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Resistance 2 Hands On

PlayStation 3 Hands On by Ellie Gibson

23 September, 2008

Page 1 of 3. Page 2 ->

There are plenty of clichés being bandied about at this latest press event for Resistance 2. Insomniac boss Ted Price claims it's "the biggest and the best game we've ever made", following up with the classic "it's ultimately up to the players to decide". There's been a lot of talk about how extra-specially powerful the PS3 is, and the chap in charge of the eight-player co-op mode has used the word "revolutionary" at least twice. And on top of all that, Price proclaims Resistance 2 is "offering more than any shooter in 2008, and at the same time being the best".

It's a bold claim when you consider just how many shooters have been and will be released in 2008 - including Gears of War 2, which is going head-to-head with Resistance 2 this November. "I think we can hold our own against Gears, no problem," says Price. "Our intent with this game is to create a shooter that offers something for both hardcore and casual players, and fans of single-player campaigns that are story-driven, and co-op players and competitive players... It's a big game with a lot going for it."

With so many shooters on the shelves, though, it's going to take more than a plot, a Deathmatch mode and a bit of Capture the Flag to make Resistance 2 stand out. In any case, you'd need a more distinctive plot than this one; it's not exactly the only game around that involves shooting monsters in the face in a post-apocalyptic America. But with the multiplayer modes - which today's event is focusing on showing off - Insomniac is certainly trying to do something different. Perhaps even revolutionary.

Let's begin with the competitive multiplayer mode, which this time round supports 60 players, instead of the first game's 40. According to Price, this created significant design challenges the team has worked hard to overcome. "When you have 60 players in a game, things can become very chaotic," he observes.

'Resistance 2' Screenshot 1

A Ratio Of The Degree To Which An Object Opposes Electric Current Through It II.

"We had to go back to the drawing board with our designs, and figure out how we could mitigate chaos and create some order. That's why we started splitting players into squads. But what really makes the skirmish mode unique is the dynamic objective system. You're not doing the same thing over and over, and you're spread out over the map."

The dynamic objective system works like this: you're put in a squad of five-to-eight people and your squad is assigned a mission, such as laying claim to a specific area. Completing missions unlocks new areas and you're awarded experience points, which are used to obtain Berserks.

These are power-ups, essentially. You might win an ammo upgrade for all your team-mates, or a temporary damage bonus. You can also combine Berserks with weapons to suit your playing style. Choose the Ironheart armour Berserk to go with your mini-gun and shield combo, for example, and you'll become very tough to take down. Other Berserks give you adrenaline bursts, increased melee attack power, even the power of invisibility. "There's nothing like it on PS3," says Price.

'Resistance 2' Screenshot 2

Measured In Ohms: The Sequel.

The Berserk system ties in with one of Insomniac's main aims for Resistance 2 - to encourage creative player decisions by presenting them with more creative weapons. Price's personal favourite is the splicer; rev up the spinning blade to full speed before firing it at an enemy and the blade will continue to whir even after it's hit the target, sending chunks of flesh flying into the air. "It's a great damage-over-time weapon, especially if you are fighting a larger enemy," explains Price. "You can stick several saw blades in them that are all doing damage while you use another weapon to take them down."

To create weapons like these, Insomniac has taken inspiration from its own games - specifically, in the case of the splicer, Ratchet and Clank: Up Your Arsenal. But isn't Price worried about alienating serious FPS fans with this wackier approach to weapons? "That's where the gore comes in, to tell you the truth," he says. "You can do some really creative weapons, but as long as you keep it visceral and believable, that's where the hardcore fans will nod and say, 'Okay, that makes sense.'"

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Comments: 1-46 of 46 in total

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gohda
23/09/08 @ 21:37
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shaping up quite well
gohda
23/09/08 @ 21:37
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shaping up quite well
scartbat
23/09/08 @ 21:39
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this game should rock our ps3 world !!!
23/09/08 @ 21:41
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sounds good, day 1 for me along with Gears 2. Good time to be a gamer!
scartbat
23/09/08 @ 21:42
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this game should kick start the ps3 sales !!
absolutezero
23/09/08 @ 21:52
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Fix the forum.

FIX IT.
Law07
23/09/08 @ 21:52
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Hurrah! This better be good!
Apostle
23/09/08 @ 21:57
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I just don't know about this one.
Dizzy
23/09/08 @ 22:28
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"The co-op is doing something nobody else is doing right now"

I think Left4Dead will have that honor.

