Red Faction (Jewel Case)

by THQ

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00006J3H0
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: September 15, 2002
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,345 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

DailyRadar Review

As we made ourselves comfortable in the demo room for THQ's unveiling of Red Faction, I figured I'd get the toughest question out of the way straight off. "So, what is it about this game that's going to set it apart from everything else?" Without hesitation, Rob Loftus, the Associate Producer, responded, "Take a look at this!" Half an hour later, I had come to the conclusion that the genre of first-person-shooters was about to get a much-needed kick in the pants.

What was it, you ask, that convinced me that Red Faction will make a very big splash when it hits store shelves next year? It's a new-fangled bit of code called Geo-Mod -- essentially the engine that will power Red Faction. What this brilliant new piece of programming brings to the table is the ability to perform real-time, arbitrary geometry modification. Don't worry -- when I first heard that phrase I had no idea what it meant either. Simply put, this engine is capable of simulating advanced physics effects on the environment - if you shoot something you put a hole in it relative to the size and trajectory of the projectile that hit it.

For instance, you can fire a rocket into the ground and it will leave a crater (to be used as a solitary fox hole). Fire off a few more rockets into the same hole and you'll have a nice little trench for yourself to hide in. In other words, the environments are completely blow-up-able (for lack of a better description). Of course, it goes much deeper than shooting holes in the ground. Is that sniper in the tower bugging you? No problem... blow up the tower's base and watch the little camper fall from his nest to a (well deserved) death. Stuck in a room and no keycard/key/lock combination? Blow a hole through the wall. Need to get inside a pipe? Blast it open. The possibilities are endless. As Alan Lawrence, Lead Designer for Red Faction puts it, "We wanted to give the player the power to destroy whatever he wants, not just pre-determined objects." To emphasize the level of Volition's achievement in getting this engine functional, Epic Game's tech guru, Tim Sweeney, had described deformable terrain as "the holy grail of first-person gaming." From this showing, Volition "chose wisely".

The Physics of Liquids and Gases
Structures aren't the only things that you can realistically interact with in Red Faction; liquids and gases also behave as they would in real life. If you see a stream of water, you can fire a rocket into the side of that stream and the water will flow into the new hole you just made. You can even completely redirect that stream of water and make it go anywhere you want. Smoke from pipes will travel in the direction that the wind is blowing and sparks from electricity will bounce off the floor. None of this is pre-scripted; it's all on the fly. Even your bullet casings will bounce off surfaces realistically. For every action, there's a perfect reaction delivered by this impressive engine. Blow the support columns of a bridge and it will collapse, crushing any and all enemies beneath it. Needless to say, the Geo-Mod engine is unlike anything we've ever seen before.

However, as an old wise man once said (actually, it was just Rob Smith), "What good is an engine without a killer game to go with it?" Luckily, Volition has proven time and again that it is a very capable development house. After all, it did bring us the excellent Freespace games. With Red Faction the group plans on surpassing anything it's done in the past with the goal of dethroning the current king of first-person-shooters, Half-Life. To do this, a full-time writer is tasked with ensuring a deep and involving storyline. There will be in-game cut scenes, as well as in-game dialogue to keep the narrative going and draw you in. As Lawrence put it, "We're focused on creating a realistic and consistent world for Red Faction, with the goal of creating the most immersive FPS to date."

The story follows a man named Parker, a miner on Mars who works for a large conglomerate known as the Ultor Corporation. Apparently, a deadly disease known as The Plague [that pro writer is earning his corn! -Ed] is spreading through the miner population. Already stuck with inhumane living conditions, the miners decide that this is the final straw. A rebellion breaks out and Parker gets caught up in an epic struggle to bring down the Ultor Corporation and find a cure for the deadly plague. Of course, this won't be easy; Ultor is a very large company with great influence, power, and almost unlimited resources. And like any megalomaniacal conglomerate worth its salt, it reeks of pure evil. As should be expected, Ultor uses its influences to bring in a group of mercenaries to stamp out the rebellion.

