Resistance 2 Thread

[Arbys Roast Beef Sandwich]

I'm wondering if they just plain cut corners on the SP in order to create the biggest MP possible.

I'm pretty sure this is what happened. From what I've played SP seems like a total afterthought, with almost throwaway mission objectives and cheesy, Gauntlet-like "monster generator" crap that makes it play more like a corridor shooter and less like a modern, sci-fi shooter it seemed to be. I haven't played the first Resistance to judge though, so I really have no point of reference.

[cool breeze]

One thing I'm really confused about between this in Gears 2 is how they both handled vehicles.  I actually liked the Resistance 1 vehicle sections, especially the one where you were on the jeep and had to go from bunker to bunker with that brit and kill the chimera; even the tank sections were fun.  Resistance 2 doesn't have any vehicles at all, and it's confusing since you see some in the game would be perfect (there is this shielded hovercraft that someone in your team rides, but not you).  For some reason they got rid of vehicles completely.  Now Gears 1 also has a brief section in a vehicle that was bad, and Gears 2 follows that up with more vehicle sections and all of those have been bad so far (or really the only 'weak' points in the game).  The opposite approaches would have worked for both games in this case.

[Sho Nuff]

I wanna see the Google Maps money shot

[y2kev]

I wanna see the Google Maps money shot

I can't find it on youtube at all. Maybe blim has a shot. it's bad

[cool breeze]

I found it in 2 seconds on youtube.  Just search for playthroughs of a game and there will always be someone who video taped it.

[youtube=425,350]UkOFfzmwRVI[/youtube] towards the end

[fistfulofmetal]

 

I really hope that becomes an overused joke of some kind. It's just so absurd.

[duckman2000]

That's a pretty crazy awesome looking monster though.

Insomniac
Insomniac

One thing I'm really confused about between this in Gears 2 is how they both handled vehicles.  I actually liked the Resistance 1 vehicle sections, especially the one where you were on the jeep and had to go from bunker to bunker with that brit and kill the chimera; even the tank sections were fun.  Resistance 2 doesn't have any vehicles at all, and it's confusing since you see some in the game would be perfect (there is this shielded hovercraft that someone in your team rides, but not you).  For some reason they got rid of vehicles completely.  Now Gears 1 also has a brief section in a vehicle that was bad, and Gears 2 follows that up with more vehicle sections and all of those have been bad so far (or really the only 'weak' points in the game).  The opposite approaches would have worked for both games in this case.

As usual, blame the critics. They were pretty down on the vehicle sections. Not that I was particularly fond of them either, but judging by Deadlocked, that was obviously not the best Insomniac could do. I guess all this serves as reason as to why critics liked this one.

Critics

[fistfulofmetal]

Just finished Chicago and so far it's been the best level. It's got a good balance of frantic shootouts with normal sized Chimera and then a really nice dark level in an old building fighting the fast fuckers. I had no trouble with the large shootout with the Stalkers as some others have, I just went into the building to the left and took cover. It was rather easy.

But that moment where two Big Green Shield assholes come over a ruble in front of you sucked. Like every other encounter with them.

Oh and the epic boss battle was boring.

[y2kev]

I liked Chicago until that big firefight. It's just overwhelming.

[cool breeze]

Which one was Chicago again? was it the one where you had to swim through the water at one point while enemies were shooting you, yet you couldn't stop to heal behind water cover because a fish would you eat you? that part was such bullshit.  At points I questioned if Insomniac had even tested the game.

[fistfulofmetal]

Which one was Chicago again? was it the one where you had to swim through the water at one point while enemies were shooting you, yet you couldn't stop to heal behind water cover because a fish would you eat you? that part was such bullshit.  At points I questioned if Insomniac had even tested the game.

During my playthrough the fish leaped on to a car in the distance and didn't go after me until I started to reach the little ramp.

[y2kev]

I don't think that happened to me. It's the one with the leviathan.

[cool breeze]

The fish kept getting me until I eventually got lucky and the Chimera AI didn't detect me until I got at the ramp, then I took them out quickly.

