Red Faction Diaries Introduction

I’ve long been a fan of the Red Faction franchise, mainly for the Geo-Mod physics engine Volition created for it. It’s always bothered me that games aren’t filled with destructible levels, despite how far technology has progressed since the PlayStation 2. Now and then you get a game which attempts it, with certain objects or the odd building responding to an explosion in some minor way, but you can never use a rocket launcher to tunnel around a group of enemies, or literally pull down a building on them. Unless it’s in the story.

And so, with four games in the series available on Steam, I’m going to play through Red Faction in release order, and write about my experience. Themes explored, references carried through them, characters that appear… All that good stuff.

Medics will heal anyone -- unless brandishing a weapon

For those unfamiliar, Red Faction takes place on Mars for the most part. The world is basically run by the Ultor Corporation, meaning that most of the workers of 2075 are employees of theirs. The mining operation that they run is seen as a way to escape the shackles of Earth and get some money -- however, it’s not as easy as that. Once on-planet, workers are worked to death: sometimes quite literally. It has given rise to an underground group known as the Red Faction - a rebel group that you find yourself affiliated with.

Hopefully I can also find out why Guerrilla and Armageddon sold so poorly that THQ put an end to the franchise -- before it ultimately put an end to them. With the rights to Red Faction now in the hands of Nordic Games, it has been a few years since the last title. Perhaps by the time I reach the end of Armageddon, there will be a new title announcement…

It's not the Source engine, but the graphics hold up better than Deus Ex!

Starting Red Faction, we’re introduced to Parker, who came to Mars seeking a better life. Or, at least, one away from Earth for whatever reason. He completes his induction to the Red Faction with some weapons training, and explanations of how doors and medics work. The guy chatting to me explains how Ultor are terrible, and the rebels are about to rebel -- but I have to be ready...

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