Red Faction II
Encyclopedia
Red Faction II is a first-person shooter
video game developed by Volition, Inc. and published by THQ
on October 15, 2002 for the PlayStation 2
, Nintendo GameCube
, Xbox
and Microsoft Windows
. Red Faction II does not support network gaming, but provides some multiplayer-style games with 'bots'.
Lance Henriksen
provides the voice of the squad leader, Molov, and Jason Statham
voices the vehicle expert, Shrike.
, on Mars, the nanotechnology
developed by Capek has been claimed by the Earth Defense Force (EDF). With this technology, the EDF commences a reorganization of the Ultor Corporation with a particular focus on enhanced supersoldier
s and suitable weaponry. However, the research that was done by Capek in his laboratories has been consequently stolen by other militant
groups and assorted terrorist organizations
. This has gone on for years; the research has changed hands in the criminal underworld many times. The player is introduced to the role of an explosives expert (codenamed "Alias"), as he embarks on a special operations
mission to claim the research data for the Republic of the Commonwealth.
Eventually, the research was successfully claimed by the elite forces of Victor Sopot, Chancellor of the dystopic
military state known as The Commonwealth. Sopot uses the nanotechnology to enhance his already formidable military forces, and successfully creates the first supersoldiers with the research data. Fearing the potential of his new supersoldiers, he orders them all to be hunted down and executed at once and replaced with far less intelligent, mutated horrors known as "The Processed".
In 2075 Collectively betrayed by their leader, the Squad flees underground
and ally themselves with the Red Faction as mercenaries. The Red Faction, at this point in the story, is a more organized resistance movement
that is strongly opposed to the rule of Sopot and the skewed political tenets of The Commonwealth. The Squad eventually pursue Sopot and neutralize all opposition in their way as the Red Faction takes the conflict to the streets in a joint uprising against the rule of The Commonwealth. During the course of the initial stages of the game, the Red Faction and the Squad mutually support each other as they overcome shared objectives which include sabotaging propaganda
installations. The uprising culminates in successfully trapping Sopot in his missile silo and executing him with the exhaust flames of an ICBM he had planned to fire in another political move to undermine or annihilate the Red Faction.
Alias returns to the makeshift base of operations, only to discover that all of the Red Faction resistance members present have been brutally slaughtered. Molov remarks that with Sopot dead, and with the nanotech research in Molov's possession, the Commonwealth's military forces have voluntarily pledged allegiance to Molov. He declares Alias and Tangier to be enemies of the state
for supporting the Red Faction. Also present is the leader of the Red Faction forces on Earth, a young commander codenamed Echo, who explains to the Squad's members that the Red Faction had no intention of misusing the Squad's participation in the uprising. Echo tries to explain that the Red Faction's ultimate goal is to bring about peace. Molov, enraged, retorts that a declaration of peace would defeat the purpose of their existence as soldiers. As Molov is about to fire his weapon he is held hostage by a cloaked Tangier, who buys the three characters enough time to make an escape with their lives. The three split up, and agree to meet in a more discreet location to plan a way to stop Molov and his army of supersoldiers. The remaining members of the Squad give chase.
Shortly after fleeing to safety, Alias (now working alone) lends aid to surviving Red Faction members who are defending themselves from the enemy. While Tangier embarks on a solo mission to uncover more of Molov's plot, Alias and Echo meet up in a secret location to discuss an alternate strategy to stop Molov. At that moment, Echo is gunned down by Quill, with her specialized railgun
. Alias tracks down the trajectory of the lethal gunfire to an abandoned cathedral, where Quill and her detachment of troops and Processed do battle with Alias. Alias successfully out-guns the sniper, and Quill tumbles through the rosette window to fall to her demise. Alias claims her weapon as a trophy.
Tangier radios Alias soon afterward, and the two agree to shut down Molov's commandeered nanotech laboratory, located within the colossal statue of Sopot. Upon arrival, the two split up. Repta makes his appearance, distracting Alias with gunfire and deploying Processed mutants, including Molov's newest creation: a more refined Processed mutant that is stronger and more resilient than the first Processed. Alias pursues Repta into the industrial processor, located within the base of Sopot's statue. The area is littered with a network of catwalks
, where Repta lurks. Eventually, Alias triumphs and shoots Repta off one of the catwalks, sending Repta plummeting into the irradiated processing ground below. Alias claims Repta's abandoned weapon as he continues his climb up the base of Sopot's Statue and destroys the nanotech laboratory's power generators. Alias's explosives weaken the foundation, and renders the statue unstable.
