Honey, I started a war with insects, sorry, what should I do? — this can describe a good half of the plot of the game Red Faction: Armageddon. But don't rush to eat your tie. Our not-so-bright protagonist, Darius Mason, is going to fix his own mistake. Armed with a couple of firearms and a huge banhammer, he fearlessly clears dozens of dungeons, killing hundreds of unfortunate insects along the way.
Plot
Red Faction: Armageddon tells about events that took place on Mars 200 years after the events of the previous part (RF: Guerilla). In short — the remnants of human colonies have moved to underground cities, as it's almost impossible to stay on the surface without special protection due to the destroyed terraforming devices.
In these challenging times for the people of Mars, another calamity befalls them — creepy-looking insectoids of all kinds have surged from the dungeons, ranging from familiar spiders to giant beetles. The public quickly learns the name of the culprit, who is also the main protagonist of the game — Darius Mason. The only solution for him is the total extermination of the alien life form, which is what we will be doing for most of the game time.
To such a simple plot and the classic "shoot-run-shoot" style of shooters, the series' signature feature is added — total destructibility of the environment. Of course, we can't collapse the ceiling or drill through a cave wall, but we can destroy all man-made surroundings. Are you being fired upon from a nearby building? Blow it up, burying all the enemies under the debris! A swarm of insects is charging across a bridge? Destroy the bridge, sending them into the bottomless abyss! But wait, you might say. How do we cross the same bridge if we've destroyed everything? Specifically for such cases, there is an ancient Terran artifact — the nano forge, which with a simple click restores all destroyed structures.
Gameplay
Smashing everything in your path with a grenade launcher or plasma gun, combined with a wild horde of insectoids (or more intelligent enemies like fanatic thugs), Red Faction: Armageddon delivers an incredible amount of joy and excitement, showcasing excellent shooter gameplay. Perhaps the most interesting encounters are with the insects — with their agility and ability to move across all surfaces, they can give the player a good challenge. The main thing is not to overdo it, honing your killing skills for hours. Otherwise, the game might quickly become boring.
At times, the authors delight us with the use of robotic technology, allowing us to unleash hell and destruction on all living things with our own hands. Overall, their use in the game is justified and refreshes the gameplay. Don't forget about the ability to destroy structures in your path — there's no need to go around each one, you can simply go through the structure.
An unexpected feature might be the ability to upgrade our hero's abilities. There are both passive skills like improved shooting accuracy and active ones like a protective dome or stunning. Active skills are initiated by the familiar nano forge, and although overall upgrading our hero's abilities positively impacts the game, most skills are simply unnecessary. Especially when you're being shot at from all sides.
***
If you enjoy shooting at those you're pointed at, Red Faction: Armageddon is the game for you. A simple, straightforward plot, a ton of weapons and enemies, plus RPG elements in the form of character upgrades will not leave you indifferent and will definitely occupy a couple of your evenings.