Anyway.. good preview... some interesting ideas in there.
disc
23/09/08 @ 23:04
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Dizzy: Left4Dead isn't coming to the PS3 :)

Valve and EA don't want the money apparently. But then they've probably lost quite a few fans on the PS3 after the TF2/HL2EP2 debacle (not creating any updates for the PS3 version).
Zappa
23/09/08 @ 23:41
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R2 just owned gears2 in overall graphics and easy in gameplay and modes!!

left for dead is crap using a last gen engine, R2 has double the co-op players.
Edited 2 times, most recently on 24/09/08 @ 00:47
LordGamma19K
23/09/08 @ 23:55
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This game is starting to look like a, must have.
Davemanz
24/09/08 @ 01:05
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I've definitely not been interested in this until now. I picked up my PS3 just earlier this summer so I wasn't wanting for games as much as someone who had got it at launch, and the demo for the original really bored me, but co-op is always neat and the raid-like nature of it sounds interesting if it works, so I just might pick this up.
RazorObsession
24/09/08 @ 02:11
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if they deliver everything they promise, and deliver it well, this could be the game that sells me a PS3.

If Sony had delivered some awesome exclusives before now, I'd have one already. As it stands the exclusives they do have I can live without, and I dare say I'm not alone.
KILLA
24/09/08 @ 03:39
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First one was a standard unremarkable FPS, hopefully this is good though.
3william56
24/09/08 @ 05:29
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Zappa - played both have you?
Maybe a comparitive reader review is in order.

Once you've documented the construction of your time machine for the world, of course.
Widge
24/09/08 @ 05:56
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I'm waiting to see how this turns out before jumping on because the Killzone multiplayer looks excellent on spec.
RedPanda
24/09/08 @ 07:03
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"the ability to walk through your comrades"

immersion killer :-/
Loser
24/09/08 @ 07:36
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@ disc

Did/do many people play TF2 on the PS3?
kj66246
24/09/08 @ 07:56
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It will be interesting to see if during a GOW2 hands on or preview we will get the comment "whether the world really needs another game about shooting monsters in the face."

Looks and sounds great. Really enjoyed 1, so more of the same and some please.
rufus_the_stunt_bum
24/09/08 @ 07:58
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really looking forward to this, the first game was imo underrated - it was after all a release title. Multiplayer concepts sound interesting especially the co-op, hopefully they pull it off.

ps3owner
24/09/08 @ 08:15
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my BluRay drive has crapped out on me yesterday... anyone know what to do? it's still within the 1 year warranty, PS3 itself still works... just doesn't want to read any disc (any format).

game will be a day 1 buy (if my PS3 works that is)... Had to watch OngBak on my Xbox, yes, the old Xbox ;). it still works... strangely enough
tiddles
24/09/08 @ 08:30
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Berserk?
Spanky
24/09/08 @ 08:37
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Looking more and more like halo3+GoW by the day, especially with the bubble shield and fat legged bad guys.
Zebula77
24/09/08 @ 08:56
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I'm usually not bothered to play FPSs online. Mostly because I suck at them, but also because I prefer the single player, story driven gameplay. Fall of Man was an ok game that I played all the way through, so I'm looking forward to the continuation of the story. I really like the 60s-combined-with-sci-fi elements.

Have to say the MP on this looks interesting to say the least.
Doctor_What
24/09/08 @ 09:44
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My friend and I enjoyed the co-op campaign on Resistance1 much more than on Halo3, the latter we found really dull (personal opinions, yes, but it's still true), so I'm looking forward to more split-screen campaign action on this one. Online stuff... Not so much. It's more fun to be in the room with someone.
Darren
24/09/08 @ 09:53
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I'm quietly looking forward to Resistance 2... not so much for the online modes but certainly for the single player/co-op campaign which I really enjoyed in the first game. Dare it I say it... I thought it was a lot more fun than Halo 3! Sure it was nothing original but it was fairly slick and playable for a launch game and a solid first attempt at a FPS from Insomniac. If the sequel is just more of the same but bigger and better, well then I'll be happy. I did try the online modes and they weren't too bad but the nature of the gameplay means I tend to tire of them rather quickly. I much prefer playing shooters when they're wrapped around a narrative and storyline.
Darren
24/09/08 @ 10:00
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@ps3owner - Well you have two choices... you can bin your PS3 and buy a new one... or, more ideally, ring Sony on 08705 99 88 77 as there's a very good chance they'll repair your in-warranty PS3 for free but I've also heard of loads of other people having their one year old plus PS3s repaired for nought pence too. Have your PS3's serial number to hand when you ring...
Krelle
24/09/08 @ 10:14
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I really cant build up any steam for Restistance (one or two). Its something with the "bleh"-ness that kills it for me.

At the same time thou! I love the team for their other games, so I will probably try this out in a kiosk at least.
El-Dev
24/09/08 @ 10:19
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Well any game that involves shooting aliens really isn't going to be really original so I'm not really looking for this to be original. I enjoyed the first one, got a bit of stick for basically shooting aliens but graphics were decent enough and gameplay was quite good and a decent storyline so was worth it.