Alias encounters Repta again. The nanotechnology within Repta has been further enhanced, destabilizing Repta while augmenting his capacity for combat; Repta has been processed into the ultimate killing machine, and summons Molov's nanotech elite as reinforcements. In addition, Repta is engulfed in an energy field
that disrupts nearby nanotechnology, subjecting the player to reversed player controls at moments during the fight. As Alias triumphs once again, the energy field within Repta reaches critical mass
and Repta explodes.
Alias and Tangier meet up and pursue Molov, who is scaling Sopot's statue. During the pursuit, Molov's most powerful subordinates launch a counterattack. Molov has taken the nanotech cell – the culmination of Capek's research – and await extraction from Shrike. Shrike betrays his commanding officer, declaring that a grievous error in judgment has been made. Tangier manages to reclaim the nanotech cell from Molov's possession and uses a grenade to cover her escape as she dives headfirst off the observation deck of Sopot's statue.
Molov, desperate to eliminate his enemies, climbs aboard a nearby battle armor and launches a frenzied assault against Alias. Shrike, in his own close air support craft, patrols the area around them. Using the destructible environment
to his advantage, Alias manages to evade Molov's fire and launch a counterattack that not only kills Molov, but also destroys the statue. As the statue crumbles, Shrike swoops in to extract his teammate in the nick of time.
From this point, the story ends in one of four possible ways, depending on the player's Heroics score.
Players can also create their own bots. Bots, like the human players, are able to keep statistics pertaining to gameplay. Bots obtain more statistic points as they fight matches in multiplayer, which allows the player to upgrade their abilities as they are used. These statistics include Health, Damage, Agility, and Accuracy. There are also two other stats pertaining to their gameplay: Camping Tendency and Aggressiveness.
Online multiplayer was not supported on any platform.
, was released in 2009 for the PlayStation 3
, Xbox 360
and Microsoft Windows
version, criticizing the port's average looking graphics and incredibly short (though enjoyable) single-player campaign.
A quick look at review scores from other sites and magazines, via the Game Rankings site page shows more marginal scores for the PC release, as low as 2 out of 5. Penny Arcade's review scored it as "causing leprosy".
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
video game developed by Volition, Inc. and published by THQ
THQ
THQ Inc. is an American developer and publisher of video games. Founded in 1989 in the United States, the company develops products for video game consoles, handheld game systems, as well as for personal computers and wireless devices...
on October 15, 2002 for the PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
, Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
, Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
and Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
. Red Faction II does not support network gaming, but provides some multiplayer-style games with 'bots'.
Lance Henriksen
Lance Henriksen
Lance James Henriksen is an American actor and artist best known to film and television audiences for his roles in science fiction, action, and horror films such as the Alien film franchise, and on television shows such as Millennium....
provides the voice of the squad leader, Molov, and Jason Statham
Jason Statham
Jason Statham born 12 September1967) is an English actor and former diver, known for his roles in the Guy Ritchie crime films Revolver, Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels...
voices the vehicle expert, Shrike.
Plot
In the year 2075, five years after the events of Red FactionRed Faction
Red Faction is a first-person shooter video game developed by Volition, Inc. and published by THQ. It was released for the PlayStation 2, Microsoft Windows and Mac in 2001. A version for the Nokia N-Gage was developed by Monkeystone Games. The game was also re-developed as a top-down shooter for...
, on Mars, the nanotechnology
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...
developed by Capek has been claimed by the Earth Defense Force (EDF). With this technology, the EDF commences a reorganization of the Ultor Corporation with a particular focus on enhanced supersoldier
Supersoldier
Supersoldier is a term often used to describe a soldier that operates beyond normal human limits or abilities. Supersoldiers are common in science fiction literature, films, TV programs, computer, conspiracy theories, and video games, but have also made appearances in other related genres, such as...
s and suitable weaponry. However, the research that was done by Capek in his laboratories has been consequently stolen by other militant
Militant
The word militant, which is both an adjective and a noun, usually is used to mean vigorously active, combative and aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in 'militant reformers'. It comes from the 15th century Latin "militare" meaning "to serve as a soldier"...
groups and assorted terrorist organizations
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
. This has gone on for years; the research has changed hands in the criminal underworld many times. The player is introduced to the role of an explosives expert (codenamed "Alias"), as he embarks on a special operations
Special operations
Special operations are military operations that are considered "special" .Special operations are typically performed independently or in conjunction with conventional military operations. The primary goal is to achieve a political or military objective where a conventional force requirement does...
mission to claim the research data for the Republic of the Commonwealth.
