope of the gun battles there are some glaring flaws, such as static brush, largely non-interactive levels, and a jarring lack of visual polish. Cut-scenes, however, look fantastic. I'm also fond the cut-scene/in-game art style and the variety of locales you and the Chimera shoot it out in.

AI is one of R2’s strong suits as each class of Chimera has differing abilities that the game’s artificial intelligence implements to their advantage… and your detriment. Enemies require a good number of shots to defeat, so when you have angry Chimera rushing you, flanking you, and tossing grenades from all sides, you can expect to become overwhelmed. No, Resistance 2 is not an easy game. Due largely in part to fantastic AI (even in regards to friendly NPCs) you will die many, many times over. Sometimes the key to victory is as simple as having pinpoint accuracy, other times it is all a matter of adapting to a certain combat situation. Even if R2 can become a bit trial-and-error, that makes it no less fun.

Resistance 2 isn’t the most innovative game Sony has released as a system exclusive. But unoriginality aside, it’s an immersive, deeply satisfying FPS that warrants at least a couple of playthroughs. There’s much to do – such as taking on “real-life” foes in the competitive online modes and going through the co-op campaign with up to 8 players – and it is simply a fun, action-packed shooter. I’m most fond of the atmosphere that R2 is all but soaked in. Resistance 2 goes from fast-paced actioner to survival horror in the blink of an eye. The sense of being overwhelmed and outgunned makes for memorable game play and is also damn effective. Granted, R2 is, as I said, not easy, but it is a wholly rewarding experience that offers up some of the most intense gunfights on any system. Fans of first-person shooters owe it to themselves to give this one a purchase.