Apocalypses now

by ERIK LEIJON

Mirroring their near-simultaneous releases during the holiday season of 2006, the competing apocalypse-themed Gears of War 2 (X360/Microsoft, Epic) and Resistance 2 (PS3/SCE, Insomniac) return at similar times for more monster killing fun. Both suffer from sequelitis as neither steps too far from their comfort zones as epic bloodbaths, and they can’t really be appreciated without knowing the backstory provided by their predecessors. Gears 2 and Resistance 2 do offer exciting new modes and in theory hammer out some old issues, although where each series decided to go is surprising.

Third-person action shooter Gears of War became the poster boy of next-gen gaming: it was loud, violent and heavily slanted towards online play. It featured a short but enjoyable single-player campaign fighting on a planet ravaged by an underground army of monsters, along with more than enough multiplayer options, so it’s shocking that developer Epic would give so much attention to expanding the campaign mode.

MONSTER KILLING FUN:
Resistance 2
by Laurie Walker

The characters—while still dishing out same shit, different day platitudes—are actually given personalities and stories. What truly elevates the single-player experience are the cinematic-quality cutscenes that seamlessly blend in with the in-game fighting. Every chapter is one harrowing mission against impossible odds, maintaining a level of white-knuckle action that is second to none.

Resistance: Fall of Man was the better single-player experience, so naturally developer Insomniac felt the sequel should have a completely revamped co-op mode, while keeping single-player largely the same. It’s a case of neither game really playing to their strengths, but in the end offering more options to players in lieu of obvious innovation.

Is there any game that elicits more debate than the big budget orgy of destruction that is Gears of War? At last year’s Montreal International Game Summit, local developers were given the chance to let loose on a panel of video game reviewers. In a shocking display of hive mentality (as exhibited by the Chimera in Resistance and the Locust Horde in Gears), a young developer began razzing the critics for the near unanimous accolades given to Gears of War.

Gears 2 is sure to drive such detractors even further up the wall. It’s the same third-person shooter that requires players to bounce from cover to cover to avoid gun fire, but the vastly improved audio-visual experience really does give the pedestrian gun fighting an unparalleled intensity. It’s simply the best looking game ever, and how the developer utilizes this graphical prowess to recreate mankind’s final, desperate stab at survival against an impossible foe should be considered innovative.

If single-player in Resistance 2 indicates anything, it’s the developer only found two things wrong with the first title: the long-winded narrator and the stingy, non-regenerating health bar. The levels situated underground or in the Chimeran fortresses still have a bland, multiplayer map sort of feel, but the green American levels are a welcome change from the constant grey of 1950’s Earth overrun by viral-afflicted humans. For reasons unknown, the campaign mode can no longer be played with two players via split-screen, although developer Insomniac included a new co-operative mode. Similar to Unreal Tournament, the co-op levels are straightforward enough to appease action-oriented multiplayer nuts, with a small, largely insignificant storyline just enough for gamers desiring the single-player mode’s engrossing story.

The Resistance series is far from groundbreaking (and the one-hit-kill enemies are as annoying as they are visually impressive) but the gameplay is so tight and refined, experienced FPS players will appreciate the respectable difficulty level and polish. Gears of War 2 and Resistance 2 are minor improvements to what were already solid foundations.