I’ve played Resistance 1 and 2 about two and a half times. The first I thought was epic, and second so-so, leaving lots of what made the first title great behind. Fans complained vehemently, including me, hoping Insomniac would listen. And to some extent, the developer did, but is Resistance 3 worth the 3-year wait and your hard earned $60? Or should you fly this one in from Gamefly for a few days and then send it back from whence it came? My full review’s below.
Hale, the main protagonist from Resistance 1 and 2 is dead, and you’re now playing as Joseph Capelli, the Sentinel who shot Hale because he was infested with the Chimeran disease. Since then, though, he’d been given a dishonorable discharge, went into hiding where he met his wife, friends and later had a son, and that’s where the game starts.
The Chimera has taken over the earth, with only a few humans surviving, pockets of them all over the world putting up a resistance in the face of total extinction. Capelli wanted to live a decent life, so instead of going on the offensive, he played defense, he, his wife and son, and a small group of people hiding in Haven, Oklahoma. But when Dr. Fyodor Malikov came to Capelli with a plan he believed would save the human race and rid the earth of the Chimera forever, he brought with him the very foe he’s trying to defeat, setting in motion a wave of events that leads them from Oklahoma, to New York City and other parts of the world. And so it began.
Gameplay
In Resistance 3, gameplay is ace. The controls are fluid, pacing is intact, and combat is first class. As you travel through different stages, the combat will intensify and weapons will be given gradually. Long gone is regenerating health, as you’ll see health orbs waiting for you in various locations. There’s sometimes too many of them, making the game a bit easy, so if you’re a Resistance veteran you’ll want to start on a higher difficulty level. You’re able to sprint, jump walls, climb ladders and shoot down objects to forge a pathway (sometimes), making the game feel alive.
The boss battles, although few, are really a treat.
The controls also work extremely well. It handles similarly to Call of Duty titles, but everything is just so responsive. The 3 years Insomniac Games took to developer Resistance 3 really helped. They nailed gamplay, guys, that’s for sure.
Weapons Wheel Is Back!
It was a bad idea to get rid of the Weapons Wheel in Resistance 2, and after a barrage of complaints from fans, Insomniac smartly brought it back for the third installment. The result, a nice assortment of killing tools that comes in handy throughout the game. The weapons list is amazing too. In fact most of the guns that made Resistance popular are back, and Insomniac introduced some pretty awesome new tools to spice up things. Especially the Atomizer, the new equipment deals out beams of electricity to take down enemies, and the secondary fire launches an electric orb that throws them into the air and shakes them violently. The Atomizer is especially effective when faced with multiple enemies. Other weapons include: Wildfire, M5A2 Folsom Carbine, Sledgehammer, Rossmore 239 Combat Shotgun, Marksman, Auger Mark II, Bullseye and HE .44 Magnum.
Story
The story in Resistance 3 tries hard to connect you to its characters, but doesn’t quite do the job. You sometimes feel a bit sorry for Capelli and the situation he’s found himself in, having to leave his wife and dying to child to head off to New York in search of this Chimera-killing discovery. But I never was able to connect fully with the characters, and I believe it’s because the story didn’t have enough layers to do so. I know there’s a good balance that needs to be struck between gameplay and story, and Resistance 3′s fell short. It’s nothing that will have you bored out of your mind, but it’s nothing compelling either. Save the gameplay, Resistance 3 would have been mediocre at best.
Facial expression of characters was also bland. No emotion, everything simply stood still. In fact, it was so bad that my wife who was sitting next to me while I played, noticed that in the midst of a raging storm created by one of the Chimera’s massive ships, Capelli and his wife’s hair never moved. Nothing, it really looked fake. I thought Insomniac Games would have had a handle of subtle things like this, especially after PS3 epics like Uncharted 3 and Killzone 3, but the developer clearly did not. I’m sure if expressions were more visible, it would have helped in making the game more realistic.
Visuals
Compared to Killzone 3 and Uncharted 3, Resistance 3′s visuals are nothing special, but that’s compared to two of the best looking games on consoles. So it’s not that bad, and some of the cutscenes really look awesome. You’ll notice a few visual glitches throughout, but again nothing to sidetrack you, as the game looks better than lots of titles on the market.
Multiplayer
Resistance 3′s multiplayer is not a big disappointment, but it’s nothing that’ll take you away from what you’ve been enjoying before. There are eight game types, and although it sounds like a lot, nothing really stands out. You have Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Deathmatch Small, War Games, Capture The Flag, Breach, Chain Reaction and Classic Hardcore. But nothing too special there, especially when considering the leaps and bounds shooters have soared to in recent years, Resistance 3 is something you’ll enjoy for a bit and then go back to your first love, or find something else.
I played a few games online and had no issues with connections, and not one bug was found, but then again, I didn’t spend that much time in the game’s multiplayer.
