Resistance: Fall of Man

Resistance: Fall of Man—often called Resistance; abbreviated to RFoM; and originally developed under the title I8 (because it was the eighth title to be in production by Insomniac Games) — is a science fiction first-person shooter video game for the PlayStation 3, developed by Insomniac Games. It is the first installment in the Resistance franchise. The game is set in an alternate history 1951, and puts the player in the footsteps of Sgt. Nathan Hale as he and the human resistance forces attempt to drive a mysterious alien-like invasion out of Britain.

The game was released as a PlayStation 3 launch title in Japan on November 11, 2006, in the United States on November 14, 2006 and in Europe on March 23, 2007. Resistance had a generally favorable critical reception, garnering particular praise in view of its status as a launch title and winning several awards, as well as being the first PS3 game to sell over one million copies, followed immediately by MotorStorm. The story continues in Resistance 2.

Plot
The game starts in July 1951, with the protagonist, Sgt. Nathan Hale, as part of the United States Army Rangers 5,000-man task force to help liberate Britain and to retrieve a secret weapon that the British claim can be used against the Chimera. However, the force is quickly wiped out by a Chimeran spire attack, which infects all of the soldiers with the Chimeran virus, soon after landing in York. Hale, the only survivor, appears to be infected with the virus despite not having gone into a coma; he possesses increased metabolism and limited regeneration, and his irises have become gold/yellow, somewhat like the Chimera. He now harnesses the power to use sym-bacs, the games version of health packs, to instantly regenerate up to a quarter of his health at a time. Hale continues on his mission, along the way meeting with and rescuing Captain Rachel Parker while escaping from a Chimeran conversion center in Grimsby. Parker assists Hale over the radio for the rest of his mission. Hale and the British forces eventually manage to deliver the secret weapon to one of the Resistance's headquarters, only for it to be attacked by Chimeran forces shortly afterward. It is revealed that the "secret weapon" is actually an "Angel", a Chimeran creature that British Intelligence was able to capture. The Angels are the most powerful form of Chimera creature, and British Intelligence theorizes that they control the rest of the Chimera forces through some form of telepathy. The Angel attempts to enter into Hale's mind, but he manages to resist the mind-meld and shoots the creature in the head with one long burst from his M5A2 carbine.

Hale continues with the war effort, assisted by Lieutenant Steven Cartwright, a British Royal Marines Commando. The two of them eventually discover that the Chimera have established a series of metallic Towers throughout Britain, all inter-connected by a series of underground power conduits. Oddly, evidence indicates that the Towers were excavated, not constructed, adding more mystery as to the origin of the Chimera. Hale enters the underground Chimeran tunnels and discovers that the Chimera's main Tower in Britain is in London. Through his connection to the Chimera, Hale comes to the conclusion that destroying the central Tower will somehow result in the total defeat of the Chimera in Britain.

The British and American forces launch one final, desperate attack against the main Tower in London. Hale manages to reach the top of the Tower and destroy its central nuclear fission reactor, resulting in a massive explosion that demolishes the main Tower. The reaction propagates along the Chimera conduit network, destroying all the Towers in Britain and killing all of the Angels inside. With the Angels dead, the remaining Chimera forces quickly die off. Parker theorizes that they are simply unable to survive without the presence of the Angels. While Britain is liberated from the Chimeran forces, the rest of Europe continues to be occupied by the Chimera.

As for Hale, he is presumed to have been killed in the explosion of the main Tower, and the Americans list him as Killed in Action. Parker is not convinced, though, and believes that Hale may have managed to survive somehow. The game's final cutscene shows Hale indeed alive, walking through the rubble and snow, armed with only a single grenade. Suddenly, he is captured by a squad of soldiers wearing unusual insignia, appearing to be some form of special forces, known only as the Black Ops, a name given to them in the multiplayer mode (their bodies are seen at various points towards the very end of the campaign game, near the Central Core itself, and appear to be specially outfitted in airtight suits designed to resist or repel Chimeran spire attacks). Hale briefly contemplates killing them as well as himself with the grenade, but ultimately decides against it. He drops the grenade and allows himself to be taken into custody by the soldiers (the name of the video cut is "A Fateful Choice"). This is where Resistance 2 picks up.

Gameplay


Resistance: Fall of Man takes many gameplay cues from classic shooters such as Doom and Quake; the player is able to hold every weapon in the game at the same time, movement does not affect the accuracy of weapons, and the player runs at the same speed in any direction, making old-school tactics such as circle-strafing viable. The health system is a hybrid of the regenerating health system popularised by Call of Duty 2 and the older fixed-health system; the health bar is divided into four segments, each of which will regenerate if partially depleted but require a first aid item (Sym-Bac) to be picked up if fully depleted. In keeping with this old-school theme, enemies are far less "crunchy" than in most modern games, with even the common Hybrid enemies able to withstand multiple headshots from basic weapons.

