Not just a stellar sequel, but one of the most exhilarating first person shooters of all time.
Resistance 2 basically improves on Resistance: Fall of Man in almost every key area. It looks and sounds unbelievable, plays like a dream and is downright freaky. Protagonist Nathan Hale has found his voice and is now a more likeable hero. Watching him slowly turn Chimeran is one of the highlights. The way the plot plays out leading to the surprise ending is just solid entertainment. It's hard to fault a game this fun and engrossing. Writing this review makes me want to play it again.
Special mention must be given to the bosses, some of the biggest and baddest I've witnessed in my lifetime of gaming. One boss in particular is unforgettable. The massive monster boss, about the size of Godzilla, that destroys buildings while trudging in your direction must be taken out via rockets lauched into its mouth when it attempts to devour you, and finally by taking out an explosive-rigged bridge which collapses onto the monsters head causing it to cave in, and blood rains. At this point I just had to shake my head and smile, wondering if boss battles get any better.
To break it down:
Graphics: 10
Probably at the time of writing the best looking console game I've ever seen. The detail on everything from the Chimera to the lush environments to the colossal bosses and ultra-cool weaponery is nothing short of awe-inspiring. The visuals alone justify the purchase price. Big improvement over the first one, which didn't look too bad itself.
Sound: 9
In a word, freaky. the kind of music that keeps you on edge knowing that you're surrounded by deadly Chimera on all sides. Then pumps up when it's battle time. Solid.
Gameplay: 10
Mm mm. Just thinking about playing this one is exciting. Probably plays better than any FPS title for me with the exceptions of Deus Ex and possibly Half-Life 2. The controls have been rearranged from RFOM so they take a little while to get used to. In the end though, they work just as well, if not better than RFOM. I suppose it didn't help that I played this immediately after RFOM. In any case the unbelievable weaponery has been upgraded, for example the Magnum type gun available from near the of the game. This gun fires a bullet into a targeted enemy at one press, and at a 2nd press explodes inside them. Even towards the end of the game I was using this baby. Aside from weaponery, level layout is impressive, never once frustrates and while can be slightly linear, never fails to provide thrills. I was disappointed with the absence of the Halo type vehicles of RFOM, but when the run-and-gun action is this sweet, I can forgive that omission. Once again, the difficulty level is spot-on, and it's substantially longer than RFOM.
Replay Value: 9
Great multiplayer with plenty of options, great controls, jaw-dropping visuals and a typically Resistance soundtrack all mean you'll be wanting more. The campaign outlasts RFOM, and never once gets boring. Love it.
To Sum up:
One of the truly amazing console FPS experiences. Do yourself a favour FPS fans, play RFOM (doesn't take very long), and if you enjoyed that, pick up a copy of Resistance 2, strap yourself in and prepare to be blown away. RFOM was just a warm-up.