PlayExclusive: Red Faction: Guerrila - A Real Blast

Console: X-Box 360, PS3, PC
Genre: 3rd person shooter
Players: 1 (2 – 16 online/lan)
ESRB Rating: T
Developer: Volition Inc./Reactor Zero (PC)





In the far future, set after the first Red Faction, Alec Mason, a former miner heads to the planet Mars in search of work. After witnessing his brothers death at the hands of the local military force, Alec joins that war for freedom under the newly re-formed Red Faction to free the planet and avenge his brother.

The Good

Open World: As soon as you get the opportunity to do your first real mission, the whole area is open to you, letting you have free roam to destroy what you want, when you want, with plenty of side missions to keep you busy. The tutorial is thankfully short, letting players get into the action with handy, mostly unintrusive popups as they play, or tutorial movies in the pause menu that players can access at any time.


Destroy EVERYTHING: With the exception of the ground, pretty much anything can be blown to pieces, from people to vehicles, to massive buildings. Sure, you could use explosives like any normal demoman, but a real man takes apart a military base with only his sledgehammer! In addition, players are actually rewarded for their destructive tendencies with pieces of scrap to buy upgrades, making times of boredom induced destruction a worthwhile romp.

Online Mode: While there's nothing like destroying entire buildings, beating down players online is pretty entertaining as well, with an excellent XP based unlock system to receive new aesthetic and gameplay upgrades.

The Bad

Tough Guys: While it's understandable that the EDF are tougher and better armed, players will find some missions will be near impossible to complete due to waves of enemy soldiers that fill an area after a bombing spree. Sure, the point of this game is to make a quick strike and retreat, but it just feel like the game places punishment for no reason, even on easier settings.

Please, don't try: Civilians have always been a thorn in the sides of gamers for ages, getting in the way of perfectly lined headshots, swerving into our way during high speed chases, and just being generally annoying. Unfortunately, in this game, they pose a greater threat; in getting killed, they penalize the player by lowering morale, meaning that players can't simply get into a killing spree for fun. Even worse, this penalty applies even if they are killed by EDF, making players dread assistance from these poorly trained allies.


Overall
Every building you destroy never quite goes down the same, and for many players that means a different experience for each mission they start on. Just remember that swift attacks and a quick retreat when the enemies roll by are the only recipe for success in this game, whether you're trying to avoid death, or the annoyingly moronic AI of other guerrilla's.




Review by Johar Aston, TheLAG

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Copyright 2009 Johar Aston, TheLAG