Conclusion
I wanted to write a dazzling Resistance 3 review. I did. But I simply can’t. I’m also not sure where most of these sites got those high scores from, but Resistance 3, while a good game, falls far short of great, and just short of a buy. I’d rent this first if I were you, give it a playthrough, check out the online component and then make up my mind from there. Sad thing is, there’s an online pass involved so if you rent it you won’t even be able to play online with friends.
Now, with games like Battlefield 3, Modern Warfare 3 and even RAGE just around the bend, your $60 dollars would serve you better in October and November.
Final Score – 7/10
Publisher:SCEADeveloper:Insomniac Games
Number Of Players:1-16
Genre:FPS
Release Date:September 6, 2011
This is a shame. I can’t lie and say that I was ever too hyped about this game but secretly was half expecting to be surprised when it was released.
Good review Ernice, you might have just saved me some money.
There comes a time in every man’s life when its time to move on. That time is now Ernice.
As the old saying goes, “You gotta know when to fold em.”
Your hard work is not paying off with this site, and you aren’t getting any better at what you do. This is a poor review. With all of the time that GamesThirst has been around and trying to generate interest from the internet, unsuccessfully I might add, you would think that the editor of a site that spends so much time and effort would have taken up a creative writing class or something that could actually help him.
Unfortunately, that’s the hazard when you copy and post each bit of content for your site. You lose your personal touch. If you think Resistance 3 was uninspired you should take a look at GamesThirst, I would rate it a 1/10.
@KTG: You might not like GT but I love it. And who are you to be telling people when to move on and what not… For all we know you’re some site owner posing to be a regular user or whatever. Good review Ernice. Go outside the house, KTG.
Thanks, KTG, just some more fuel for me to keep pushing forward. Thanks for the motivation!
@KTG I can’t talk on the behalf of Ernice but I also contribute to this site. I obviously can’t argue the success of the site in terms of profitability but that doesn’t mean that the site isn’t successful in other ways. A group of people with a passion for gaming are having a great time talking about and doing what they love.
I understand that when you look at the age and amount of users on the site you could argue that it has had a slow growth but we are still only in the infancy of the sites life. There a huge plans for the sites future and plenty of original content in the pipeline. Ernice is a very creative person and has countless good ideas for the future of the site. We keep regular updates on all big stories every day to satisfy our regular visitors while we work behind the scenes planning for the sites bigger future. We have no guarantee whether these plans will be a success or not but I know we will have a good time working on them and continuing to support the site we love. Why ask someone to stop their greatest hobby, especially when it has potential to be a hugely profitable one in time.
Well said Joseph. I enjoy this site more than any other ones I visit. Mainly because it doesn’t have that bloated feel. Ernice is always responding to comments and a very friendly person who takes criticism very well. I was lucky to have come across this site. It just feels different and it is the only one I comment on myself. I was able to read the comments from KTG and couldn’t help but feel a little put off by it but to you Ernice…way to take it on the chin.
@rpatricky: Thanks bro. Every now and again someone comes around who’s only intention is to bring down. But I’ve come accustom to such people, and I’ve learned to ignore them. I have no idea who KTG is, no do I really care. All I know is that there’s a bright future ahead of Gamesthirst, I, along with Joseph, Josh and the rest are committed to making sure of it.
Now back to the review. I have finally gotten around to play through Resistance 2 and it is just kind of so so. There are points where the AI is just plain stupid. I will end up getting Resistance 3 when the price drops or reviews for multiplayer go off the charts in a positive way.
I have not quite played all the way through Resistance 2 but know I’m close.
Yeah, I see you’ve been playing it. It’s alright. Really disappointed with R3 though.
Well you know you have arrived in the cut throat world of online gaming journalism, when you get your very own troll.
i whole heartedly disagree with KTG! GamesThirst is my first stop when i fire up my laptop and if i can be the the one to point out the obvious. It would seem it’s one of yours too.
Game. The word says it all.WE do what we do to have fun. WE dont take ourselves too seriously.
YOU have just overstepped the mark as far as being decent to other people.
YOU have just insulted someone who provides you with a service for free.
Totally out of Order
Ernice your a legend and an extremely hard working nice guy.We all appreciate your work and love GamesThirst>
Thanks, bro. Thanks.
I wasn’t trying to bring anyone down. I thought I was pointing out the glaringly obvious.
I have no qualms with Ernice or GamesThirst, but you should admit it Ernice. You rushed this review because somewhere deep down you feel left out because you see other sites having already played and reviewed the game. The difference is, they’ve had the game for quite some time now. You picked it up retail, yesterday. And managed to generalize every single thing about the game offering little to no “meat” about the game in your review. What was found is a glorified and condensed fact sheet about the game from Insomniac. Its a disservice to the readers you so “care” about. Even worse, if these “readers” aside from the authors on the site are people who you actually care about retaining, you should probably do them a favor and try to take a little more care by offering them something that they can’t read on VG247. It’s actually quite shameful that you copy all of their content. Why even write at all. Perhaps you should start a forum so the plagiarism can stop.
