Red Faction: Guerilla review (PC)
In Red Faction: Guerilla you take the role of Alec Mason who just arrived on EDF (Earth Defense Force) controlled Mars where he is greeted by his brother. Shortly afterwards his brother is killed by the EDF, who claim that he was a member the rebel group known as the Red Faction, who try to overthrow their oppressors. The scene is now set for a forgettable plot. Do not play Volition?s latest endeavor if you expect a deep and engaging storyline. Red Faction: Guerilla is all about blowing stuff up and creating chaos. Sounds sweet, doesn?t it? For the most part it is, but sadly RFG lacks the final twist of variety that could elevate it from the muck
Let?s jump in at a random point in the game. You?ve just evaded dozens of EDF patrol vehicles and are now back at a Red Faction safe house. After restocking on ammo you?re ready to take another mission from the map, only to reach a horrifying realization. There is very little difference in the missions (apart from the story missions). Most either involve escorting hostages by blowing up their captors, defending rebel strongholds by blowing up the invaders, capturing EDF strongholds by blowing up the invaders or just blowing stuff.
You have a small, but destructive range of weaponry, from rocket launchers to a gun that basically tears every molecule in the enemy?s bodies apart. In addition to that, you have other rebels who join you in the fight, though one point of discontent should be put forth here. You cannot control your followers or deselect them, causing them to fight to their deaths instead, and every time you lose a rebel, civilian morale drops. It?s not like it?s your fault! The idiots could?ve just not followed me.
/>You'll never take me alive!.
The real objective of the game is to capture all of the six sectors that Mars has been divided into. This is done by destroying EDF property (read: blowing shit up!), which lowers the control of the sector you are spreading chaos and destruction. Once control reaches zero, you take one final story mission, and, voila, the sector is liberated. Once all six sectors are liberated, game over (it is possible to continue playing after the game?s ending, though).
Being a sandbox game, it features several distinct cars that you may use to get around the Martian landscape or driving away from the hordes of EDF that will be on your tail. Again, RFG doesn?t quite manage to keep the player interested, due to a lack of variety in the cars. The cars are all different, but you keep wishing for a broader range. Of course the mech thingies are absolutely awesome!
Now, to the explosions. If you?ve been paying any attention during this review you ought to know that RFG is really all about the explosions and the destruction. Are they amazing? Indeed! The joy of watching a building crash down upon your enemies and hearing their last horrific screams, simply cannot be explained. RFG uses the GeoMod engine to simulate the destruction, which allows buildings to be torn apart piece by piece. One downside of the engine is that occasionally (read: all the bloody time!) a single pillar will be holding the entire second floor of a building up. Sadly, the novelty quickly fades. Even blowing buildings up gets tedious
/>Oh, no, why would think I was going to hurt you? Come give me a hug!.
Red Faction is pretty. Real pretty. Just take a look at the screenshot above. I wish I could criticize it for not using enough color, but when taking into account that it takes place on Mars, you can forgive its lack of color. Two things I have to commend Volition for are creating a wonderful atmosphere and creating a good PC port. Let?s take the atmosphere first. Volition have created a magnificent, tense atmosphere. Whenever you drift away from the Martian roads and settlements and venture out into the uninhabited areas, a strange feeling sets in. Looking at endless rugged hills and abandoned factories and mining complexes makes the player wonder. Both at just driving away and exploring the red planet, or whether a marauder raiding party will ambush you, kill you and claim your skull as trophy. A few haunting tracks also add to the desolation and tension, and especially the Badlands seem like they could be keeping a great secret, but this is, unfortunately, never fully explored the game (there is another, shorter campaign that I didn?t play, that might give some more insight)
Secondly, Volition?s Saint?s Row 2 was also ported to PC, but in a state that was unplayable. Red Faction: Guerilla feels much more polished, and compared to Saint?s Row 2 on the PC this is a joy.
The multiplayer component has also been lauded, but I never had the opportunity to try it thanks to the steaming pile of feces known as Windows Live. Why anyone would voluntarily want to base their game on this, I don?t understand.
Conclusion
A good attempt at creating a sandbox game, but due to forgetting the #1 rule of sandbox games, variety, it fails.
Recommendation
Rent it. Despite its many, many shortcomings it?s still worth a try. At least the first several hours are a joy.