Eventually, the research was successfully claimed by the elite forces of Victor Sopot, Chancellor of the dystopic
Dystopia
A dystopia is the idea of a society in a repressive and controlled state, often under the guise of being utopian, as characterized in books like Brave New World and Nineteen Eighty-Four...
military state known as The Commonwealth. Sopot uses the nanotechnology to enhance his already formidable military forces, and successfully creates the first supersoldiers with the research data. Fearing the potential of his new supersoldiers, he orders them all to be hunted down and executed at once and replaced with far less intelligent, mutated horrors known as "The Processed".
In 2075 Collectively betrayed by their leader, the Squad flees underground
Counterculture
Counterculture is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a cultural group, or subculture, that run counter to those of the social mainstream of the day, the cultural equivalent of political opposition. Counterculture can also be described as a group whose behavior...
and ally themselves with the Red Faction as mercenaries. The Red Faction, at this point in the story, is a more organized resistance movement
Resistance movement
A resistance movement is a group or collection of individual groups, dedicated to opposing an invader in an occupied country or the government of a sovereign state. It may seek to achieve its objects through either the use of nonviolent resistance or the use of armed force...
that is strongly opposed to the rule of Sopot and the skewed political tenets of The Commonwealth. The Squad eventually pursue Sopot and neutralize all opposition in their way as the Red Faction takes the conflict to the streets in a joint uprising against the rule of The Commonwealth. During the course of the initial stages of the game, the Red Faction and the Squad mutually support each other as they overcome shared objectives which include sabotaging propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
installations. The uprising culminates in successfully trapping Sopot in his missile silo and executing him with the exhaust flames of an ICBM he had planned to fire in another political move to undermine or annihilate the Red Faction.
Alias returns to the makeshift base of operations, only to discover that all of the Red Faction resistance members present have been brutally slaughtered. Molov remarks that with Sopot dead, and with the nanotech research in Molov's possession, the Commonwealth's military forces have voluntarily pledged allegiance to Molov. He declares Alias and Tangier to be enemies of the state
Enemy of the State
Enemy of the State is a 1998 spy-thriller film about a group of rogue NSA agents who kill a US Congressman and try to cover up the murder. It was written by David Marconi, directed by Tony Scott, and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and it stars Will Smith, Gene Hackman, Jon Voight, Lisa Bonet and...
for supporting the Red Faction. Also present is the leader of the Red Faction forces on Earth, a young commander codenamed Echo, who explains to the Squad's members that the Red Faction had no intention of misusing the Squad's participation in the uprising. Echo tries to explain that the Red Faction's ultimate goal is to bring about peace. Molov, enraged, retorts that a declaration of peace would defeat the purpose of their existence as soldiers. As Molov is about to fire his weapon he is held hostage by a cloaked Tangier, who buys the three characters enough time to make an escape with their lives. The three split up, and agree to meet in a more discreet location to plan a way to stop Molov and his army of supersoldiers. The remaining members of the Squad give chase.
Shortly after fleeing to safety, Alias (now working alone) lends aid to surviving Red Faction members who are defending themselves from the enemy. While Tangier embarks on a solo mission to uncover more of Molov's plot, Alias and Echo meet up in a secret location to discuss an alternate strategy to stop Molov. At that moment, Echo is gunned down by Quill, with her specialized railgun
Railguns in science fiction
Electromagnetic projectile devices which use electromagnetic means to accelerate solid materials, often appear in fictional literature, especially science fiction where they are described as Kinetic energy weaponry, Gauss guns, Mass drivers or Railguns...
. Alias tracks down the trajectory of the lethal gunfire to an abandoned cathedral, where Quill and her detachment of troops and Processed do battle with Alias. Alias successfully out-guns the sniper, and Quill tumbles through the rosette window to fall to her demise. Alias claims her weapon as a trophy.
Tangier radios Alias soon afterward, and the two agree to shut down Molov's commandeered nanotech laboratory, located within the colossal statue of Sopot. Upon arrival, the two split up. Repta makes his appearance, distracting Alias with gunfire and deploying Processed mutants, including Molov's newest creation: a more refined Processed mutant that is stronger and more resilient than the first Processed. Alias pursues Repta into the industrial processor, located within the base of Sopot's statue. The area is littered with a network of catwalks
Skyway
In an urban setting, a skyway, catwalk, sky bridge, or skywalk is a type of pedway consisting of an enclosed or covered bridge between two buildings. This protects pedestrians from the weather. These skyways are usually owned by businesses, and are therefore not public spaces...