Are you serious? You’re saying I feel “left out” because Insomniac didn’t send me a review copy? Such rubbish. Dude I always buy my games so that’s never been an issue for me. Even review copies of games we receive, I allow the other writers to get them and purchase my own copy. You’re talking like this because I didn’t give Resistance 3 a 10/10 or whatever. Also, about VG247, are you crazy? Really, are you crazy? You say I copy and paste my content? Truly you’re just a passerby? Because like other sites, including VG247, I get news from all over the web, if you’re from here you would know that.
This whole talk of plagiarism is the most ridiculous piece of talk I’ve heard on Gamesthirst in a very long time – but go ahead, be Insomniac Games, who don’t give a crap about you, savior. Defend a 7/10 by talking rubbish to me. I don’t really care. I’ve played Resistance 3, and checking it out again….but I won’t change my score because of your little rant.
‘
Why don’t you go rage against gameinformer for giving RE3 a 7?
You are lazy Ernice. It’s not a crime, you don’t need to get all mad and defensive about it. You should just work on it for the site’s sake.
Ernice why are you entertaining KTG, he wants to clearly work you up
@ttbounty: I really thought he’d come better than this, his last comment just cements what you said.
i/ we prefer some1 who buys the game from the same retailer i/we buy it from n write me a review than some1 getting a copy from the developer with content that is not on my retail disc…. most developers get much more polished games than what we get for retail because they want high scores…..@KTG think twice before u start braggin about getting games earlier … u commentary makes me think u r not anywhere ne developer… so u must have suc*ed some dude to get it early…….
AM SORRY FOR THE LANGUAGE…. FELLOW GT USERS..
700 per day strong.
Alright KTG, I was being nice. Post anything else and I’ll trash it.
Oh I see, you can dish out the criticism in your review but censor things in the comments. That figures. If I were you I wouldn’t want people that come to the site to read what I wrote either, because its the truth. Take Care.
cant believe im saying this, but insomniac have done the impossible, they have made a bad game!
hell, even after the 6 week long beta, and massive day one patch the online is still stuffed!
god i have not seen a games MP this bad since freaking confrontation!
i think its time for insomniac to move onto overstrike.
as much as i hate it, i dont want to see them doing any more of there famous series because its quite obvious there just not interested in it any more.
this makes me even more worried for R&C all 4 one, just downloaded the beta but cant play it because PSN is down.
do this to my beloved lombax and your going to wish you found a horses head in your bead!
I wouldn’t say it’s a bad game, nick, just not great. It could have been more. But yeah, they should pass on the franchise to another developer.
Wow! KTG. How many sites do you visit where the article writer actually, continuously, replies to comments? You are welcome to have your opinion and I can see some constructive criticism in it but you don’t have to come across like an asshole. Lazy? I think he is the opposite. KTG, I think you are the only one here with negativity towards GT.
I’m sorry, but I had to jump in on this. Lazy you say, KTG? The internet is packed with morons! Ernice has been working this site EVERYDAY, and like you pointed out, maybe not with the pay he’d like to receive, yet continues to work without complaining and you call him lazy. Jesus. Get the hell out of here man.
And good review. I’ll pick this up when it’s cheaper.
Well said rpatricky.
KTG, there is a difference between criticizing and attacking someone, and you sir or mam are attacking Ernice. Now if you came in here and critiqued the article in a constructive way without attacking the author, then that is fine, but when you start calling people lazy and implying that they are incompetent (which you did when you told him to go take a class), then you need to calm down. Also, you made the comment that Ernice was getting defensive, but just before that you were getting defensive as well. It is okay to criticize someone when it is constructive, but do not just attack them. And, what are you talking about with plagarism? It is not plagarism if you cite the source (which we do). All other sites do it as well. Yes, much of the content on here comes from other places, but we do this because some do not visit other sites and surf around the net all day long. It is nice to offer them all the news we can in one place. Exclusive content does not just appear out no where. The bigger sites usually get it first, and the smaller ones are left to pick from it. Most orignal content on smaller sights consist of opinion pieces, top 10 lists, walkthroughs and first looks of betas, demos and sometimes early demo codes, along with an interview here and there, which takes time to get because you need to get to know the pr person who does it. Ernice is not lazy. He works extremely hard at this and does a good job. If he had a bigger team working with him, then you would see more diverse content, but as of now, he is doing this pretty much alone, with some people adding stuff here and there. So just calm down and let it be.
it is a bad game by insomniacs standards.
im about a 3rd of the way through now, and im just not enjoying it.
I feel you there. I’m actually bored of the game.