Mars is oppressed and it’s your job to free the masses! No, this isn’t a sequel to the movie Total Recall (even though it totally could be), it is the third entry in the Red Faction series. Just as with its predecessors, the storyline is wrought with enough plot twists and complexity to make it fit for the SyFy channel or the bowels of G4TV programming. Gamers with either PS3s or Xbox 360s are treated to an explosive adventure with their hero who shall most assuredly whack and demolish his way through to the end.
This review assumes no prior knowledge of the series, though I will say that in the past, the series was in first person perspective and was marketed under the appeal that the environments were destructible with plenty of futuristic weapons present to bring that destruction to fruition. In this effort, however, the view has been changed to third person. This was reportedly done to allow the player to get a better feel for what is taking place.
To round out the experience, Red Faction: Guerilla allows for play in an open world realm. Using a variety of settler, military, and resistance-modded settler vehicles, the hero is be able to drive and crash through entire map at any time in the game.
Taking a page from the Mercenaries franchise, this game sends random patrols about as well as alert-level sensitive reinforcements to keep you on your toes and at times overwhelm you. Fans of the Mercenaries series will instantly fall in love with this game. Though one does not have the air support, weapon drops, and military vehicles to drive as in that series, Red Faction still keeps in the spirit of the open world destruction mantra that made Mercenaries so popular.
Thankfully, the player is not alone though in these missions to cause destruction. As they progress through each region of the map, they are given an EDF (bad buy) control meter as well as a morale meter. Completing tasks and missions in each sector will raise the resistance’s morale which will increase the amount of resistance fighters who will rally to support the player in any situation. On the control meter side of things, the goal in each region is to reduce EDF control to zero by completing mercenary missions (these you can choose from through icons on a map), destroying key emplacements (also shown on the map), destroying smaller buildings and outposts, completing randomized resistance request missions (thru radio alerts), and completing storyline driven missions (required to free each sector and beat the game). Trust me, as you go along through the missions and have success after success, the amount and difficulty of the resistance that the EDF will throw at you will reach levels where you’ll be begging for other resistance fighters to help you!
Also, in key spots of the storyline and the map of Mars you’ll be treated to the use of Mech’s to dole out your destruction. Using a construction mech to flip vehicles and crush soldiers is terribly satisfying after a long day’s work!
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