Resistance 3

Last week I didn't really have much to review and my internet was playing up a fair bit, so I neglected to post a review. To make up for that, I've done a marathon effort with Resistance 3 and completed it in less time than I would usually alot to a game. Luckily I took part in the multiplayer Beta in it's later stages, so I have a good idea how well that works without actually touching the "complete" version. Not that I dwell too much on multiplayer in these things anyway. So, let's get into it!

STORY
Resistance 3 starts 4 years after the events of Resistance 2, and it follows Joe Capelli's journey to New York to end the Chimeran invasion once and for all, and to make a better life for his wife and son. Resistance veterans may recall what happened to the series former protagonist, Nathan Hale, but for newcomers, I won't spoil it (though Resistance 3 will in the first cutscene).

The setting for Resistance 3 is very depressing when you think about it, but very immersive at the same time. 90% of the worlds population are now either dead or chimeran converts, and the desperation of humanity can be seen in various lines of dialogue between Joe, his family, Malikov and the Remnants.

What I found most intriguing about Resistance 3's story is that it tries to tell a more intimate story than it's very militaristic predecessors. While you're still fighting in some fairly large battles, you're only one man. There's very little backup, and you aren't fighting to win, you're fighting to live. This helps give the game a very helpless, desperate and human quality.

PRESENTATION
Resistance 3's visuals and musical score fit the tone of the game perfectly. It may not be of Battlefield 3 standard graphics, but it's bleak and grimy and it works. Very few games can have a grimy look like this and have it work so well. Many environments have a sepia tone to them, helping remind us that this game is actually set 54 years in the past.

The score sets scenes in the game perfectly, whether its the screech of violin strings in dark, claustrophobic corridors, or epic war drums in the larger battles. You'll very rarely notice a part where the soundtrack doesn't fit the part of the game you're in.

The voice acting is more hit than miss, but some of the country accents in the first few chapters of the game are rather funny. I've never been to Oklahoma, so if people do actually talk like that, I'm sorry. that's not to say all of them are bad. just some. Like I said, more hit than miss.

GAMEPLAY
The gameplay of the Resistance series has always been an interesting beast. Despite the name, you would always feel equally matched with your alien opposition due to squads of friendly NPC's or something akin to that. While Resistance 3 starts similar to that, you soon learn that the games tagline, "You are the resistance" is more than just a line. For most of the game, you'll have maybe one friendly NPC helping you out, and for the rest of the game, you'll be on your own. The chimera are vicious opponents, and it'll take every trick you have to come out of this alive.

But don't worry your little nooby head. You aren't completely helpless. Making it's return from Fall of Man is the much coveted Weapon Wheel, a concept that would have improved countless games in the last few years (did I hear you say, Duke Nukem Forever)? And in that weapon wheel, you have some truly epic weapons. Yes, there are your standards like the shotgun, the carbine rifle and the sniper rifle, but as well as having more unique weapons, each weapon has a useful secondary fire and upgrades.

By the end of my time with it, I was kicking ass left, right and centre with my Incendiary shotgun and magnum with exploding rounds. Insomniac games have proven themselves once again as the innovators in game weaponry.

Gameplay never really evolves past the whole "go here, shoot things, go here, get friend, shoot things with friend, win" scenario, but so many other games do that with so much less to back it up. The gameplay may be repetitive, but you'll barely ever notice it, simply due to the amount of variation in the ways you can take your fight to the chimera, and the constant tension you feel when searching for a health pack in the heat of battle. And for me, that makes Resistance 3 one of the best FPS games of this generation.

As for the problems, I had some minor clipping issues, and got stuck in the environment once or twice, but I played without any patches or updates. I've read in other, more "professional" reviews that enemies will occasionally float into the sky, or just stop moving all together, but I never had any problems with this.
I did, however, have a problem with my console picking up the fact that there was a disc in it, but I think that's probably an isolated issue.

REPLAYABILITY
R3 has a strong single player, replayable campaign on its own, but it also has a number of collectible journal entries and audio diaries that flesh out the already riveting story. As well as that, theres a number of trophies to unlock, and weapon upgrades to attain.
Now, if you're the type who doesn't like to replay single player campaigns, then the multiplayer is for you. It's like a mix between Call of Duty and Halo, with similar gameplay and controls to CoD and special abilities mimicking the armour abilities of Halo and the perks of CoD. To some, that may seem like a rip off, but is it really so bad that many FPS games are trying to replicate CoD multiplayer? I wish more would take the CoD template and put their own spin on it, like Resistance 3 did.

OVERVIEW
Is Resistance 3 a perfect game? No. It's often too easy, the story goes a bit quickly and the gameplay (for some) may be a bit repetitive. Is it a damn good entry in a great series? Hell yea. I would say it's the best in the series. Sure, theres no Nathan Hale, and Capelli isn't as strong as a character, but the story itself gives us some closure, I believe, and the gameplay is as strong as ever. The lack of regerative health may seem to difficult for some, but it's balanced nicely with the fuckton of guns you get in the weapon wheel. It all allows more choice in a genre that generally puts you on a path with very little deviation.

Game of the year contender? In my book, you better believe it.



Next week, a review of Dead Island, which is shaping up to be one of those "B Movies of gaming". Stupid fun, if nothing else. See you next time!