Resistance: Retribution takes place in the weeks following Resistance: Fall of Man. This time, the game is told from the perspective of James Grayson, a soldier in the British army. Grayson had no other choice than to kill his brother, who was about to join the growing ranks of converted Chimera soldiers. Now on a mission to destroy every Chimeran conversion centre, players join with the European resistance – known as the Maquis – to retake the continent in 'Operation Overstrike'. Like Fall of Man, Retribution uses voice-overs to establish the storyline and advance the narrative. This is not necessarily a bad thing, as it gives the game more of a storybook fell. It will also be interesting to see how the game copes without the presence of Nathan Hale, and where the plot ultimately leads in the overarching Resistance mythos.
The Chimera are back.
Resistance: Retribution comes from Sony Bend, the same folks behind the two excellent Syphon Filter PSP games. Bringing all its expertise from developing Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror and Logan's Shadow, Sony Bend are using every piece of hardware to make Resistance the best-looking PSP game to date. Using a modified version of the Syphon Filter engine, players can expect to see more detail in the environments, characters and lighting. Indeed, after testing the game, you could almost be forgiven for thinking that the PSP had received a resolution upgrade, with Resistance: Retribution looking better than God of War: Chains of Olympus.
On the gameplay front, novices to shooters on the PSP will be glad to know they are catered for. Grayson can take cover behind high and low objects, but unlike Syphon Filter, you don't actually have to 'attach' to cover. It's simply a matter of walking up to an object, whereupon Grayson will automatically duck behind it (much like Army of Two). Shooting at the enemy works even more intuitively. The cross-hairs, as they are aimed with the face buttons, will automatically lock onto the closest enemy, whether you are behind cover or not. Gone are the days of intricate aiming, as targets can also be quickly switched from one to the next. Snapping from one enemy to the other, for the most part, works exactly as you intend it to. However, during our play-though, the cross-hairs sometimes locked onto the wrong target. This can always be rectified by turning the aim-assist off, but only players familiar with using the face buttons will choose this option. On the whole, the targeting and cover system is very robust, making Resistance: Retribution's controls very approachable for everyone. With a little more polish, we believe Retribution will offer the best gameplay of any PSP game in the shooter genre.
Expect numerous boss encounters.
The level of Resistance: Retribution that we played featured a massive facility, with a central platform and elevator. As we made our way across the walkway, multiple Chimera warriors swarmed from every angle. It was truly impressive seeing hordes of drones and soldiers shooting at our character from several directions, and all with no slow down in frame-rate. At the end of the stage we were playing, Grayson was challenged to a tough boss battle. Resistance: Retribution really captures the epic feeling of the series, as this particular fight was reminiscent of several grand moments from Resistance 2.
Resistance: Retribution is promising to introduce new weapons and enemies, in addition to including the usual favourites. Sony has also said there will be a liberal checkpoint system, making Retribution ideal for portable gaming. How the game will ultimately turn out, we're extremely eager to find out. With the development team behind Syphon Filter, jaw-dropping visuals, and an intuitive targeting system, Resistance: Retribution has all the necessary prerequisites of a solid PSP game. With the growing shortfall of titles on Sony's Portable gaming device, this third-person shooter can't get here soon enough. Resistance: Retribution is scheduled for release in March.
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