Silicon Fusion >> Reviews >> Red Faction II

	All Platforms
	Xbox
	GameCube
	PlayStation 2
	PC
	Game Boy Advance

Site Sections:

	Updates
	News
	Games
	Publishers
	Developers
	Reviews
	Previews
	Release Dates
	Editorials
	Glossary
	Contact Us

Review:

19th November 2002:
Red Faction II
Earth. Twenty-second century. Five years after the rebellion on Mars...
Posted by John Grothier - PlayStation 2 - UK and Europe

Red Faction, released on the PlayStation 2 last year, was one of the most advanced first person shooters to burst onto any system. The key to this evolution was something called the Geo-Mod Engine, which allowed the player to not only destroy the enemy, but also any rooms, walls or buildings your foes might be hiding in. No more searching for a key to a locked door - just take one of the many weapons of mass destruction and blow a hole in the wall right next to it, and then calmly walk through. Add this to new technology to a great first person shooter, and they quite rightly had a huge hit on their hands. Now Red Faction II has arrived, and this time it's got a new Enhanced Geo-Mod Engine...

Red Faction II is set on Earth in the twenty-second century, five years after the rebellion on Mars. The corrupt dictator, Sopot, for the last fifteen years has been oppressing his people - the Commonwealth. His obsessive pursuit for unification with the neighbouring United Republic has left the countries in ruin, and a body count that grows day by day. The Commonwealth has been brought to its knees, poverty is rife, but a new breed of super soldiers may give all hope. These brave souls have been injected with nano-technology, an advantage that may just turn the tide of the war, and topple the evil dictator Sopot.

After an absolutely stunning opening FMV sequence, the mission starts with our hero, Alias in a futuristic gunship with the other members of the squad. He and his team have been briefed on an enemy fortress, which is in urgent need of being 'taken out'. But before the pilot can help with the gunship's awesome firepower, some gun-towers, which would happily target the advanced copter, have to be disabled. So Alias and his team abseil to the ground and try to find a way of destroying those gun-towers, and then the gunship can fly in and help 'open a way' inside the structure. Once safely inside a squad of soldiers are there to greet you, these are the evil security services and as such deserve everything you and your weapons have to throw at them. After ridding the world of this scum, the hanger is empty and contained - there seems to be no way forward, but this is where the Geo Mod Engine helps you out. Looking around the room an air vent cover can be found, blast this away and you can squeeze your way through the air conditioning system. Everything is dark, so now you can turn on your night vision, which lights the way with that eerie military green. After a few tight squeezes you reach another room safely hid behind another easily destructible grille - your way into the super-structure. Two security servicemen are chatting just inside, one trying to borrow some money from the other - another really nice touch to Red Faction II are the conversations between the enemies, it adds just a bit more to the overall atmosphere to the game, and really immerses the player in the world the game creates.

The missions in Red Faction II are varied in mission structure and the environments that you blast your way through. Later levels in the game see you storm the Public Information Building, with the Security Forces abseiling down from the ceiling - a ceiling that they have just blown a hole through - again, thanks go to that wonderful Geo Mod Engine. One of our favourite levels sees our hero take to the skies in an allied gunship; here you must take out the people in the building while flying around this 'Blade Runner like' city. Windows smash, parts of the buildings are destroyed, people scream - it's really is just the sort of game we all want to play! As in the original game Submarines resurface, and you will also get the opportunity of a ride in a tank. This level, 'Shrikes Wild Ride', is another of my favourites and is very reminiscent of the tank chase in the movie 'GoldenEye'. Although the tank is being driven by one of your squad members, you still get the chance to fire a mean machine gun and devastating rockets. Again even with these 'driving' levels you still can take out a large amount of the environment, and the tank helps out by ploughing trough some of the structures on the way to your goal. There are some fantastic effects going on in this level - street lamps fuse and spark as you knock into them, and other vehicles can be blown up or simply tossed out of the way by the might of your tank.

Red Faction II features a huge arsenal of weapons, everything that you would expect in a first person shooter is here - grenade launchers, sniper rifles, rail drivers, shotguns and throwing grenades that make short work of destroying the environments. Split screen multi-player also features in the game, with loads of death match levels and selectable computer opponents to fight.

The graphics in Red Faction II really push the PlayStation 2 to its limits. The lighting effects, explosions and the overall design of the levels are superbly realised, and you will have enormous amounts of fun finding out exactly what you can destroy - and you can destroy just about anything in the game world. The sound in the game is also fantastic with some great sound effects to accompany the weapons in the game, and some memorable music that fits the bill perfectly. A special mention must go to the voice acting, which is brilliantly delivered, with some very witty dialogues.

But, and it is a 'Big But', is the incredibly poor PAL conversion of Red Faction II - not only do you get those black bars on the top and the bottom of the screen, but now you get one on the right hand side of the television. The whole of the picture has been shifted off to the left - and with no screen adjust option in the menus, there is no way to correct this fault. If you are playing Red Faction II on a small screen the problem is not so noticeable, but if you are lucky enough to own a large or widescreen television, it spoils the overall look of the game considerably. I really don't understand how these problems aren't noticed in development, after all, if I bought a DVD and the picture bleed off the side of the screen, leaving a large black bar, I would take it back to the shop for a refund - and Red Faction II is twice as expensive as any DVD...

But shoddy conversion aside, Red Faction II is a fantastic first person shooter, and the enhanced Geo-Mod Engine is really the icing on the cake - but if only this game had a 60htz mode and the necessary screen adjust option to go with it, then we may have used the clich� of having the cherry on top as well.

John Grothier

Latest Images:

Review Scores:

Graphics:
Sound:
Gameplay:
Length:
Overall:
Click here for our Review Score Guidelines .

Review Summary:

Fantastic FPS for the PlayStation 2, marred only by a shoddy PAL conversion. Stunning level design and the new Enhanced Geo-Mod Engine make this the best FPS for the PS2 with great multiplayer modes for some serious battles with your mates.

Related Games:

Red Faction 2
for PlayStation 2

Screenshots

Review

Preview