Pros
- Delightful destruction
- At time excellent atmosphere
- Good port
Cons
- Lack of variety
- Forgettable plot
- Windows Live
In Red Faction: Guerilla you take the role of Alec Mason who just arrived on EDF (Earth Defense Force) controlled Mars where he is greeted by his brother. Shortly afterwards his brother is killed by the EDF, who claim that he was a member the rebel group known as the Red Faction, who try to overthrow their oppressors. The scene is now set for a forgettable plot. Do not play Volition?s latest endeavor if you expect a deep and engaging storyline. Red Faction: Guerilla is all about blowing stuff up and creating chaos. Sounds sweet, doesn?t it? For the most part it is, but sadly RFG lacks the final twist of variety that could elevate it from the muck
Let?s jump in at a random point in the game. You?ve just evaded dozens of EDF patrol vehicles and are now back at a Red Faction safe house. After restocking on ammo you?re ready to take another mission from the map, only to reach a horrifying realization. There is very little difference in the missions (apart from the story missions). Most either involve escorting hostages by blowing up their captors, defending rebel strongholds by blowing up the invaders, capturing EDF strongholds by blowing up the invaders or just blowing stuff.
You have a small, but destructive range of weaponry, from rocket launchers to a gun that basically tears every molecule in the enemy?s bodies apart. In addition to that, you have other rebels who join you in the fight, though one point of discontent should be put forth here. You cannot control your followers or deselect them, causing them to fight to their deaths instead, and every time you lose a rebel, civilian morale drops. It?s not like it?s your fault! The idiots could?ve just not followed me.
The real objective of the game is to capture all of the six sectors that Mars has been divided into. This is done by destroying EDF property (read: blowing shit up!), which lowers the control of the sector you are spreading chaos and destruction. Once control reaches zero, you take one final story mission, and, voila, the sector is liberated. Once all six sectors are liberated, game over (it is possible to continue playing after the game?s ending, though).
Being a sandbox game, it features several distinct cars that you may use to get around the Martian landscape or driving away from the hordes of EDF that will be on your tail. Again, RFG doesn?t quite manage to keep the player interested, due to a lack of variety in the cars. The cars are all different, but you keep wishing for a broader range. Of course the mech thingies are absolutely awesome!
Now, to the explosions. If you?ve been paying any attention during this review you ought to know that RFG is really all about the explosions and the destruction. Are they amazing? Indeed! The joy of watching a building crash down upon your enemies and hearing their last horrific screams, simply cannot be explained. RFG uses the GeoMod engine to simulate the destruction, which allows buildings to be torn apart piece by piece. One downside of the engine is that occasionally (read: all the bloody time!) a single pillar will be holding the entire second floor of a building up. Sadly, the novelty quickly fades. Even blowing buildings up gets tedious
Red Faction is pretty. Real pretty. Just take a look at the screenshot above. I wish I could criticize it for not using enough color, but when taking into account that it takes place on Mars, you can forgive its lack of color. Two things I have to commend Volition for are creating a wonderful atmosphere and creating a good PC port. Let?s take the atmosphere first. Volition have created a magnificent, tense atmosphere. Whenever you drift away from the Martian roads and settlements and venture out into the uninhabited areas, a strange feeling sets in. Looking at endless rugged hills and abandoned factories and mining complexes makes the player wonder. Both at just driving away and exploring the red planet, or whether a marauder raiding party will ambush you, kill you and claim your skull as trophy. A few haunting tracks also add to the desolation and tension, and especially the Badlands seem like they could be keeping a great secret, but this is, unfortunately, never fully explored the game (there is another, shorter campaign that I didn?t play, that might give some more insight)
Secondly, Volition?s Saint?s Row 2 was also ported to PC, but in a state that was unplayable. Red Faction: Guerilla feels much more polished, and compared to Saint?s Row 2 on the PC this is a joy.
The multiplayer component has also been lauded, but I never had the opportunity to try it thanks to the steaming pile of feces known as Windows Live. Why anyone would voluntarily want to base their game on this, I don?t understand.
Conclusion
A good attempt at creating a sandbox game, but due to forgetting the #1 rule of sandbox games, variety, it fails.
Recommendation
Rent it. Despite its many, many shortcomings it?s still worth a try. At least the first several hours are a joy.
Pros
- Delightful destruction
- At time excellent atmosphere
- Good port
Cons
- Lack of variety
- Forgettable plot
- Windows Live