So what's a poor miner to do when faced with overwhelming odds? Get guns, of course...lots of guns. While the list of available weapons is not finalized yet, it has been confirmed that there will be around 15 of them. Definitely making the line-up are a handgun, an assault rifle, a sniper rifle, and a rocket launcher, and the others will maintain similarities with real world weapons. Volition plans to ensure that all the weapons will have a satisfying and visceral impact - a direct result of the responses to Epic's Unreal. The assault rifle fires either in bursts or at full-auto, and has a very distinct chatter that will be instantly familiar to anyone who has been exposed to the real thing (and lived!).

The sniper rifle is fairly standard issue, but is sure to please. The true head-turner will be the rocket launcher. This compact tool of destruction comes complete with its own infrared scanner. A screen attached to the launcher displays a red glob whenever an object that gives off heat is in range. This allows you literally to see through walls. For example, you could be walking down a hallway watching the scanner and spot the bad guys, even if they're hiding behind something. You can then use the rocket launcher to blast through the wall and take that sorry sod out to pasture. Of course, the infrared scanner will have a limited range. Volition is still hard at work on the rest of the arsenal, but you can be assured that the final lineup will be more than adequate for your fragging needs.

Finally, there are the vehicles: submarines, APCs, and various flying vehicles round out the selection. You can use the APC to ram through walls, and it also has a mortar mounted on it to get rid of other pesky barriers. One of the most impressive parts of the demo was the underwater sequence where piloting submarines serves up some deep-sea action. The effects are incredible and will remind many gamers of The Abyss (but not that crappy ending). Enemy subs actually implode when destroyed and the light sources are incredible. There's even plankton in the water to help give you a sense of motion.

With a promising storyline and the Geo-Mod engine in its corner, this could be one of the biggest hits of 2001. The engine should open up previously unexplored areas in the genre and add some much-needed innovation. If the rest of the development schedule is as productive as what's already been accomplished, we'll have to dust off some of the superlatives reserved for the likes of Half-Life.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AN EXCELLENT GAME THAT WENT MOSTLY UNNOTICED!!!, November 20, 2007

By 

NeuroSplicer (Freeside, in geosynchronous orbit) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Red Faction (Jewel Case) (CD-ROM)

RED FACTION is a 2001 FPS game that packed so much innovation and so many great ideas that is still considered a gaming milestone.

This is the FIRST game to feature effective interactive environments. Not only can your firing or explosives do actual damage, often it was essential to do so (in order to gain passage through a wall or destroy a bridge).

The graphics will seem a bit dated today of course, yet, on the bright side, will truly shine even on less powerful systems. And, if truth be told, a number of the latest shooters relay too much on their graphics and not enough on their overall gaming experience.
The level design is exemplary; the guns are numerous and really balanced and the gameplay is really intuitive and enjoyable.

Give it a try. I am sure you will like it too!
Note that there has also been a sequel, RED FACTION 2, which unfortunately, did NOT share this game's virtues. For the original RED FACTION though:

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT GAME, August 8, 2003

By 

"decked_out_civic" (Chillicothe, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Red Faction (Jewel Case) (CD-ROM)

I bought this game recently, and it is great, one of the best 1st person shooters I've ever played. It has a challenge to it but not one that is impossible to beat. It also has an incredible multiplayer, and there is ALWAYS someone on to play against. There is also a wide variety of weapons to choose from, from guns to launchers. This is a great game, and well worth the [money] it's going for now. I highly recomend this game.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Red Faction Rocks!, July 17, 2003

By 

Machine Gun "MnVols" (Minnesota State) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Red Faction (Jewel Case) (CD-ROM)

I'm not into most games, where you have to figure a bunch of stuff out. Yet; this is different and fun. The graphics and story are great, and there are many hidden treasures! I think you'll luv this game!