In the fast-paced world of gaming, it’s sometimes hard to keep up with all the great titles that come and go. Often several “must play” titles come out close together or gaming generations move on leaving a selection of games behind. With backwards compatibility being more readily available TBG has taken it upon ourselves to look back at some big-name classics, sleeper hits and obscure titles, dust them off and see how they hold up today for your gaming pleasure. Today we are taking a look at 2006’s PS3 flagship launch shooter, Resistance: Fall of Man.
The Plot
Set in the 1950s, Resistance Fall of Man tells the story of Mankind’s downfall at the hands of an Alien race known as the Chimera. After arriving in Russia in the 1900s, the Chimera soon begin infecting and converting human hosts into their alien ranks and by 1949, the whole of Europe has been taken over by the sinister race of sizzling creatures.
After sampling the pastries and fine wines on offer they soon turn their sights to Great Britain. Tunnelling deep under the English channel they launch an invasion and soon conquer the lands and begin setting up shop to route out the last pockets of human resistance.
in 1951 our friends from the states launch an all-out assault on Britain in an effort to stop the Chimera advance. Sending an army comprised of the best of the best that pretty much all die in the opening five minutes, the only survivor is Nathan Hale, a generic-looking soldier who serves as the hero of the piece. After surviving and resisting infection from the Chimera, Hale joins up with a British Resistance squad in Grimsby, lead by Intelligence Officer Rachael Parker. Rachael serves as the narrator for the story and tells the known events of the mysterious Sgt Hale who has very little to say for himself throughout the campaign.
It is soon discovered that Hale has taken on certain traits from the Chimera’s infection attempt allowing him to heal rapidly and sense the Chimera presence. Concerned that Hale is a ticking time bomb that may be inadvertently helping the Chimera hive mind but with no other options, the British Resistance send Hale on a serious of highly dangerous and suicidal missions to uncover the secrets of the Chimera and hopefully put a stop to their world-conquering ways.
Gameplay
Resistance: Fall of Man is a first-person shooter that was a welcomed breath of fresh air for a genre that had started taking itself too seriously. Set in a grim setting of war-torn, alien-infested Britain, the missions are action-packed and challenging but given a good dose of fun thanks to Insomniac’s ability to create a great range of weapons, anyone who has played Ratchet and Clank will have some idea of what to expect.
Though no disco ball grenades are on offer, a selection of human and alien weapons can be obtained and carried using a handy weapon wheel turning you into a walking armoury as the game rolls on.
Each weapon has a primary and alternate fire function adding a good layer of strategy to gunfights. From the traditional assault rifle or “Carbine” which features fully automatic fire with a grenade launcher to the “Bullseye”, a Chimera weapon that has a rapid rate of fire but also fires a homing shot that all following rounds will follow, handy for taking down enemies in cover. The “Auger” can fire through walls and cover and put up a temporary shield in front of you, shotguns, rocket launchers and a selection of Human and Chimeran grenades will also become available giving you plenty of ways to dispatch your enemies.
Missions take place all over Britain, from Grimsby, London, Somerset and Manchester, which caused issues at launch when the church of England threw up their bibles in protest to Manchester cathedral being depicted as a scene of gunfights, yet incidentally was one of the best maps in the multiplayer. Although the bread and butter of the piece is boots on the ground gun fighting, there is also a nice selection of levels that give you access to vehicles. Riding around in an army jeep, a tank and even a Chimeran “Stalker” a four-legged walking tank, these area’s helped break up the action throughout the lengthy campaign.
How does it hold up today?
Resistance was never a graphical masterpiece, usually, a big shooter at launch serves as something of a technical showpiece for what the console can do but for PS3, Motorstorm was the pretty face. Resistance looked ok at launch with the later campaign levels and multiplayer maps showing it at it’s most impressive. Over the years the grey and brown palette with basic textures certainly show their age, though the bleak colouring still manages to give that classic tint of despair that is common for World War 2 era settings much like Spielberg used in Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers.
Where Resistance really shines is its great gameplay, fourteen years later Insomniac’s well-crafted gunplay is still intact. Controls are responsive and everything runs smoothly with little to no evidence of slow down. Enemy AI is smart and aggressive making combat a fast-paced and explosive affair which again drives home the cinematic World War vibes.
Although the story leads to Hale being able to heal quickly, his overall health bar is split into four sections and if damage takes away a full section then you will have to find a health pack to replenish it. If the damage only takes away a small portion of a section then the wolverine healing will kick in and he will automatically recover the rest of that section. This gives a frantic sense to the more intense battles as you scour the area looking for health packs while trying to avoid a hail of gunfire instead of just ducking behind cover until you magically get better after taking two to the chest.
Resistance: Fall of Man was an instant hit with PS3 players, not only as a flagship launch title but also for being a well-crafted shooter that knew how to be fun and engaging. With a lengthy campaign that could be enjoyed solo or co-op and a fun multiplayer mode for up to 40 players across various game modes and full of unlockables. Spawning two direct sequels, two spin off’s as well as a graphic novel and book, many PlayStation fans are eagerly awaiting a remaster or a reboot to this popular franchise.
Although the online servers were sadly taken down a few years ago, if you have access to a PS3 and fancy a trip down memory lane then we highly recommend you grab yourself a copy and revisit this FPS classic and if you have never experienced it before, it is worth taking a step back to the beginning of last-gen and seeing what all the fuss was about. Fingers crossed for that PS5 backwards compatibility as Resistance still has a lot of enjoyment to offer.
Were you a Resistance fan back in the day? Hoping for a remaster or reboot? Then let us know by leaving a comment in the section below or on our social platforms and stay tuned for more great articles daily.
TWO BEARD GAMING 
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