KMGR of "Red Faction: Guerilla" (mobile)

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Red Faction: Guerilla (mobile) is an adaptation of the latest variant of Red Faction, a game where you blow up things big time (deformable terrain, breakable buildings, and so on). It is any fun on a mobile? Well... sort of, but in a completely different way.

You see, Red Faction: Guerilla (just RF from now on) on the mobile is a 2D shooter, that's closer in spirit to PC's Crusader series (Crusader: No Remorse is the first game), mixed in with a bit of rhythm matching disguised as a vehicle shoot sequence, and a bit of timing puzzle disguised as a "sniper" sequence. It's not bad, it's just... very different.

RF as a 2D game is well done. All the missions (9 in all) are sorta based on the first person mode. You start with an assault rifle, and a hammer. Hammer is used to break open crates, doors, and barrels for stuff like ammo, first-aid, and so on. The gun is auto-aim, but you can switch targets. If you move close to an obstacle you can crouch behind it and pop-up to return fire. You can also dodge sideways while running (and the character will do a realistic roll and tuck). Later you get advanced weaponry like rocket launcher and railgun (they get fancier names inside the game, but you know what they are). There are also plenty of exploding barrels you can detonate via gunfire, staple of any PC shooter.

In each mission there are multiple "secret" areas hidden on the map that are often merely "difficult" or "obscure" spots to get to filled with goodies (ammo, first-aid, etc.). Finding them gives you a better score.

There are also occasional spots there you need to drive a driller and break down a wall. That part is easy: hold down the ENTER key to move the driller up to the wall, then tap the enter key to keep the bar in the center of the gauge. Hold it too long and the bar moves right, leave it unpressed too long and it moves left. Keep it in the green range and the drill will eventually break thru.

One more variation is the tank. Occasionally, you get to drive a tank, and it has coax machine gun and a main cannon (and run over things). All in isometric 2D, of course. Keep the tank on the road, and kill the rocket soldiers quickly before they wipe out your tank.

Finally, occasionally, the mission comes upon an area where you have to play "sniper". Enemies will pop up from one of four locations. When they do, press the corresponding arrow key, wait for the crosshair (moving up and down rapidly) to move "up" to top of the 4 dots, then press OK to shoot the guy in the head. If you miss, the guy will shoot back, and you can only take four hits (TOTAL).

As you can imagine, as you go further into the game, the difficulty starts ramping up. Enemies gets more numerous, cover starts to get scarce, and enemy starts to get far better equipped, such as rail gun (capable of killing you in 2 shots) and rocket launcher.

Each mission has a primary and a secondary objective... usually blowing something up (walk up to the item and press OK to drop a demo charge). Though the final fight features a fight with a VERY big and mad boss.

In 2 of the levels you get to play "Mad Max", where you need to shoot various things on the road... Either debris ahead, enemy on the left, or enemy on the right. As I said, it's all about the timing, not aimming skill.

All in all, RF is a fun little mobile shooter with some good action and not TOO frustrating to play. However, it's barely related to the "real" Red Faction. Just keep that in mind, and you won't be too disappointed.

Score: 7. 5 out of 10
Pros: decent 2D shooter, some good animation moves, responsive
Cons: sniper and mad max sequence feel out of place