Interesting that it's going head to head with GOW2 that will obviously sell better so will receive all the praise on the web, but the online in R2 does look somethin that i would be interested in and i'm not that big into online gaming. Also starting to look the part.

Will be purchased at day one.
ps3owner
24/09/08 @ 10:26
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Thanks darren, I'll call them ;), comes cheaper.
montdidier
24/09/08 @ 10:29
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I didn't like Resistance when I first started playing it, it felt really generic. After I picked it up a few more times I got into a bit more, particularly playing co-op. After I'd finished the game, I felt it was ok. If R2 is improved on that experience then I'll probably be playing it at some point. I didn't think Gears of War offered much over Resistance in terms of gameplay to be honest, and actually at the end of the day I'd be tempted to say the story of Resistance was slightly better. I liked a lot of the weapons in Resistance, some where a bit creative.
xxpapouxx
24/09/08 @ 10:37
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Hi guys

i'ts a very good game :)
Schiraman
24/09/08 @ 10:38
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Sounds ace.
patchbox360
24/09/08 @ 10:59
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hmmm...MGS4, Resistance 2, Blue Ray, a decent pad to play SF4 and Pro Evo on... will have to think hard now after completion of Gears2.
agparrot
24/09/08 @ 12:19
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Sounds really interesting, but I almost can't believe EG didn't make the headline "Resistance man says Killzone Multiplayer is 'tacked on'".

8 player co-op could be great stuff.
iago71
24/09/08 @ 12:47
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Is the 1st game any good....? I played the demo and it seemed alright but nothing that really blew me away. This does seem pretty cool though. Hopefully it will be a winner. Mind you with Gears, Fable 2, LBP and God knows what else there wont be enough time to play any of them. Lots on the horizon to look forward to then. :)
mkreku
24/09/08 @ 12:58
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I wonder if someone told Ellie to tone it down a notch? I barely recognized her writing :/
ThePissartist
24/09/08 @ 15:04
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8 player co-op? NICE.
jstar
24/09/08 @ 15:14
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the first game was total pap. Only someoe who had not played any of the other decent FPS's of the last few years would think otherwise. And if you do think otherwise I;d argue that you are not thinking at all. Or just don;t know what you are talking about. Or I guess those sorts who still like to insist that halo and gears were only 'ok' will love it just to be different.

And i instinctively hate the thought of this just because of that idiot designers 'awesome we are going to pwn the competition' attitude.

kj66246
24/09/08 @ 16:19
#41
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@ jstar - A little over the top. But we all appreciate your opinion. (It is an open forum of course)

EDIT: Clearly you enjoy First Person Shooters looking at your profile you have put some effort into games like[b] Halo 3, Army of Two, Kane & Lynch: Dead Men, Gears of War & LOST PLANET[/b]. Surely you can appreciate a game like this.. I would hate to think your were some Rabbid Xbox360 Fanboy. :-)

But In My Opinion the first game was a solid and extremely playable game on which I had many hours of Fun On-line and Off-line. A little slow to begin with but well worth the effort put in.

I have played plenty of FPS and R1 stands up fine against most of them, Perhaps it didn't have the finish or polish of some but its well known that Insomniac were rather rushed and pushed to get R1 out the door for release, and tbh they did a pretty good job.

Now with time on their hands and the experiences with R1, R&C: TOD & R&C: QFB on PS3, I expect this to be another excellent example from a developer that seems to have done pretty well so far.
Edited 1 times, most recently on 24/09/08 @ 17:24
Feanor
24/09/08 @ 17:01
#42
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I approve leaving the h out of the word wackier.
Les
24/09/08 @ 19:18
#43
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Looking forward to this (first one was good though a bit too arcadey for my liking - I don't like run-and-gun) though I couldn't care less about the multiplayer.
septimus
25/09/08 @ 11:32
#44
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Sounds good. Definite purchase along with GoW2. Just need to share the time between them.
ROCKSTAR24
28/09/08 @ 16:27
#45
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its okay
BonzoBanana
13/10/08 @ 14:59
#46
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I absolutely loved Resistance Fall of Man. I'm more into the single player experience than online deathmatches. To be honest I found the Halo 3 single player experience very dull although technically I can see Halo 3 most of the time is more impressive. Both games made me stop shooting and look around and enjoy the scenary. I never really got into Gears of War as I don't like the third person perspective that much I find the first person perspective much more immersive. Again though Gears of War is technically better than the first resistance though but not by much. I think all three are 720p games natively. I'm expecting to love Resistance 2 and for it to be second only to the Half Life games in my game ranking table. I'm looking forward to Resistance 2 being my christmas holiday game.

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