Volition has perhaps been one of the most striking developers this generation. Not only did they manage to create a worthy clone for Grand Theft Auto within the Saint’s Row franchise, their recent work in Guerilla they have managed to bring a holistic structure to the genre of sandbox which seemed leeward with the modern Grand Theft Auto title.
Red Faction series has primarily been a first person shooter that gained notoriety for its much hyped Geo-Mod engine which allowed players to remove physical obstructions such as walls and doors within the environment to compete against the enemy. Guerilla, a third person sandbox action adventure, brings numerous changes to the series but ensures that its roots remain grounded on the model of destruction.
Guerilla’s story brings the action back to the dusty red planet and Alec Mason is assigned to a bunch of guerilla forces who are working towards ridding the once good-turned-evil EDF (Earth Defense Force). The story primarily plays out through radio interactions between Mason and the members of the guerilla squad, interspersed with cutscenes from time to time. Although numerous reviews so far have been rather critical about the narrative, it suits and adapts itself to the overall structure of the gameplay providing a rather non-intrusive path to relish the gameplay mechanics.
Volition has crafted the game in such a manner that it is impossible not to get addicted to oodles of destruction the game is riddled with. Geo Mod 2.0 does everything Fatman (Metal Gear Solid 2) would have dreamt of. This is the ultimate tool of destruction. If the Glacier Engine (Battlefield Bad Company) was able to cause sufficient destruction that left the physical structure of buildings untouched, Geo Mod 2.0 obeys laws of physics and mass to bring an intelligent model of demolition.
Blowing up a building depends on its height, weight and construction. In order to bring it down players need to strategically swing the hammers / explosives / utilize heavy weapons at the correct places to pulverize it. If the building becomes sufficiently weak, it comes down with a thunderous noise, accompanied with a massive push of the Earth Defense Forces who seem on a relentless throttle to bring your down, thereby keeping the challenge rolling.
Since Guerilla is primarily a sandbox game, one would expect it to be wayward in processing the line of event in the story, this is where the game shines. After a long time we witnessed a structure to the game, actions within the game have consequences and add to the morale of the factions that are in conflict with the EDF. If the player dies frequently or lets other members die out in conflicts, the morale drops down and prevents them from progressing to the next sector.
In order to keep the tide changing, the player can build their own weapons provided with the collect ample amount of scrap from the buildings they are able to scramble down. All these elements come together to bring forward an intense arsenal of ideas that can be used to combat the EDF, who seem to grow stronger and vile with each passing sector. The game has sufficient amount of side quests to keep a player occupied. These may range from blowing up an EDF target of a certain level of importance to ambushing an agent to bring back vital pieces of information that will turn the tide of combat in favor of the guerillas.
The game includes a robust multiplayer arena where players are rewarded through a RPGish system that allows for power ups to be effectively utilized within the arena of Geo-Mod 2.0 which allows for new strategies for traditional multiplayer games.
Mars although referred to the red planet, sees a variety of environments being included in the game, thus each sector has a unique and distinct look from the latter turning the game away from monotony. The visuals in conjunction with the environments do hold their ground especially considering the relatively consistent framerate at which the game runs at. The controls are a bit off the mark, since they allow for a more traditional standard third person shooter scheme than a GTA/Gears camera angle scheme, it becomes a bit difficult maneuvering Mason around cover and enemies.
Red Faction: Guerilla is not an easy straightforward game. Often the enthusiasm of the EDF in preventing the conflict rises to such absurd levels that they relentlessly hunt players down often showing no sense of mercy and thus making the player restart the assigned task a number of times, this feature does not bother one in the beginning of the game but as the tide of conflict rises the constant influx of enemies and fire gets a tad bit annoying and irritating.
The Final Word: Guerilla is one of the sleepers of 2009 and a title worth picking up, the game demarcates its territory in the genre of sandbox offering a fresh perspective, as opposed to cities that are either imbued with moral degeneration or forms of alien infestations. A fitting revolution that will offer players a robust story and solid destructive mechanics to keep players occupied for a significant amount of time.
Visuals: 8/10.
Sound: 8/10.
Gameplay: 9/10.
Budget Pocket: 8/10.
Overall (not on an average): 8.5/10.