US, October 28, 2008 - It must be a daunting prospect to follow up a critically acclaimed game that became a Greatest Hit. The same could be said of following up a story that featured the infection and obliteration of Europe and most of the UK by alien creatures. Fortunately, Insomniac loves a challenge, and they've been hard at work trying to best the adventure of Nathan Hale from Resistance: Fall of Man. In case you were wondering, they've managed to succeed handily. Not only is Resistance 2 an improvement in all facets of the game, it dwarfs the considerable action of the first title in the series.

The original game was a bleak alternate history tale of the devastation of Europe, not by the fires of war from a Nazi regime but by the invading Chimera, a strange alien race bent on the extermination of the human race. The sequel picks up immediately where the original game left off, bringing Nathan Hale from the decimated territory of England to the safety of the United States, which was essentially the only remaining area in the world without Chimeran infestation. At least, it was. Two years after Hale's arrival in America, the Chimera launch massive coordinated attacks against cities in the USA, obliterating entire cities, killing thousands of civilians and converting others into shock troops to be used against the rest of the population. As bad as things once appeared in Europe, they suddenly seem to be much worse in America.

Fortunately, Hale joins the SRPA, a secret governmental agency that deploys super soldiers known as Sentinels into battle. Sentinels are much more than their name implies; these warriors have blood infused with strains of the Chimeran virus, giving them heightened abilities like super strength and health regeneration. America will need all of their abilities, because new monsters have been roaming its cities, forests and waterways. But can a squad of Sentinels uncover a way to repel the Chimeran hordes? Will this be the last days of humanity, and just what will Hale's role be in the impending battle? Questions like these run rampant throughout the single-player campaign, which is a bit shorter than that of the original game (about 10 hours spread across a prologue and seven chapters), but no less complex or lacking in its depth due to the information revealed to Hale throughout the game. In fact, it feels a bit tighter and faster paced than Fall of Man thanks to the action of the game and how information is revealed. Elements such as the Cloven from the original game, the Chimeran infection, and even the connection of the ARG Project Abraham and its connection to Resistance 2 are explained over time, and you do wind up gaining a large sense of what's going on within this grim universe.

However, for as many secrets that are discovered by the player, it seems as though just as many, if not more, are left unanswered. This brings up one of my primary issues with the story, which is that I feel like it needed a narrator with some kind of perspective on the events of the mission like the first one did. While Rachel wasn't omniscient, she did manage to tie together a lot of elements that weren't fully covered or highlighted in your missions. By contrast, Resistance 2 is very Hale-centric, and focuses much more on his actions and what he wants to do. That's fine, but his motivations behind what his decisions are or why he chooses to act a certain way or go to a specific location aren't fully explored. As a result, some elements of the story aren't fully cohesive, and a large number of questions are left unanswered, which could potentially confuse players until the hypothetical Resistance 3 eventually is released.

For example, players are introduced to a number of supporting characters that comprise Hale's squad of Sentinels. During one mission, you're introduced to some personal details about a particular soldier, which seems rather pertinent to the mission and plot at that moment, but it's quickly dropped and not addressed again. Even though collectable intel fills in a few pieces of info that's left out, you really wonder just what the effect of exploring that side story would have been, or how that might have affected Hale or his squad or changed the action in the mission in any way. Instead, the moment is lost, there's no reflection on it, and you feel somewhat slighted.

However, the story issues (which are arguably a minor or subjective problem) are overshadowed by the considerable elements that are marshaled together for Resistance 2. The first game was well known for its atmosphere, tight corridors and its surreal environments. All of that has been maintained, and even augmented. For instance, it's extremely strange to walk into the town of Twin Falls, Idaho, and see the entire place covered with flesh pods, which obviously contain the unfortunate remains of the townsfolk. When one of your squad mates remarks that seeing the entire thing makes him miss conversion centers, you can't help but agree with him. But eclipsing this is the sheer scale and scope of the game, which is nothing short of epic. In every single level, there is at least one moment that will make your jaw drop, such as the absolute devastation of Chicago and its total infestation of Chimeran creatures. The same can be said of the various "monsters" that you'll face off against, many of whom tower over the battlefield thanks to their size. The giant Goliath walkers in the prologue are one thing, but when you first witness the dimensions of creatures like the Kraken or the Leviathan, it's definitely one of those things that gives you pause (as well as a sense of accomplishment when you defeat them).