October 20, 2009 8:41 PM EDT
If you’re interested in buying Red Faction Guerrilla, do so because you’re ready for some multi-player action. Don't get me wrong. I had some good fun with the single-player portion of RFG. You can drive around to a bunch of different locations and completely destroy buildings with sledgehammers, remote charges, and rockets. That sounds pretty cool, doesn’t it? Like most open-world, sandbox games, though, the missions eventually get very, very repetitive. Yeah, blowing up a bunch of charging APCs full of enemies to protect a hideout or civilian enclave is a lot of fun. The firs time it happens. The second time, it's kind of enjoyable. The 20th time, I've had enough. And to make matters worse, the story is forgettable at best. I really don't remember the names of most of the characters. Alec Mason, the main protagonist, is not interesting, and I don’t even remember who the leaders of the EDF, the main antagonists, were.
Now, the multi-player is another story. It has basically the same, old modes you have been playing for years. Anarchy and Team Anarchy are the deathmatch modes. There’s Capture the Flag. Damage Control has you fighting over control points. Nothing new here, right? Well, that’s what it seems like on the surface. Once you play the game, though, it becomes clear that isn’t the case.
First of all, various backpacks scattered around the map makes things very interesting. The packs have different powers that you can invoke for short periods. Pick up the healing pack, and you can quickly restore the health of your character and nearby teammates. The rhino pack lets you rush forward with massive force, not only making you invincible to damage for a moment, but enemies in front of you will be damaged and knocked off their feet. The packs often present counters to each other. If someone is annoying you by flying around the map with a jetpack, use the concussion pack to knock him back to earth. Is someone hard to kill, because he is skillfully using the heal pack? Pick up a firepower pack, so your bullets are more powerful.
Second of all, because all of the buildings in the game are completely destructible, it’s quite difficult for enemies to hide or camp. Is there a guy sniping your team from a second-floor window. Sneak around, plant a few remote charges in that area, and there’s a good chance that guy is gonna be cursing you out to himself as his character respawns. Is someone camping the rocket spawn and then going up a tower? Teach him a lesson by taking out the tower’s support with your sledgehammer.
Lastly, I think the thing I like the most about the game is that you don’t have to insane twitch reflexes to be good. There are other ways to pick up kills. Hide by walls and when an enemy passes, smash them with your sledgehammer. Place proximity mines in smart places. There is also a gun, the Enforcer, that, though it doesn’t pack a powerful punch, has heat-seeking bullets.