Resistance: Fall of Man is a first-person shooter set in an alternate history. Many of its gameplay features stem from this, most notable of which is the weapons. Some weapons are based on real weapons circa the 1950s, while some weapons are futuristically altered in accordance with the game's storyline. Insomniac Games has combined its passion for creating exotic weapons and vehicles, such as those found in the Ratchet &amp; Clank series, with its proprietary development engine and physics system to create unique human and Chimeran weaponry. Each weapon provides a unique play style and strategy. An example of this is found with the Auger. The primary fire for this weapon is simple rapid fire, but the bullets burrow through walls, actually coming out stronger on the other side, opening up a whole new level of strategy. The secondary fire creates a barrier that is resistant to all bullets but its own. In addition to the usual short- and long-range weapons, the game features several different types of grenades, with both historical and futuristic varieties. For example, one grenade, known as the Backlash grenade, is capable of creating a dome-shaped barrier, where the player can enter for cover. The barrier reflects shots from opposing Chimera. Some weapons are not available on the first play-through of the game but can be found at certain locations on replaying the game

The game features melee attacks, and the motion sensing feature of the SIXAXIS controller is used for a number of things including shaking off enemies that grab onto the player, shaking off tags and flames in multiplayer, and quickly bringing up a map or leaderboard in a multiplayer match. The player also has access to turrets and a drivable jeep with a gun turret on certain levels. The game was also on Sony's list of titles to receive an online update to support the vibration feature of the DualShock 3 controller for Japan, North America, and Europe.

Similar to Ratchet and Clank, there are also skill points that can be earned throughout the single player game. These are awarded for certain actions that are hinted at by their titles; however, the specific details are not revealed until the skill point is actually earned. For example, one skill point, called "Tag, You're It" requires killing five enemies in 30 seconds with the Bullseye weapon. There are generic skill points that can be earned during any single level, and some that are specific to certain levels of the game. Each task is worth a different number of points which are used to unlock additional media for the game. There are many more skill points to be found in Resistance than in the Ratchet & Clank or Spyro series, which means the actions required to complete the points are much easier to do. Therefore, multiple skill points can be earned at once with little effort from the player. For example, one skill point, 'I Believe This is Yours', requires the player to kill all the Chimera in any level using only Chimeran weapons; in later levels, Chimeran weapons are more plentiful and more powerful than human weapons; in addition to the enemy AI guiding the Chimera towards the player, this skill point can be acquired with relative ease.

In addition, multiple Intel documents can be found scattered throughout each level. These give the player an insight into what has happened, is happening, and will happen.

(Resistance: Fall of Man also includes an offline cooperative mode, which lets the player play through the entire game with someone else.)

Multiplayer
Resistance: Fall of Man features a multiplayer mode for up to 40 players online with a 4 player offline. The multiplayer functionality of Resistance utilizes the same PlayStation Network ID (PSN) that users already have.

The multiplayer runs at a locked 30 frames per second, offline and online, no matter what happens in-game. Multiplayer games have little to no latency (subject to player's connection and host location), even while playing the 40 player online due to the implementation of dedicated servers across the PlayStation Network.

The multiplayer version of the game also enables players to create their own clan, create their own matches (custom games) or join pre-set games (Ranked Games). While in games, players can talk to their fellow team mates by using a Bluetooth or USB headset. Text chat is also enabled in pre-game lobbies.

The online multiplayer has an integrated friends system which allows players to add one another without becoming friends on the PSN. The online friends list shows a player's friend to be either In Lobby, Staging or In Game. From here players can Invite to Game, Invite to Party or Send a Message. This in game system allows for user-friendly interaction between friends and bypasses the need for players to exit the game to talk to friends; a feature that was absent from most other PS3 titles, until system firmware 2.40 was released.

Downloadable content
On June 7, 2007, a spokesperson from Sony Computer Entertainment America, posted a message on MyResistance.net, informing players that complications had arisen and that the Worldwide Update and map pack had been delayed for an unspecified amount of time. However, the spokesperson did mention that it was only for a short period of time.

In addition to the above maps, Insomniac made available two additional maps on June 29, 2007 in one map pack for $7.99 USD, $8.99 CAD, £2.99 GBP, €4.49 and $7.45 AU.

An additional map pack was released on November 29, 2007 that includes two additional maps for the price of $4.99 USD.

On December 11, 2008 both Map Packs were made free for download.

Maps
There are many different places you can play on during the game, all of which are based on places in England. The maps all vary in size and some of the more popular locations such as "Nottingham" and "Grimsby" come in four different sizes. The Maps added so far include, Bracknell, Axbridge, Camborne, Westmorland, Subway, Thames, Hangar, Bus Yard, Rooftops, U.S.S. Lexington, The Mall, Somerset, Nottingham, Manchester and Grimsby.

Just a few days after releasing Patch 6, Insomniac Games unveiled two new maps for Resistance: Fall of Man for the PS3. The two maps, Bracknell and Axbridge, will be suitable to all types of games and can accommodate from 8 to 40 players per round.