, where Repta lurks. Eventually, Alias triumphs and shoots Repta off one of the catwalks, sending Repta plummeting into the irradiated processing ground below. Alias claims Repta's abandoned weapon as he continues his climb up the base of Sopot's Statue and destroys the nanotech laboratory's power generators. Alias's explosives weaken the foundation, and renders the statue unstable.
Alias encounters Repta again. The nanotechnology within Repta has been further enhanced, destabilizing Repta while augmenting his capacity for combat; Repta has been processed into the ultimate killing machine, and summons Molov's nanotech elite as reinforcements. In addition, Repta is engulfed in an energy field
Electron avalanche
An electron avalanche is a process in which a number of free electrons in a medium are subjected to strong acceleration by an electric field, ionizing the medium's atoms by collision , thereby forming "new" electrons to undergo the same process in successive cycles...
that disrupts nearby nanotechnology, subjecting the player to reversed player controls at moments during the fight. As Alias triumphs once again, the energy field within Repta reaches critical mass
Critical mass
A critical mass is the smallest amount of fissile material needed for a sustained nuclear chain reaction. The critical mass of a fissionable material depends upon its nuclear properties A critical mass is the smallest amount of fissile material needed for a sustained nuclear chain reaction. The...
and Repta explodes.
Alias and Tangier meet up and pursue Molov, who is scaling Sopot's statue. During the pursuit, Molov's most powerful subordinates launch a counterattack. Molov has taken the nanotech cell – the culmination of Capek's research – and await extraction from Shrike. Shrike betrays his commanding officer, declaring that a grievous error in judgment has been made. Tangier manages to reclaim the nanotech cell from Molov's possession and uses a grenade to cover her escape as she dives headfirst off the observation deck of Sopot's statue.
Molov, desperate to eliminate his enemies, climbs aboard a nearby battle armor and launches a frenzied assault against Alias. Shrike, in his own close air support craft, patrols the area around them. Using the destructible environment
Destructible environment
In video games, the term destructible environment, or terrain deformation, refers to an environment within a game which can be wholly or partially destroyed by the player...
to his advantage, Alias manages to evade Molov's fire and launch a counterattack that not only kills Molov, but also destroys the statue. As the statue crumbles, Shrike swoops in to extract his teammate in the nick of time.
From this point, the story ends in one of four possible ways, depending on the player's Heroics score.
Multiplayer
Red Faction II features Deathmatch, Bagman, Arena (all available with either individual or team play), Capture the Flag, and "Regime" (an unlockable mode equivalent to Bagman), all played across a selection of roughly forty levels, each with destructible walls. Every game mode except Capture the Flag has the same stage set; Capture the Flag has another set of levels dedicated to it.Players can also create their own bots. Bots, like the human players, are able to keep statistics pertaining to gameplay. Bots obtain more statistic points as they fight matches in multiplayer, which allows the player to upgrade their abilities as they are used. These statistics include Health, Damage, Agility, and Accuracy. There are also two other stats pertaining to their gameplay: Camping Tendency and Aggressiveness.
Online multiplayer was not supported on any platform.
Sequel
A sequel, Red Faction: GuerrillaRed Faction: Guerrilla
Red Faction: Guerrilla is an open-world third-person action video game developed by Volition, Inc. and published by THQ. It was released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in June 2009 and for Microsoft Windows in September 2009...
, was released in 2009 for the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
Reception
Red Faction II's short campaign and lack of online multiplayer has diminished reviews by many critics. However, redeeming features include dual wielding, great multiplayer(split screen), and improved graphics. For these and other reasons, GameSpot awarded the game an 8.3/10.0, earning it the rank of "Great". IGN's positive side of their review called the game "a very solid, well-produced first-person shooter", but their complaints stated that: "Volition still shows some room for improvement when it comes to level design, spots of AI, and implementing the vast potential of the Geo-Mod concept". Despite their complaints, IGN gave Red Faction II a 9.2/10, an "Outstanding" ranking; however, they were more negative about the Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
version, criticizing the port's average looking graphics and incredibly short (though enjoyable) single-player campaign.
A quick look at review scores from other sites and magazines, via the Game Rankings site page shows more marginal scores for the PC release, as low as 2 out of 5. Penny Arcade's review scored it as "causing leprosy".