[duckman2000]

Alright, played the first couple of missions (Iceland and up until entrance to SF), and my first impression is that this is more derivative than the first one. Looking over the missions so far, they seem lifted straight from Halo 3, in sequence even. The 2-weapon system and the ridiculously slow movement doesn't do much to shake that impression. The battle moments have been alright; the Chimera grunts put up a real fight, so that has been cool. I fucking hate when they take control of my character, and the sprint view is crap; why does it zoom in? Visually, it has so far ranged from so-so to good, but I honestly prefer the style of R1.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

The kraken looks crazy awesome though

[close]

Whereas Resistance was fairly unique among console FPS with its fast pace, this one seems designed from the ground up as a me-too console shooter effort. It's not a bad one by any means, but I'm disappointed that they have chosen that path. I understand why, but to me it's just sad that they felt the need to sacrifice their own style in favor of a generic model.

And without going into any details, playing this just made me all the more annoyed that the KZ2 servers were down.

[y2kev]

cod4 has ruined sp campaigns for shooters

yep yep

[duckman2000]

Honestly, the most puzzling part is the sprint zoom. For one, I hate the whole concept behind sprint in this, considering that it's just a patch on the wound left by them slowing the game down. But why in the hell does it zoom in?

[y2kev]

I like the zoom. What's wrong with the zoom? It gives you a sense of motion. They could blur your periphery, but instead they zoom it in.

[duckman2000]

I hate it because it looks distinguished mentally-challenged. My eyes don't suddenly zoom in when I take off sprinting. I'm not talking about a small zoom effect, but how it basically zooms in on the gun.

[y2kev]

ur not a alieum

[duckman2000]

1. Yes I am, I even have my own alien registration card
2. And apparently I'm the more capable alien since I don't need to zoom in on my own gun in order to sprint

[cool breeze]

Honestly, the most puzzling part is the sprint zoom. For one, I hate the whole concept behind sprint in this, considering that it's just a patch on the wound left by them slowing the game down. But why in the hell does it zoom in?

The sprint was in Resistance 1, but only for multiplayer.  I like sprint, I wish Halo 3 had sprint, especially considering the geriatrics of Master Chief trying to trug along the huge levels.  The zoom is really dumb and it actually gave me a bit of a headache at first.

[duckman2000]

Maybe I've just been damaged by other games with sprint. I agree though that it should be in games, I just hate how it's implemented here. That, and I really don't like the walking speed.

[duckman2000]

Oh yeah, and what the hell is up with the explosions? I swear, the explosions in the Ps2 Ratchet games were better than this.

[duckman2000]

Who else thinks it's sort of lame when games give you exactly the right weapon for the task immediately ahead of you, and super-lame when they do it seemingly all the time?

[cool breeze]

yeah, it's really dumb.

Worst is when there are three Titans in the middle of the stage with the weapons you needed to kill them right there in the middle as well.  It was so dumb. 

[Mrbob]

Fuck the single player, who is going to go online and give me impressions of online co op.

Sounds like the best part of the game.  Instances where every battle is never exactly the same, and you get to level up your characters rpg style to boot.  Give it a whirl! 

[duckman2000]

Fuck the single player, who is going to go online and give me impressions of online co op.

Sounds like the best part of the game.  Instances where every battle is never exactly the same, and you get to level up your characters rpg style to boot.  Give it a whirl! 

Eh, can't think of a good reason to take it online. The MP beta wasn't so hot. Although, to be fair, maybe it will be better with different maps.

[fistfulofmetal]

Ending is fuckawful. What a pathetic excuse for a "final boss battle".

Insomniac finally dropped the ball.... it was inevitable actually.

[duckman2000]

yeah, it's really dumb.

Worst is when there are three Titans in the middle of the stage with the weapons you needed to kill them right there in the middle as well.  It was so dumb. 

It's been like this even for skirmishes. Oh, a sniper rifle? I bet this next room will have lots of far away targets. The walking tank model is unrealistic, sure, but then so is this. And at least the weapon wheel is vintage Insomniac. This? Vintage Halo, without whatever magic Bungie blends into the mix to make it seem less artificial.

[y2kev]

Ending is fuckawful. What a pathetic excuse for a "final boss battle".

Insomniac finally dropped the ball.... it was inevitable actually.

They need to break the 1 game a year mold. There is just no time for mistakes.

