Resistance reviewed again?

[Rolf N]

I have NEVER seen that carrier map come up in ranked games! And I must have played over 500 by now.

Does it only come up in unranked games? Or is it just one of those high player count games that is hard to get into?

I played it once, in an unranked ("custom") game. I haven't played that much, and keep in mind that I have only started playing Resistance on Saturday, but I haven't seen it in ranked games so far. Probably an issue with the player count. So far I have only seen 16 and 8 player maps, never larger (I play TDM almost exclusively).

I hate the carrier level because it's an excellent sniping ground. I'm a sniper bullet magnet.

Whenever I play that level, my sole misson to sweep the deck for snipers.

Took me a short while to get used to the online pace. Best thing to do is to go into offline mode and scout the maps first. Even so, expect to see people hide/snipe from unexpected locations (not cheating).

There's a lot of cover on the deck, and you can run across the whole ship without exposing yourself for more than a second. Must be a damn good sniper that catches you there, if you're careful! Btw, many players don't seem to know this, but in multiplayer humans can sprint (tap L2). That helps a lot.

What's after "Rise of Men" ?

No idea, but the text at the end clearly indicated two more chapters.

 

[patsu]

Hmm... I don't think Lexington is a 40 player map (Somerset is one). I must admit I don't pay attention to the max. player count for each map.

If you join a large clan (like GAF), you can get 40 player games more easily if 20 people show up for game nights. So far we have > 20 in some nights (so we split into 2 groups).

There's a lot of cover on the deck, and you can run across the whole ship without exposing yourself for more than a second. Must be a damn good sniper that catches you there, if you're careful!

For that level, the opposing teams usually stake out the 2 ends of the carrier. So when I'm spawned in the middle, I'll need to travel to the other end to try to get some kills. Sometimes I'm caught fighting another guy in the middle of the deck. That's where I'm exposed to snipers most.

...and the snipers are good. Not to mention it's possible to have 3 snipers shooting at you one after another (or at the same time). These days, I travel in the lower deck and than rise to the top to pick off snipers. There are still short distance where there is no cover though (and usually you've to kill the defenders first to get to the snipers).

Or you can be a sniper too... but you're have to move and shoot at the same time because like I said, some are very good.

Btw, many players don't seem to know this, but in multiplayer humans can sprint (tap L2). That helps a lot.

Yap ! human can sprint forever unlike Chimera rage mode. But you slow down when firing a weapon though (Chimera rage mode will continue until turned off).

Also if you crouch, you would not be shown on the radar (in case you're playing human vs human).

 

[Rolf N]

For that level, the opposing teams usually stake out the 2 ends of the carrier. So when I'm spawned in the middle, I'll need to travel to the other end to try to get some kills. Sometimes I'm caught fighting another guy in the middle of the deck. That's where I'm exposed to snipers most.

...and the snipers are good. Not to mention it's possible to have 3 snipers shooting at you one after another (or at the same time). These days, I travel in the lower deck and than rise to the top to pick off snipers. There are still short distance where there is no cover though (and usually you've to kill the defenders first to get to the snipers).

I think the European players still need to practice for a while until it gets that hard
Still pretty easy to jump in, few people really know the maps properly yet (I certainly don't!), and people frequently just barge forward with little strategy, which keeps the match fast and interesting.
Hard, established "fronts" are pretty rare. I sometimes see that with clan snipers, but those aren't too many. In general the matches are just hilarious disorderly fun.

I'm sure the experience might change once the really dedicated players build up some serious skill. Here's hoping that the skill-matching works as intended, and keeps me far away from good players

 

[patsu]

I think the European players still need to practice for a while until it gets that hard
Still pretty easy to jump in, few people really know the maps properly yet (I certainly don't!), and people frequently just barge forward with little strategy, which keeps the match fast and interesting.
Hard, established "fronts" are pretty rare. I sometimes see that with clan snipers, but those aren't too many. In general the matches are just hilarious disorderly fun.

No worries, it's all good fun. I'm not great either. This is me when I first started:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=5520669&postcount=4058

The game is still fast and hectic today. People just react differently due to being more experienced (e.g., Instead of always forging forward... some will take a short rest to recover first, Chimeras tend to look around and watch their back from time to time because they have no radar, also knowing which weapon works best/well in certain maps help).

I'm sure the experience might change once the really dedicated players build up some serious skill. Here's hoping that the skill-matching works as intended, and keeps me far away from good players

So far so good. I do run into Resistance "gods" sometimes but not often. I see them as part of the gaming experience though (Pushed me to play better).

 

[Kittonwy]

The big difference for me when playing as a human is that because you break sprint while shooting, it also makes you recover health a bit quicker, and with chimera you have to go out of rage mode to get health.

 

[Acert93]

The walls come right out of HL2 I swear.

Btw, from what I get out of the reviews is it is a very solid shooter in terms of technicals and execution, runs great, has a lot of weapons and variety, and has a ton of MP features for enjoyment. The big draw backs cited most often are it is bland/boring (which seems to be a big complaint), the art is hit or miss, character design is uninspiring, online lacks that general killer addiction games like CS, Halo 2, WoW, etc capture, and gameplay innovation is more evolutionary than revolutionary across the board.

