Red Faction: Armageddon Review
Volition takes a gamble and loses by returning this destructive series to its linear roots
The biggest problem with Armageddon is the disconnect between the weapons and destruction physics, and enemy type and level design. The great physics engine has returned, and the weapons are mostly centered around environmental destruction as opposed to killing enemies directly. Many new weapons are really fantastic, with the magnet gun being an especially creative and entertaining device. This gun allows you to attach a positive magnet to one object and a negative magnet to another. After attaching both magnets, the objects will go flying towards each other. This weapon makes for some fun and hilarious moments as enemies and debris go flying through the air. Sadly many environments lack destructible objects, and the numerous explosive weapons become far less interesting to use.
High caliber pest control
Also contributing to this problem is the fact that the aliens tend to jump around the environment and steer clear of destructible buildings. You can use the magnet gun to fling enemies into buildings, or even buildings to enemies, but the simple joy of destroying a building full of foes is largely absent. The more standard weapons you use to kill enemies without the environmental destruction serve their purpose, but the game doesn't exactly play to the strengths of its engine. Thankfully there are a few vehicle and on-rails segments that break up the drudgery, and these are some of the best parts of the game. You will command a variety of mechs that are all very fun to control and have very significant firepower. A couple of sections will have you walking through areas with tons of buildings while commanding these vehicles, and at these times you will remember what made Guerrilla so much fun.
On-rails segments in Armageddon live up to their name
As you progress and destroy buildings you will collect salvage which can be used to upgrade your character. Some of these upgrades are interesting, such as one that unlocks special attacks for your nano-forge, the same tool you can now use to repair damaged structures. Most upgrades however are less interesting, offering such buffs as increased health and accuracy. The most interesting thing about these upgrades is that they carry over to the game's only multiplayer mode, Infestation, which I will cover later in the review. Your ability to repair damaged structures with the nano-forge was a much touted new feature of this release, but sadly it is mostly used to ensure that you can progress through the game. It can be put to use in a few segments repairing broken cover which can be flung at enemies with the magnet gun, but for the most part it just feels like a gimmick.
The singleplayer campaign of Armageddon is a good length at around 8-10 hours, but feels a bit drawn out due to the slower paced underground levels that lack atmosphere and destruction. While Armageddon doesn't offer any competitive multiplayer modes, it does offer two modes outside of the singleplayer campaign: infestation and ruin.
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Jun 24, 2011 11:50:51 (Jun 24, 2011 11:50)
