Insomniac Games’ Resistance 3 has been looking sharp lately, and a fresh look at its competitive multiplayer in full 1080p video is one of the best showcases yet of what the studio is getting out of the PlayStation 3. The footage lands at the end of a busy week for the PS3 exclusive first person shooter, and it offers a much cleaner view of the action than the five minute clip that surfaced online in early March.
One caveat worth keeping in mind: the 1080p label describes the video, not necessarily the resolution the game renders at, and we have not seen Insomniac commit to a final figure. Even so, a crisp capture makes it far easier to appreciate the lighting, the effects work and the detail packed into the ruined environments.
Sixteen Players And A Toolbox Of Abilities
The multiplayer itself is a deliberate change of pace for the series. Where Resistance: Fall of Man supported 40 players and Resistance 2 pushed that to 60, Resistance 3 caps matches at 16, split into two teams of eight, in the name of a tighter, more focused experience. According to Game Informer’s multiplayer hands on, modes pit Humans against Chimera in objective based matches and deathmatch on maps set outside the United States, including a prison in the Republic of Chad.
Players can build custom loadouts or stick with defaults, and can adjust them both before and during a match. Weapons on show include the MSA2 Carbine, the Bullseye, the Rossmore shotgun and the Deadeye sniper rifle. Special abilities sit on the directional pad, with options such as Bubble Shield, Ammo Beacon, Radar Decoy, Lightning Shield and Dash. Points earned in matches unlock and upgrade those abilities, and the earlier clip showed a steady stream of level ups and badges popping as players racked up kills.
Move, 3D And A September 6 Release Date
The new video follows Sony’s announcement this week of a stack of features for the game. As Co Optimus reported on the news, Resistance 3 will support stereoscopic 3D, a decision Sony credited to strong community demand, along with PlayStation Move and the Sharp Shooter peripheral. Two player cooperative play is supported both locally and online, and the game now has a September 6 release date.
Sony has also promised a multiplayer beta on PlayStation Network later this year, although no date has been announced. That should give players a chance to judge the smaller match sizes and ability system for themselves well before launch.
On the campaign side, Resistance 3 moves the story to an alternate 1950s America overrun by the Chimera, with Joseph Capelli taking the lead. Between the solo story, the cooperative mode and a reworked competitive suite, Insomniac clearly wants this to be the most complete Resistance yet, and footage like this suggests the presentation is keeping pace with the ambition.