Resistance 2: The Definitive End of Humanity

Available: PS3

Game Type: 1 Player Shooter/2 Player Coop/1-64 Player Multiplayer

From: Insomniac Games/Sony Computer Entertainment America

The initial Resistance, for me, was a bit of a let down. Upon buying my sought-after PS3, I purchased Resistance because of the claim that it was “PS3’s Gears of War.” It was not. I enjoyed the game, but as anyone that read my Killzone 2 review knows, I prefer the shoulder button to be the iron-sight control rather than the clicking of the analog stick. A small complaint though it may be, the game just didn’t have what I expected. Graphics were pretty good, controls were admirable, and the story was good, but any early-PS3 owner will tell you the selection of games early on was worrisome. Resistance: Fall of Man was indeed one of the best available in that early lull before Sony picked up steam and third party developers learned the nuances of the Cell processor, but again, it just didn’t live up to the Gears of War comparison. As a non-Xbox guy, this should mean a lot, but I loved Gears of War, especially when I first laid eyes on the gorgeous graphics and tight gun play.

Resistance 2 aimed to cure a hefty load of woes, and it didn’t disappoint. Even a couple years after its release, it still blows me away in terms of graphics and sheer scale. Before we get too in depth, let’s go over the premise. When we left US Soldier-turned-viral Nathan Hale, he had gone through the horrifying experience of seeing his entire platoon wiped out by an insect-type parasite. As he and his Company’s field of vision dissolves, we’re left to believe that this alien invasion for which the soldiers were called upon is not of the “Area 51” silliness.

Minutes later, Hale awakens, to find the mentioned Company dead at his feet. Eyes glowing yellow, he wonders why he was spared. Through the initial game we find that due to his blood, he was able to fight the virus. Resistance 2 picks up where the first game left off, the Chimera forces have surrounded the Earth, and it seems the Fall of Man was exactly what happened. Earth’s defenses have dwindled to but a handful, hiding in underground bases and sewers, striking with all they can muster. Thanks to the odd blood type of our hero and a few other soldiers, a vaccine of sorts has been made by the Russian genius Doctor. Utilizing a neck-collar that administers an airborne medication, the Sentinels have been established as the last line of defense for the entire planet. Deep in the sewers, the SERPA 5 station exists to study a way to end the Chimera’s reign of terror; however a former friend of Hale’s, code named Daedal us and infected with an advanced form of the Chimera virus, has broken free and claims his determination to destroy humanity and allow them to evolve into the higher-level Chimera. As the SERPA Station-5, the Sentinels last haven is destroyed, and Hale must once again take up arms and fight the fast advances of the Chimera and the parasite in his blood.

Resistance: Fall of Man included a healing factor that allowed Nathan Hale to use the parasite in his blood as a means to regain health, but R2 eschews that mechanic in favor of a more traditional “red screen of death” method used in many shooters, which I like because I see no reason to heal myself when it can be done regularly through hiding in cover. The shooting mechanic itself also received an update, following suit and utilizing the shoulder button aiming technique and combining that with a far better hit detection code. Enemies still require several rounds, clips even, to subdue, but unlike the first iteration you can aim far more intricately and take the Chimera down with a couple head shots—well, the standard soldiers at least. In most games I dislike this, especially when facing human foes, but when the Chimeran virus inside Hale allows for rapid healing, there’s no reason to expect a fully transformed Chimera to heal even quicker.

To reiterate, the gunplay is just stellar. Shots are detected with pinpoint accuracy—a shot to the shoulder makes the baddies cringe the way they should, a shot to the chest makes them topple backwards, and as I said a head shot or two will kill them. In other words, the perfect balance of super soldier combat meets realism.

