Clobber people with a sledgehammer, blow up buildings and stick it to the man, all for the glory of Mars.
THQ’s Red Faction: Guerrilla (available on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2009) is one of the best and worst types of games. On one hand, it’s a sweet third person, action adventure in which you lead a band of miners (on Mars, no less) against an oppressive regime, pulverizing the environments and enemies using any means necessary. On the other, its impressive level of destruction will ruin future games that aren’t nearly as accessible.
As of right now, you control an unnamed miner that gets fed up with the Earth Defense Force pushing him around. Instead of being their favorite pet, he decides to lead a revolt. You basically explore Mars, this large open world (a la Grand Theft Auto), jumping from mission to mission, either paying close attention to the story or just going off on your own to cause mayhem. The real kicker comes from being able to obliterate almost every object in the environment. If you can’t open a door, use your sledgehammer to bust through it. And if you’d rather create your own entranceway, simply smash through the concrete. Feel the need to redecorate? Plant some charges on a building’s foundation and detonate them from a safe location, then watch the structure slowly crumble. Hell, you can plant charges on one of your rides (including tanks, jeeps, trucks and flying vehicles) and drive it into an enemy stronghold. Jump out, run away and blow that sucker up, enjoying the carnage as it unfolds. It’s one of those situations where it’s both fun to watch and to play. We didn’t even care about the missions. We just loved bashing things (and enemies) with the hammer, whipping out the automatic rifle and emptying a few clips, then switching to the rocket launcher and sending vehicles to their fiery graves.
An excellent physics system enhances the experience, as buildings fall depending on weight distribution, while vehicles sail through the air and smash through windows. Then there’s the walker, this crude looking mining vehicle (it looks like a mech) that lets you walk through things or pound them with your robotic fists. Just watch out for falling debris, as it and shrapnel can kill you.
At this point, THQ and the game’s developer, Volition, aren’t spilling too many details, aside from praising the four-year-old technology, which manages to stream this humongous Martian landscape with very few (if any) load time. In addition, the game keeps track of how many characters are in a fight, so you know if the odds are stacked against you. There’s also multiplayer, though no one would discuss it.
To our surprise, Red Faction: Guerrilla blew us away. We foresee wasting countless hours traveling off the beaten path and annihilating cities for kicks, especially when it involves taking out groups of enemy soldiers. It’s just a shame it doesn’t release until 2009, as it’s by far one of the most impressive looking games we’ve seen in a while. Let’s hope THQ uses the time to make this one of its greatest accomplishments.
