There has been a lot of buzz for this year’s Red Faction title. The game has been heavily marketed for its destruction capabilities. As the year comes to a close, I decided to pick up a copy of Red Faction: Guerrilla Warfare to see if it had what it takes to be considered for our top games for 2009. 

The game takes place in Mars. Its inhabitants have been able to make parts of the atmosphere in Mars breathable. With the Earth’s resources dried up, its army (now strongly influenced by major corporations) decides to invade Mars to harvest their resources. You play the role of Alec Mason (a miner with a very strong hammer) that soon becomes the star for the resistance.

Unfortunately what could have been a very involving and deep story instead takes a backseat and almost disappears. The story fails to really evolve and therefore fails to immerse the player to fight for a cause. There are a couple of small twists that happen later on in the game, but by the time they occurred I could not care less.

Everything goes boom!

Fortunately the explosive and destructive gameplay makes the story unimportant. From the start of the game, players will equip a very strong hammer that is capable of destroying anything in its path. It is a lot of fun to use the hammer to bring down buildings or take out enemies. I personally found the hammer to be one of the best weapons this generation alongside the chainsaw from Gears of War. Complimenting the hammer are other advanced and destructive weaponry that include RPGs, hyper bombs and a gun that is able to melt enemies and walls.

This is an open world game with a lot of driving involved. Fortunately the cars have an ‘arcade’ feeling that makes them easy to control. The good thing about the game is that the required missions are a minority. Instead the game employs a system where the players can choose what type of missions they want to take part in order to advance the game. Fortunately destruction plays a centre roll in most missions.

Lost in Translation:

With the emphasis on destruction and chaos the developers had the right formula for a highly entertaining game. This is why it is unfortunate that I felt the developers shot themselves in the foot. First of all, players are limited to carrying only 3 other weapons. This includes mines and remote grenades. Almost all missions had enemies on foot that had to be taken out; this meant you are required to always equip either a shotgun or an assault rifle. Secondly the ammo that a player can carry is severely limited. The limited ammo also meant that there were constant breaks in gameplay as I had to spend time having to go back to base to restock on ammo after almost every mission. By limiting the use of the high powered weaponry and constantly breaking the game’s momentum, the developers limited the best parts of the game.

The other major problem I had with the game is its highly repetitive mission structure that is similar to a grind in a MMORPG. There are about five to six sectors that are controlled by the army. Each sector has a number of control and morale points. As you complete the missions the control decreases and the morale points are increased. You are required to eliminate control from all sectors. Morale points lead to support from reinforcements that aid you in the missions. The ‘control’ mechanic is an interesting element for a resistance game however it is not implemented as well as it could have. As control decreased in a particular sector, it did not feel as if the military’s grasp of that particular sector fell. It was nothing more than a numerical value. To make matters worse, the missions that had to be completed to reduce control are similar throughout the sectors and therefore there was a feeling of repetition.

Then there are also some other minor annoyances. The ease with which things are destroyed backfires in missions where you are required to rescue hostages or reach a collect an item inside a building. If you accidentally destroy the staircase or another pathway leading towards you objective, you will be forced to re-start the mission in its entirety.

Final Word: The game offers a lot fun with its emphasis on destruction and chaos. However a forgettable story and gameplay that ultimately does not feel refined, Red Faction: Guerrilla Warfare is a strong title but will likely not be on our GOTY list. If it feels that my review above is too negative, it is only because I am upset that this enjoyable game could have been something truly outstanding.  

Please note that the review is only based on the single player campaign experience 

Published by: THQ

Developed by: Volition Inc 

Genre: Third Person Shooter