I believe Insomniac claimed there were up to 300 enemies on screen at a given time, and the way they made this work was through some sort of distance orientation field. What this means is that enemies in, for example, a fifty yard radius of Nathan Hale will attack, while outside of that radius the bad guys will attack your comrades. This makes for some unbelievable scenes where action surrounds you. Speaking of being surrounded, the graphics make it quite clear that the Earth is overrun. Unlike most games, when you look up in the sky it looks like there is an endless degree of action; spaceships coming in from orbit, pods landing to join the fight, and human ships getting blown out of the sky are all part of the game. It’s a bit amazing really when you take into account that games such as Singularity, supposedly coming out in late June 2010, use this method and Resistance 2 was released in February of (I believe) 2009.

Other than the scope of the conflict, the graphics in every regard are just fantastic. There aren’t any gargantuan soldiers on your side, instead they look—real. Subtle facial expressions, rolling eyeballs, and internal organs of the recently exploded slide down the glass in the next room over. The water effects are among the best I’ve seen and even show differences in the varying bullet calibers that break the surface tension. An M40 round makes a little pop, while a proton round out of the trusty Chimeran Bullseye makes a bigger splash.

I remember reading about the larger-than-life battles that would ensue, and in this regard Insomniac didn’t exaggerate one bit. Enemies range from the standard Chimera soldiers from the first game, beefed up and more menacing though they may be, to a giant creature that stands over Chicago like it was a joke. In an early level, you await extraction by chopper on a pontoon helipad only to be attached by a giant Cracken, tipping the pontoon like a spoon full of honey, eagerly awaiting Hale’s sliding down the pad into its mouth. Upgraded weaponry like the Radio-wave shooting gun allows you to take down these baddies, but I will say to the game’s deficit that a lot of these giant boss fights seemed way too scripted. That is to say you are in control of these fights, but with simple tactics like shoot-recharge-shoot again, it’s almost like watching the action happen rather than making it happen.

The coop element was disappointing: I expected to play the campaign with a friend, which would have been so much fun, but instead was given a half-hearted effort in which you choose a class and attach wave after wave of hatchlings. This could have been fun, too, but two classes have weapons, while the third class, a Medical class, is given a ridiculously wimpy ion pistol and a healing gun. Thus, you are left with the choice of being a zero-kill medical officer, or having no way to heal—there’s no in between unfortunately. I don’t have much more to say about the coop, because this giant hole in the plan made it very unenjoyable.

Skyscraper destroying monsters, relentless Chimera infestation, and tons of weapons (not to mention the elimination of the 12-gun radial—you can now only have two weapons at a time), more grenades, and battles of a grandiose nature are in store for you if you haven’t already toppled the Chimeran Empire. This game has all the thrills of any shooter on the market, and the graphics would look good if they were released yesterday. The textures make the game come to life, and the dialog keeps things grounded in reality while all around you the sci-fi vibe is a norm. And in the end, one of the biggest twists in gaming occurs, giving you the Saturday morning cliffhanger that surely deserves a third installment. So grab your arms, strap on your Chimera-prevention mask, and join SERPA 5 for a war of the world. Who knows, you just might make it out alive?

Graphics: Out of this world, no pun intended. Up in the sky you see invading ships, dog fights, and more, and in the vast distances you see man getting destroyed by the invading army. The sheer scale of this game is something that needs to be looked at by all shooters, and the mechanics used to make it happen are staggering.

Story: Very well done. The dialog is firm, standard soldier fare, but not of the meat head variety. The story follows an arch that stays true to the "humanity's end" idea and keeps you on the edge of your seat far better than the first even attempted.

Controls: Superb. Though it plays like any other shooter of high quality, subtle differences like having the grenade mapped to circle actually work very well, freeing up a shoulder button for the alternate-shot: M40 grenades, slow-motion for the sniper rifle, and more.

Multiple Play: I'm sure the online multiplayer offers a good deal of fun, but the local coop sucked. The campaign itself however, being a pretty lengthy game, has kept me entertained since its release; I find myself putting this game in every month or so and going on a binge.

Total: 95, A