As the PlayStation 3 finally hits stores, it seems that among the systems that aren't on eBay right now, there are likely copies of Resistance: Fall of Man in their disc trays. Insomniac has crafted a solid and enjoyable first-person shooter experience. Like a good mash-up track, the game feels like a patchwork of other games' conventions layered on top of one another to create different meaning. Or it's a case of design by committee done right. Is it a killer app in the vein of Halo that will sell systems? Not completely; this cart isn't strong enough to drive the horse, but it's certainly got its merits that make it a worthwhile purchase.

Resistance takes place in an alternate 20th century in which the Chimera, a race of insect-like creatures, have formed in Russia in 1939. After over a decade of infecting humanity with a virus that enables them to turn humans into more Chimera, they spill out across Europe and absorb it quickly and brutally. It's 1951, and after burrowing a tunnel under the Channel, England is the last nation to fall prey to the Chimera. The war is pretty much a lost cause, but the US sends troops to Europe in a last ditch effort to save the continent. During the initial US convoy, Sgt. Nathan Hale is the last survivor of a brutal counterattack (and subsequent Chimeran viral infection) by the mutant forces. Players will take on the role of Hale and take down the threat once and for all.


The game will be compared, inevitably, to Bungie's killer app more than to World War II shooters. It's not fair to Resistance for people to hype it up as though Hale can stand toe to toe with Master Chief. He can't, although there are gameplay elements that are reminiscent of that game. The Chimeran healing process enables Hale to heal after standing back from taking damage, like Master Chief's energy shield. Also, the racial divisions of Chimera are as diverse as what players have seen with the Covenant. Still, it's not as though the game apes Halo, it's just got a few elements like it.

If Resistance will be remembered for anything some years after launch, it will be for the game's arsenal. That's most likely thanks to Insomniac's reputation for making shooters with very forward-thinking weaponry. Over the years since the first Ratchet & Clank released, Insomniac has honed an uncanny ability to come up with some not only awesome, but awfully useful weaponry.

Case in point: the Auger. A gun that can shoot through walls and enables a defense shield that can only be penetrated by other Augers is an exceptionally useful one. The Bullseye is a cool weapon that players will either like, or find to be less than ideal, depending on their ability to lock-in on a target quickly, fire the homing bullet, then blast away from a safe distance.