Bracknell is an all-interior map where players battle it out amidst the backdrop of Chimeran node and Widowmaker breeding grounds, perfect for vertical and close-quarters combat. Axbridge, on the other hand, is a narrow corridor with two human bases on each end. Aside from good sniping spots, the Axbridge map also provides the perfect venue for close-quarters combat.

Rumble
In November 2007, an update for the game was made available that enabled rumble functionality for DualShock 3 controllers.

Ranked Matches
Ranked matches automatically places players in a match from a chosen category. The matches intend to place players together whose ranks are the same or very close together, to make the matches fair. Ranked matches give the player experience, which will allow the player to move up different ranks. As the player moves up ranks, special rewards are unlocked for their character.

There are three categories the player can choose from, each category with its own modes with one the player will automatically be placed in. The three categories consist of:


 * Free-for-all: In this category there is a deathmatch mode, which is a simple free-for all deathmatch. There is also conversion mode, an elimination game type.


 * Team Deathmatch, is the second selectable category which directly takes the player to a Team Deathmatch where two teams battle to see who can get to the point objective first (Normal scoring) by killing the members of the opposing team. Map Pack Mayhem was recently added to the Team Deathmatch game mode.


 * Team Objective: When selecting this category the player will either be taken to a Meltdown, Capture the Flag, Breach or Assault game type. The most common mode the player is automatically taken to is Meltdown, in which two teams fight to capture nodes.

Custom Matches
The multiplayer for Resistance also allows highly customizable unranked matches, known as 'Custom' matches allowing the hosts to set different parameters such as hit points, weapon sets and others. Custom matches already in progress can also be joined and the player can join matches of his/her choice with a filter that detects matches meeting the player's chosen criteria. Other Players can also be invited to games using the buddy list. Custom games do not have much XP to gain as opposed to Ranked matches.

Offline modes
The offline (split screen) multiplayer also features a range of modes, These include: Deathmatch, Team-Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, Breech, Assault and Meltdown. All of which the player can decide the map they play the game on, the time limit, the number of lives, the teams (if applicable), the points limit and plenty of other variables.

Resistance's multiplayer does not feature the vehicles found in the game's Campaign mode.

Different species
While playing online you will either be assigned to the Human or Chimera species, each of which has its strengths and Weaknesses.
 * Humans: Humans possess advanced radar that detects friends and foes. Humans are also smaller, thus harder to hit, and possess the ability to crouch and sprint forever. However, while sprinting the cross hairs will disappear, making it hard to aim correctly. Also, if a human is sprinting without full health, their health will not regenerate until they stop sprinting. Human players also spawn equipped with one fragmentation grenade. Their default weapon is the M5A2 Carbine.
 * Chimera: Chimera are larger and make easier targets but they also possess "Rage Mode". This allows them to run faster, see enemies through walls at a short distance (like thermal imagery), and increase their damage given with any weapon (including the sniper rifle and the rocket launcher). "Rage Mode" can cause the Chimera to overheat and lose up to half of their health if left on for too long. When in Rage Mode for a certain amount of time, flames will show up on the Chimera's back, making it more visible. The Chimera also lack the ability to crouch. Their default (spawning) weapon is the Bullseye, and do not spawn with grenades.

Critical reception
Resistance: Fall of Man received generally positive reviews from critics. The game received an average score of 87% based on 79 reviews on the review aggregator Game Rankings. and an average score of 86 out of 100 based on 70 reviews on Metacritic.

Within the first few hours of the PS3's Japanese launch, the game had already received praise from some publications. Famitsu gave the game a 33 out of 40. IGN was the first western site to review the game, giving it a 9.1 out of 10 with reviewer Jeremy Dunham declaring that while other consoles had to wait years to get their killer app, "PlayStation 3 users get theirs on day one." Game Informer has given Resistance a 9.5 out of 10. Also, Gamezone gave it a 9.5. GameSpot has given Resistance an 8.6. Following closely GameBrink.com posted their review, giving it a 91 over 100. However, the scores at the time of European launch were less brilliant, and the OPM UK gave it 7, compared to Call of Duty 3's 8. IGN UK gave it an 8, compared to 9.1 at the US launch. Gamesradar.com (also known as cheatplanet.com) gave Resistance 8/10.

Sequels
Resistance 2 was confirmed for release in 2008, and takes place in the United States rather than Europe. It is also confirmed that multiplayer will support up to 60 players online and up to 8 players in co-op mode. In February 2008 Insomniac revealed that Resistance 2 will be available in Fall 2008. This date was revealed as an easter egg in a mock Tenacious D music video about Insomniac. The game was released in North America on 4 November 2008.

Another sequel, called Resistance: Retribution, was announced on July 15, 2008 at Sony's E3 2008 press conference. It is a third-person shooter for PlayStation Portable and has been developed by Sony Bend, better known for developing the Syphon Filter series. The story takes place in Europe following the destruction of the London tower and features returning characters from Fall of Man as well as the new protagonist named James Grayson.