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Resogun (PS4) Review

 
Resogun Logo
Resogun Logo
Resogun Logo

 
At a Glance...
 

Formats: Playstation 4
 
Genre:
 
Year:
 
Publisher:
 
Developer:
 
Final Score
9.0
9/ 10


User Rating
1 total rating

 

We Liked?


  • Simplistic gameplay that just draws you in for one last game - classic arcade fun
  • Looks phenomenal carnage when in full flow - stills do it little justice
  • The urge to better a friends score is overwhelmingly compelling

Not So Much?


  • Sometimes it just gets too overbearing and experience for the senses
  • If the "one more try to beat a score" aspect is not your thing you'll maybe find it lacking longevity


Final Fiendish Findings?

Resogun is a blisteringly fast and decadently dazzling shooter that draws from a solid classic and makes it fit for the next generation.

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Posted December 9, 2013 by

 
Final Fiendish Findings?
 
 

Resogun is one of those rare things – a homage to a classic that takes the originals simplistic approach and layers levels of nuance and complexity on it that just make it shine.

Coming as an early launch title you’d be easily moved to assume that Resogun was some half-baked shovel-ware or shallow grab to fill a barren launch line-up. Then you hear that the team that has spent the last 20 years perfecting the simplistic arcade shooter Asteroids in to the arcade perfection that is the Stardust series is taking a crack at Defender – now things get interesting!

Resogun is, as mentioned, at it’s very core a Defender homage. You operate one of a series of space fighters and you’re tasked with one thing – keep the colonists safe and clear out all attacking alien forces from the area. As the game so eloquently puts it at the start of each round, “Save the last humans”.

Each of the progressive worlds features a series of three waves of alien invaders. You must navigate each spherical playing-field flying from right to left or vice-versa – as you’ve done a thousand times before in Defender and all that have drawn inspiration from it. As you progress from side to side in the 360 degree player space you are assaulted from all sides by the various alien invaders. Shooting fireballs, lasers and all manner of objects in your general direction.

RESOGUN ps4

Using the left stick you nimbly navigate the increasingly manic screen full of enemies whilst you alternate the right stick to fire left or right towards your foes. Using the R2 button will unleash a massive pulse bomb that will flood out from your craft and circle the entire level taking out friend and foes as it goes. R1 will allow you to fire your charged shot which can be used for a limited burst of heavy damage using the right stick to direct it. This charges over time so becomes a great way of dealing a little extra damage in a pinch.  L1 is used for a super charged burst of speed that can be devastating to enemies on the ground portion of a level.

Power-ups are also available occasionally floating around a level. Shooting open the carrier case reveals the power-up and these can take the form of shields, extra lives, bombs, weapon upgrades, points or increases to your charged shot. As in Defender points can be obtained when rescuing the helpless humans. You scoop them up with your craft and fly them back to an evacuation point at the top of the screen – usually a couple of these around a level. As well as points for saving a human you will also earn a random power-up from the list.

Each of the stages offers a similar playing area that is subtly different in regards to it’s backdrops and the enemies it uses – as well as containing a different end of level boss for each. These stages can probably be completed from start to finish in around 10 minutes each for the average player offering a somewhat initially short experience. But your likelihood of finishing each of these levels with ease it small and there are several levels of difficulty to choose from with the later levels offering an incredibly tough challenge.

As well as the tougher difficulty challenges Resogun offers the killer blow in the form of its score tables. As in Super Stardust, Trials HD, Geometry Wars and a load of similar structured titles the real meat comes from seeing a friends score and creeping ever closer to smashing it. This ‘just one more try’ mentality turns a quick blast on Resogun into a multiple houred marathon that passes in moments.  And there’s a comprehensive and longevity enticing co-operative mode to boot that lends well to the frenetic shooting action on screen.

resogun ps4 2

The game looks gorgeous. Sure you might expect something a little “more” from a next-gen launch title but you’d be fooled into thinking Resogun was a simplistic title. The intricate and high resolution enemies explode in a myriad of debris and colour. Bullets, particles and enemy fodder adorn every inch of the screen. The whole things zips around at an unwavering 60 frames per second and it just looks incredible in full flow – like a seizure waiting to happen. Onlookers will marvel that you can even make sense of the chaos on screen but it all feels beautifully realised as the player. Rarely did I find myself trying to pick out my craft from the debris on screen. Make it to the end of a level and the screen erupts with possibly the most particle effects I’ve ever seen in a game. Spectacular stuff.

Sound design sticks true to previous Housemarque titles with a vaguely electronic vibe thumping along with a great baseline that just fuels your adrenaline and euphoria. The now trademark female computer voice over from Housemarque titles is here once more offering updates during a level – the genius here is that they also come out of the speaker on the Dual Shock 4 which works incredibly well.

Resogun does a wonderful job of teaching you how to play it without ever slapping you around the face and saying “here!”. As you play more and more you will notice certain formation patterns, or when the female announcer states “Keepers Detected!”. Taking out this formation of Keepers will cause a human to be released allowing you to exact a rescue and earn more points. Resogun is all about scoring those large numbers – about keeping that score multiplier cranked up to the maximum and making sure your friends have a challenge to beat next time they login.    The depth comes in Resogun from peeling away the superficial shooter gloss and spotting these patterns and repeated threads so you can maximise your score and chance of survival.

resogun image 3

Final Thoughts

Resogun is a blisteringly fast and decadently dazzling shooter that draws from a solid classic and makes it fit for the next generation.

Frustrating at times, short if you’re not in it for the scores and sometimes a little too bombastic and smattered with neon death but these are small quibbles that most will not waste a thought on.

As a launch title Resogun knocks it out of the park to become probably THE essential title across both next generation consoles. It might just be Defender but it’s pulle dof with dazzling efficiency an eye for details and bucket loads of panache.


Zeth

 
Zeth is our EU ninja and Editor in Chief. He's been writing about video games since 2008 when he started on BrutalGamer. He's pretty old and has been a gamer since he played Space Invaders as a young boy in the 80's. His genre tastes lean towards platformers, point-and-click adventure, action-adventure and shooters but he'll turn his hand to anything.


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