I haven't played it but quite a few sources appear to take these stances. Very good FPS, by far the best on the PS3, but room to grow as well as less relative impact as past shooters. 88% is a good score indicative of a good game and as long as Insamniac continues including more online content the game should remain popular until RFoM 2 ships where they can take the oppurtunity to build on their success--and RFoM is a success.

 

[inefficient]

I agree with some of the comments Dave Jaffe made about Resistance on the Insominac podcast.

He mentioned how too often in the game you could feel the designers hand. Basically every single encounter is scripted, and it is very rare for something "interesting" or unexpected to happen that wasn't there by design.

It's not that there is only 1 way to get through a level. That is not the case at all. You could use a different combination of guns had have a different experience. But for example, there is almost never the case where you can flank the enemy and come up from behind them unless that was "exactly" what the designer wanted you to do.

On the other hand it is very well paced. And you always kind of feel "safe" in the designers hands. You don't have to be too worried about hording ammo or not having sniper ammo when you need it etc. The designer takes good care of you.

The other problem Jaffe mentioned was with the MP game. However I can tell he is not a FPS gamer so it has to be taken with a grain of salt. He said there was a difference between watching chaos and having to live/survive in chaos. Watching chaos is cool. Having to survive it is not so cool - at least when you are a beginner.

 

[Arwin]

The other problem Jaffe mentioned was with the MP game. However I can tell he is not a FPS gamer so it has to be taken with a grain of salt. He said there was a difference between watching chaos and having to live/survive in chaos. Watching chaos is cool. Having to survive it is not so cool - at least when you are a beginner.

Then maybe beginners should start with trying out the new spectator mode before they embark on full 40 player matches, and keep to smaller matches in the meantime.

Yep, it is hard to find a good balance between well-balanced gameplay and level progression and freedom. Still, there are a whole bunch of larger areas where you can go about things in several ways ... (at least, in the first few levels - I haven't gotten that far yet).

 

[BoardBonobo]

I've just got through the cheddar gorge section and now am heading for Bristol. FPS are my favourite games and RoF is a very good example.

There is nothing revolutionary about it but it is very addictive and compelling to play. The weapons are innovative and well balanced in the game, slo-mo sniper kills being a favourite! The types of enemy make for interesting adverseraries and some are mildy scary when you first meet them, and some are really annoying (the wall jumping bods for one... stand still so I can shoot you!). The AI is very much copy cat, you hide I'll hide, you charge straight in I'll charge straight in etc.

In some sections it does appear really bland with flat unispired textures and has a vaguely cartoony feel to it but with massive amounts of on screen action taking place, other times the amount of geometry and detail being chucked around is awsome. I have to say that (biting the bullet and doing a comparison) Gears is by far a prettier game in terms of texture detail but just doesn't have the same kind of staying power for me. I finished it ages ago and haven't bothered going back. With RoF I feel I could quite happily go back and do things differently on each level. RoF also feels like a much bigger game.

Just a few thoughts on it there.

 

[Rolf N]

The big draw backs cited most often are it is bland/boring (which seems to be a big complaint), the art is hit or miss, character design is uninspiring, online lacks that general killer addiction games like CS, Halo 2, WoW, etc capture, and gameplay innovation is more evolutionary than revolutionary across the board.

I haven't played it but quite a few sources appear to take these stances.

That kind of coverage has been published because it's a PS3 lauch game and hasn't written "Halo" anywhere on the box. Seriously. The game was majorly downplayed by the press. I won't repeat how it exceeds any other fps currently on the market, as it's all readily available in this very thread.

You wouldn't trust me to give an accurate account on Gears Of War either, and probably rightly so. Now the difference between me and that Eurogamer muppet for instance is that I won't try; I don't poo on a game I don't know shit about just because it's on a platform I don't like. Normal free-roaming people learn when to just shut their mouth. Marketing muppets don't, because they have other incentives for their behaviour beyond just feeling well about their work and the external feedback they get for it.

I know you're all about open-mindedness and a place for everyone but you really should be a little more paranoid about your sources. Actual product knowledge shows by the use of more qualified attributes, and you can use that to segregate the haters from the critics. "Repetitive levels", "poorly differentiated weapons", that sort of thing would indicate that someone at least tried. "Generic" or "lack of magic" OTOH isn't a criticism worth paying attention to.

 

[patsu]

The big draw backs cited most often are it is bland/boring (which seems to be a big complaint)

I agree with inefficient's post above. That's why intuitively I recommend "Hard" mode because at the default difficulty, I think they play balanced it so that novices get invisible help .

So if you're a good FPS player, you may feel bored at the default difficulty ... especially in early levels.

The enemy AI is more interesting in "Hard" and appear in greater numbers. This in turn pushes the design of the level (You'll have to find places to hide, move from places to places, change tactics, retreat, or find better strategy to execute).

online lacks that general killer addiction games like CS, Halo 2, WoW, etc capture

Hmm... where is this mentioned ? I hear the opposite: Online Resistance is addictive for many (especially FPS folks). WoW has a totally different dynamics though.

The other problem Jaffe mentioned was with the MP game. However I can tell he is not a FPS gamer so it has to be taken with a grain of salt. He said there was a difference between watching chaos and having to live/survive in chaos. Watching chaos is cool. Having to survive it is not so cool - at least when you are a beginner.

Yes... that's why I recommend joining a Clan for novices. Resistance has a great clan system. Once people get used to the pace and environment, they should be able to handle the game alone... like me (I'm not a great player but I do come out on top from time to time) !