[cool breeze]

I'm fine with the yearly releases as long as each year isn't a major release.  If it was a small PSN game one year and a full game the next, then that could work, but as it is now they can't handle it.  There is even a new Ratchet next year, not a PSN game, but a full Ratchet.  The worst is that now 2010 is gonna be Resistance 3 and we all know it.  The yearly cycle won't end, they won't ever get a good amount of time to work on an IP, and just gotta deal with it.

[Bebpo]

So Insomniac timeline this gen:
Resistance - Good/Great
Ratchet ToF - Good
Ratchet QFB - Not so good
Resistance 2 - Kinda bad
Ratchet next -

If Ratchet 2009 isn't a better game than ToF I'm going to have to start writing Insomniac off until next gen. 

[cool breeze]

I'd say ToF was great. 

[Bebpo]

I'd say ToF was great. 

It was really, really shallow.  I liked it enough to beat it 2 or 3 times and get everything 100% because at the end of the day it was pretty and fun.  But there was absolutely no challenge in the platforming or the action.  The dino land sucked, the clank sections were weak, and the hacking mini-games got old.

They really need to step up the difficulty and platforming in the next one.  The best part of the last one was the platforming on the satellite.

[cool breeze]

I thought Dino Land was fun if only for gliding across the huge areas.  I do agree that they should really make them more challenging in terms of platforming and all that.

[duckman2000]

I liked TOD quite a bit, but I'm not convinced that it was a necessary game. And I really hope they do more than just make it bigger for the next one.

[Vizzys]

resistance 2 sucks

(its good to be back)

[y2kev]

I dunno Bebpo, it's not "kinda bad." I think we're probably exaggerating a bit, and none of us play MP. What's funny is that I thought Resistance 1 had a great campaign and gamers loved it and the media was like meh and R2 most fans think the campaign is average to good and the media loves it.

But I have no respek for them anyway, they liked COD4.

[duckman2000]

Insomniac catered to critics and the unwashed masses (also see: Halo fans) with this one. It remains to be seen if the Halofication scheme will work in their favor in terms of popularity and sales, but it's pretty obvious that it's a design by bullet point. Insomniac SpeedFPS of Massdeath is dead.  :'(

[y2kev]

If they were aping Halo they need to MAJORLY extend the health bar in r2. You can take less than 2 direct hits with the bullseye mark 2

:emoticon here WTF AT THESE EMOTICONS

[cool breeze]

It's because Resistance has somewhat different gameplay for single player despite the CoD2/HL2 style comparisons it was getting.  Resistance 2 is just really similar to other games out there.

And I really don't think they were trying to go Halo style with this.  I think CoD4 was probably a big influence.  Hell, even in your melee move he takes out a knife every once in a while.

[y2kev]

There are GLIMPSES of R1's gameplay in R2. The end of the Louisiana level is fucktacularly amazing. That giant incline with the shitton of chimera as you head up to the tower is SOOO GOOD.

[duckman2000]

It's because Resistance has somewhat different gameplay for single player despite the CoD2/HL2 style comparisons it was getting.  Resistance 2 is just really similar to other games out there.

And I really don't think they were trying to go Halo style with this.  I think CoD4 was probably a big influence.  Hell, even in your melee move he takes out a knife every once in a while.

The entire intro is straight out of Halo 3, though, sans the "jungle" setting. All the way to SF is basically Halo 3, with a brief moment of poorly emulated COD4ism.

[Bebpo]

I dunno Bebpo, it's not "kinda bad." I think we're probably exaggerating a bit, and none of us play MP. What's funny is that I thought Resistance 1 had a great campaign and gamers loved it and the media was like meh and R2 most fans think the campaign is average to good and the media loves it.

But I have no respek for them anyway, they liked COD4.

I'm still at level 3 so I was just going by what people here are saying.  I don't think the game is bad so far.  It's solid but it definitely feels less unique than R1.

[duckman2000]

There are GLIMPSES of R1's gameplay in R2. The end of the Louisiana level is fucktacularly amazing. That giant incline with the shitton of chimera as you head up to the tower is SOOO GOOD.

