Resistance 2 follows up on its critically acclaimed younger brother, a tough act to follow considering the great reviews that Fall of Man received and the fact that practically every PS3 owner has been through the game and now sits with very high expectations of what Insomniac, the developers, will do next. <\/p>\n
However, while there are vast improvements on the visuals, the gameplay and the overall scale of the title, there are a few glaring problems that sadly turn what could have been a gargantuan, unstoppable alien abomination into one of those silly face-hugger things than runs around hopelessly looking for someone to love it.<\/p>\n
The storyline picks up right where it left off with the hero Nathan Hale leaving England for the US, the last remaining territory without a nasty alien infestation problem. Not long after his arrival though Hale is greeted by an even greater fleet of Chimera and now has to once again fight for his life as well as (cue drum roll) the very fate of humanity. Sadly the story doesn’t get much better, but Resistance 2 does have a few cool tricks up its army-issue sleeves.<\/p>\n
Right from the word go the game pulls out all the stops and greets players with an enormous, towering giant of an enemy right as they step into the first level. This grand scale is prevalent throughout the game and does a great job of creating a real sense of crisis and impending global doom, and this first beastie is just a taste of what’s to come. The levels are equally massive and range from the seemingly endless span of a Chimeran ship to a vast and eerily quiet forest, which set the scene for some very cool set battles and massive ambushes.<\/p>\n
Apart from the game’s first behemoth, the menagerie is filled with a variety of foes ranging from the average cannon fodder grunts to hulking brutes than require most of your ammunition, a fair bit of your patience and most of your sanity to defeat. The bosses are a treat though, even the battle with the overly-used-in-these-type-of-games Kraken. Gamers will definitely feel dwarfed by these creatures and there’s a real sense of relief and achievement when one is vanquished.<\/p>\n
No FPS title is complete without a selection of awesome weapons, and Resistance 2 has a good armoury buffet from which a host of alien-splattering toys can be chosen. The Carbine and Bullseye make a welcome return as the basic rifle weapons, as does the ever-awesome Auger which allows players to fire through walls as well as set up temporary barriers against incoming fire.<\/p>\n
There are also a few grenades to choose from as well as some heavy artillery, but these only come later when they’re needed most. <\/p>\n
Our favourite was the Magnum, a potent handgun that frags Chimeran underlings with a single shot and does a hefty amount of damage with its exploding alternate fire. There’s something very satisfying (and yet somewhat disturbing) about killing a filthy alien with a high-powered slug and then using his corpse as an explosive to kill his unsuspecting friends. <\/p>\n
However, there are some problems with Resistance 2, and unfortunately they prove to be a pretty crippling thorn in the foot\/tentacle.<\/p>\n
The most obvious is the terrible storyline. Yes, we know it’s an FPS game, and it’s not meant to be a story-driven title, but if games like Dead Space can take a clichéd story and still make it feel fresh and original then why can’t this one? Besides, Insomniac are the brains behind the well-written Ratchet and Clank series, so there really is no excuse for a story that’s sloppier than the drool from a Chimeran foot soldier’s jaws.<\/p>\n
There are intel documents littered around the levels that help to expand on the mysterious story, but there’s little to explain the unfolding events with any coherence. This comes across as a real pity as the narration in Fall of Man was pulled off well, and we were left feeling that this successor was a bit neglected in the storytelling department.<\/p>\n
But, the real game-breaker though comes in the form of the absolutely useless AI. While it may feel realistic to be swarmed by hordes of various nasties in big, epic battles, it doesn’t take long to realise that the enemy cares about only one thing: killing Hale and nothing else. It’s so bad in fact that the Chimera will completely ignore Hale’s teammates and head straight for the player instead.<\/p>\n
As an example, we were running through a deserted town with our teammate when we had to enter a house, clear it and then exit on the other side. As we stepped onto the front porch we were caught without enough ammo and mobbed by waves of suicidal spawn who killed, maimed and, presumably, dined on our tasty and still-quivering entrails.<\/p>\n
So, on the second attempt, we decided to collect more ammo in the house first before moving forward, but our brave teammate wandered outside, triggered the aliens and sent them right past him into the house to come right to us. Death came swiftly.<\/p>\n
The third attempt saw us using the homing ability of the shockingly bad AI to our advantage: setting up a choke point in a doorway, we waited for the foolish Chimera to track us down and dispatched them with some explosive goodness.<\/p>\n
This blind stupidity tends to spoil the immersive look and feel of Resistance 2, and once gamers figure out how to trick the AI like this the cued battles can seem easy and lame i.e. hide around a corner and wait for the enemy to waltz right into a shotgun barrel. Unless players are fond of feeling like an anaemic in a shark cage wrapped in razorblades and Porterhouse steak, this issue is a massively disappointing wet blanket.<\/p>\n
The only other gripe we have is the game’s complete lack of originality. While this comment is subjective (as are most things about game reviews), and while this seems to be the way the gaming industry is going these days, it still baffles us that the same tired ideas are being rehashed over and over again. <\/p>\n
Every single element from the monsters to the environments to the weapons have all been seen before, and while they are wrapped up in quite a nice-looking package players will battle to really feel stimulated when they’re prodded with the same old shtick.<\/p>\n
In conclusion, Resistance 2 is a decent game that just falls slightly short of greatness. Brain-dead AI dumbs down an otherwise impressive shooter, and stands out as the only real issue in what could have been a phenomenal title. <\/p>\n
The great environments and overall style make it fun to play though and it’s still definitely a game worth a look, but if you’re after something to really blow you away we recommend you hang on until Resistance 3 where the AI has hopefully been sorted out enough to grow this little face-hugger into one of those proper badass aliens that’ll brutally eviscerate you rather than simply suck your face.<\/p>\n