RED FACTION: ARMAGEDDON (X360)
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Publisher: THQ.
Developer: Volition. Released: June 2011. Genre: Third-person shoot 'em up. Other versions: PC; PS3. Posted 24th November 2012. By Shane Battams © 2012 |
Red Faction: Armageddon rarely strays from its predecessors' golden rule: blow up anything that stands in your way. The series has been heralded for its destruction models, which have improved each time. Its last entry, Guerrilla, added a nifty open-world structure to its design and created a fun game where the engine could release its true destructibility. Red Faction: Armageddon scraps this for a more linear path. The results are a game that isn’t poor in any respect, but offers only a resounding gasp of mediocrity.
You play as Darius Mason, an heir to the Mason protagonists of past RF games. We learn of a battle where Darius failed to prevent the destruction of surface life on Mars, thanks to antagonist Adam Hale. Though not blamed, Darius feels incredibly guilty, and this pushes him not only into isolation, but to take missions that move him away from settlers underground. Sadly, his latest mission finds him opening up a shaft which unleashes a race of insects that wipe out several colonies. You must rectify your mistake, and save Mars from this alien race. Though the cut-scenes sure look pretty, there’s nothing particularly memorable here.
Armageddon cuts Guerrilla’s open-world structure in favour of a linear set of levels. The game is split into 24 of these, and levels tend to take a maximum of 30 minutes each. It’s a brisk pace, but the game is remarkably short. It’ll probably take you no more than five hours to blow through the game on easy or normal, and even on the hardest difficult you can go through a new game plus to carry your abilities over and make it a breeze. The game sports a couple of modes however: the Horde-styled Infestation tasks you to attack and defend, and a free mode with new copies of the game called Ruin, which lets you destroy an open area in a non-linear fashion. Infestation is cool enough, especially as it has a lot of room for destruction, but Ruin feels aimless in comparison.
Dead Space? Never heard of it.
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In space, everyone is offended by multiculturalism
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Unfortunately, the linear path means destruction is hindered, and this is compounded by a lack of destruction-based objectives. In fact, there are more missions asking you to repair objects rather than blow them up, with the exception of one which tasks you to eliminate several satellites, but this lasts all of 10 minutes. While there is little chance to really unleash destruction, when you can it is fun. Buildings crumble into tiny pieces as you smash it with your maul, walls disintegrate as you blast em’ with your nano rifle and the explosions from flammable objects are satisfying. But, it’s really a shame that your chances to destroy are mostly minimal, as most levels contain barely any kind of destructible environments.
The weapon selection is somewhat broad, consisting of a dozen or so weapons. You have your standard pistols, shotguns and assault rifle. However, there are also several badass weapons to destroy anything in your path. You have the magnet gun which lets you attach one end and attract it to another, including objects, enemies or whatever has physics to them. You also get a nano rifle, which disintegrates anything in the way, and a singularity cannon, which creates a giant black hole and anything nearby is sucked in and destroyed. You can also unlock a very special weapon, which I won’t spoil because you’ll want the pleasure of seeing it yourself, but let’s just say it had me laughing for a fair bit.
The weapon selection is somewhat broad, consisting of a dozen or so weapons. You have your standard pistols, shotguns and assault rifle. However, there are also several badass weapons to destroy anything in your path. You have the magnet gun which lets you attach one end and attract it to another, including objects, enemies or whatever has physics to them. You also get a nano rifle, which disintegrates anything in the way, and a singularity cannon, which creates a giant black hole and anything nearby is sucked in and destroyed. You can also unlock a very special weapon, which I won’t spoil because you’ll want the pleasure of seeing it yourself, but let’s just say it had me laughing for a fair bit.
"Oh alright! Isaac Clarke is my more affluent brother!"
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An acid trip to tell the friends about, when he comes down
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Surprisingly, Armageddon doesn’t look half-bad. The game runs at a smooth frame-rate, despite the destruction going on. Enemy models are well detailed and nicely animated, and the physics applied with the more explosive weaponry makes for some nice laughs. Levels are pretty bland and lack variety as most of the game takes place in underground caverns which can grow stale pretty quickly. The Insect Hives, however, look pretty cool with lots of details and features such as tentacles, making things a bit more interesting. The audio is also a bit underwhelming. There’s no corny sci-fi music to make your inner nerd ecstatic, instead opting for generic orchestras and instrumentals. The voice acting doesn’t stand out, but it’s not horrible either. The sound effects are pretty solid though. The extravagant weapons pack a punch, and the crunch of collapsing buildings is satisfying.
The problem with Red Faction: Armageddon is that it’s just not very interesting, which considering it’s a series from which its predecessors defined destructive fun, is very disappointing. It’s just a step back for the series – whatever forced Volition Games to remove the open-world structure of Guerrilla has compromised most of the fun which could have come from this game. It’s also bland in most regards, whether it’s the level design, the graphics or the sound. It’s far from poor, and if you’re a diehard fan then this will be of service until Volition make their sequel. But, if you have no ties to the universe of Red Faction, then this is probably best passed.
The problem with Red Faction: Armageddon is that it’s just not very interesting, which considering it’s a series from which its predecessors defined destructive fun, is very disappointing. It’s just a step back for the series – whatever forced Volition Games to remove the open-world structure of Guerrilla has compromised most of the fun which could have come from this game. It’s also bland in most regards, whether it’s the level design, the graphics or the sound. It’s far from poor, and if you’re a diehard fan then this will be of service until Volition make their sequel. But, if you have no ties to the universe of Red Faction, then this is probably best passed.
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VERDICT
Visual: 7/10
Audio: 6/10 Gameplay: 6/10 Longevity: 6/10 OVERALL: 6/10 |