Ergo, it would have been better for all of us had Insomniac stuck with Deadlocked. Alien environments? Check. Crazy battles against even crazier alien scum? Check. Bloody good? Indeed.

[y2kev]

It's because Resistance has somewhat different gameplay for single player despite the CoD2/HL2 style comparisons it was getting.  Resistance 2 is just really similar to other games out there.

And I really don't think they were trying to go Halo style with this.  I think CoD4 was probably a big influence.  Hell, even in your melee move he takes out a knife every once in a while.

The entire intro is straight out of Halo 3, though, sans the "jungle" setting. All the way to SF is basically Halo 3, with a brief moment of poorly emulated COD4ism.

I actually totally agree 

I was going to post that on GAF but shied away from making the Halo 3 comparison....but Resistance 2 levels 1-2 and bits of 3 are basically ripped right out of Halo 3.

[cool breeze]

I need to play Halo 3 again (anyone up for co-op? well, maybe the week of the 24th) then.  The gameplay of spring, aim, shoot was evoking feelings of CoD4 with better scenarios but worse gunplay.

[y2kev]

Forest/woodsy shooting then corridor shooting in a base. Sooo Halo 3.

R2 is more heavily scripted in the first mission though.

DAMN YOU COD4 DAMN YOUUUUUU

[Smooth Groove]

ha ha, I told y'all that R2's review texts didn't match the high scores. 

[bork]

So should we start referring to this game as "Halo PS3?" 

[y2kev]

ha ha, I told y'all that R2's review texts didn't match the high scores. 

The reviews take into account multiplayer which none of us are playing.

So should we start referring to this game as "Halo PS3?"

Halo 3 was a good game, you people suck.

[cool breeze]

Halo 2 is a good comparison.  I hope Resistance 3 is a good in the same way that Halo 3 is good compared to Halo 1 and not the Halo 2 way because both Halo 2 and Resistance 2 were a bit of a letdown from the original games so yeah

[Smooth Groove]

Halo actually had stuff that were some of the best in the genre such as AI, grenades, vehicles.  

There isn't one thing in Resistance that isn't derivative or better done in another game.  

People wouldn't give a crap about Resistance if it weren't PS3 exclusive.  

[Bebpo]

Halo actually had stuff that were some of the best in the genre such as AI, grenades, vehicles.  

There isn't one thing in Resistance that isn't derivative or better done in another game.  

People wouldn't give a crap about Resistance if it weren't PS3 exclusive.  

The weapons.  Also R1 was intensely challenging like no other FPS has been for me near the end.  People complained about dying a lot between the distant checkpoints but it made you play strategically and rewarded playing well.  Halo is the only other FPS where I feel that. 

And as much as you want to think R1 only gets credit because it's on the PS3, most of the people in this thread who really liked R1 and are not so hot on R2 are multi-platform owners who've played all the big FPS games.  Being on the PS3 had nothing to do with R1 being a great FPS.  I actually think the game gets more hate because it was the launch PS3 FPS.

[fistfulofmetal]

There are GLIMPSES of R1's gameplay in R2. The end of the Louisiana level is fucktacularly amazing. That giant incline with the shitton of chimera as you head up to the tower is SOOO GOOD.

See, I just hung back and killed everyone from afar. It was really easy and kind of boring for me :|


Today I went and read some wiki on R1 to refresh myself as to the kind of stuff R2 seems to have forgot. I really really liked the backstory in R1. Chimera arriving with the Tunguska Event and the Soviet Union going completely dark as the world kind of looks on with worry. Stories of razed cities and a cold front pushing the area into a deep freeze.
That shit is cool to me. And it's all completely lost in the sequel.

Chimera no longer require cold. And the things on their backs can't be used against them. It really sucks. Also they removed those slow creepy Chimera that would walk towards you with their arms extended and their mouths opened. Those dudes were awesome. Even if they replaced them with the Spinners... who are awesome too.

[duckman2000]

I swear, it's as if they hired some artist from Rare to give the game that Rare touch of shit visual balance and overall clutter. God fucking damn it.

The lack of weight to the movement and aiming has become another issue, although I squarely blame KZ2 for that.

