"We never learned exactly what happened there, all we know is Nathan Hale was the sole survivor
If I said Resistance: Fall of Man didn’t remind me of Killzone, I would be a filthy liar. Both feature a basic storyline, a typical combat system, and predictable gameplay. Both have that grey, gritty style of play that’s been done so many times before, and both were hyped beyond belief. Great games in their own respect, but both miserably failed because of in-game mistakes and crushing blows by competition. Like Killzone, Resistance never reaches the coveted legendary status that other First Person Shooters have, before them.
Resistance: Fall of Man sets you 1950’s alternate history England, where WWII never happened. Alien creatures known only as Chimeras have plowed through Europe, and have begun there assault on Britain. You are Nathan Hale of the United States Army Rangers, sent to help liberate England.
The interesting story is quickly quashed by long exasperating cut scenes that are very prominent in the early goings. With odd narration and overall dull cinematics, Resistance slits its own throat early.
Once the game starts, it’s easy to be fooled by the lighting effects and bright colours, as very little is offered in terms of substance. The lighting effects are good, but some objects, like structures, have an odd look about them, and the sky and ground both have an unnatural look to them with no real reflections or lifelike appearances.
Characters on the other hand were a mixed bag. Fellow humans had the ‘same old’ look to them like in other shooters, but the Chimera and most other enemies, were visually impressive. The only problem I have with the Chimera, visually, is that they lack variety. And while were on the subject of ‘same old’, Resistance takes the path most taken and favours quantity over quality. I can see every bullet that whizzes past my head, yet textures seem non-existent in this pre-pubescent female world.
A huge variety of weapons and easy-to-use controls will seem natural, if not monotonous, to seasoned FPS players.
I’ll make a point of not mentioning the audio within this game as it was neither here nor there but absolutely expected.
Maybe it’s because I usually play so much online multiplayer that makes me so critical of it, but like some of today’s other shooters, I found the online multiplayer aspect to be hollow, bland, and quite pointless. The variation in terms of characters, levels, and weapons is there, but I just couldn’t hook myself on because of the linear, repetitive play.
The online play boasts games that allow up to 40 people to join at once, something PSN clearly shows capable of. While I personally didn’t enjoy the multiplayer, I will give credit where its due as Resistance has a solid party system and top notch clan system, something a lot off online shooters can learn from.
There are some features such as unlockable weapons which can prolong the game, but in the end I didn’t find much longevity within this game. Although the singleplayer campaign was much longer than standard.
For aiming too high and not landing anywhere near the stars, Resistance: Fall of Man finds itself among fellow average shooters, but a high-quality launch game nonetheless. With far from the top graphics and nothing audio, this game tries its best to compete against giants, yet numbers fail to be mightier than caliber.