[duckman2000]

And as much as you want to think R1 only gets credit because it's on the PS3, most of the people in this thread who really liked R1 and are not so hot on R2 are multi-platform owners who've played all the big FPS games.  Being on the PS3 had nothing to do with R1 being a great FPS.  I actually think the game gets more hate because it was the launch PS3 FPS.

I liked it because it felt like a PC game, all the way from SP pacing to MP feature set. And it had monsters, and cool weapons. I'm not sure I would've bothered with it hadn't it been an Insomniac game, and that's really the reason why I'm so disappointed in this one. It's totally not an Insomniac style game. And while Resistance may have been a derivative of various classic first person shooters, this one aims to stand proudly among the castrated shooters that the unwashed masses have made so popular. But without much of the charm of any one of the top dogs.

[dark1x]

Halo actually had stuff that were some of the best in the genre such as AI, grenades, vehicles.  

There isn't one thing in Resistance that isn't derivative or better done in another game.  

People wouldn't give a crap about Resistance if it weren't PS3 exclusive.  

Ha ha, I'm glad you are giving Halo credit where it's due.  There were so many people that believed it to be a poor game simply because it wasn't a PC title, but there were no PC titles tuned as well as Halo in 2001.  There were so many fantastic elements in Halo that were all beautifully integrated into something the likes of which we had never seen.  Halo changed the landscape of the FPS forever and most of those changes are for the better.

Resistance 2, on the other hand, is just "meh". 

[y2kev]

There are GLIMPSES of R1's gameplay in R2. The end of the Louisiana level is fucktacularly amazing. That giant incline with the shitton of chimera as you head up to the tower is SOOO GOOD.

See, I just hung back and killed everyone from afar. It was really easy and kind of boring for me :|


Today I went and read some wiki on R1 to refresh myself as to the kind of stuff R2 seems to have forgot. I really really liked the backstory in R1. Chimera arriving with the Tunguska Event and the Soviet Union going completely dark as the world kind of looks on with worry. Stories of razed cities and a cold front pushing the area into a deep freeze.
That shit is cool to me. And it's all completely lost in the sequel.

Chimera no longer require cold. And the things on their backs can't be used against them. It really sucks. Also they removed those slow creepy Chimera that would walk towards you with their arms extended and their mouths opened. Those dudes were awesome. Even if they replaced them with the Spinners... who are awesome too.

I hung back behind the left cover and they actually came down and hunted me out. What difficulty were you playing on?

I agree with you. They sort of ruined them. Not only did they change a lot of cool things about them (and you understand why-- snowy, frozen over environments might get repetitive and they could add the grims), but they changed the way you learned about the chimera. That was most disappointing to me.

Resistance 2 turned the story from X-Files to a regular old aliens movie. I thought there was still debate in the first game whether or not these guys were really even extraterrestrial...now it's like they have these gigantic flying ships.

edit: Does anyone actually think the SP campaign is worse than COD4's? It's not THAT BAD. It lacks the scripted AI encounters, infinitely respawning infantry, and the play spaces are better designed. COD4 is the game for people who like loud noises.

[cool breeze]

With the exception of the superior shooting mechanics on CoD4, I like Resistance 2 more.  Some areas in CoD4 were better, like the epilogue, but I wasn't a fan of the majority of it.  Resistance 2 puts you in more enjoyable scenarios but the flaw is how little damage Hale can take and how much the enemies are resistant to your shots.

I really do feel like they took only one of the four health sections from the first game and never thought to adjust that to fit the new health system.

Ha ha, I'm glad you are giving Halo credit where it's due.  There were so many people that believed it to be a poor game simply because it wasn't a PC title, but there were no PC titles tuned as well as Halo in 2001.  There were so many fantastic elements in Halo that were all beautifully integrated into something the likes of which we had never seen.  Halo changed the landscape of the FPS forever and most of those changes are for the better.

Resistance 2, on the other hand, is just "meh". 

Halo was a great game, but I think sometimes people still give it too much credit.  The only thing it should really be credited for is the recharging health, and even that wasn't changed into what we know now until Halo 2. Although it does deserves praise for taking other elements from other games, like vehicles and such, and making them feel really smooth.  Halo 3 is somewhat similar.  Nothing really new with the online features, but the execution of it all is handled well.