The X-Files: Resist or Serve

"X-files fans won't be dissapointed"

Introduction:

The X-Files.. in my opinion its one of the best tv-shows ever. Then a few months ago I heard about a new game based on it for the PS2, I've had my doubts about picking it up or not, because as you know.. movie licensed games aren't exactly known to be good, but I got it anyways, so here we go.

Story :

Its kind of hard this one, because the game is parted up in to three episodes, which of cause means that the game has three different stories. But there is one thing I can tell you, The X-files fans will feel right at home here..

(btw Mulder and Scully still have their never ending verbal fights and funny jokes.. so you will end up laughing from time to time)

9/10

Gameplay :

Gameplay – the most important aspect in a game. I kind of have mixed feelings on this part. First thing is, the controls are rather complicated compared to other games and can be a bit annoying at times. The game itself borrows much from games such as Silent Hill and The Suffering. The X-files: Resist or Serve just doesn't match up to either one of them. You run around spending time on shooting/avoiding enemies and finding keys in other words the basic action adventure formula. But it would be a cheap move to just narrow it down like that. So I'll break it down in two parts instead.

puzzles/exploring :

Unfortunately there is nothing groundbreaking here. You find a ''key'' and you move on, it sounds simple, but trust me it's not since the game doesn't exactly give you any useful hints on where to go next, so you'll most likely spend some time on that, I'm not saying its a bad thing though, if you have patience it probably won't bother you. One last thing, Scully can perform autopsies which kind of helps the game to stand out a bit from other titles alike.

Action :

Now this part is fairly decent. You'll find all sorts of weapons to take down enemies, standard Gun's, AK's, Shotgun's, even hand to hand combat can be used in this game, it's actually pretty funny to take down a zombie with your bare fists lol. Another interesting feature here is the ability to combine items for example, you can create a Molotov Cocktail by combining three different objects and throw it at an enemy.

(You can play as both Mulder and Scully, gameplay alters a bit, so does their point of view on the story)

7/10

Graphics :

The graphics are okay, but again its nothing out of the ordinary, don't expect to see MGS3 quality here. That aside the environments looks fairly good, yet there's a lag of detail in some areas. Character models look weird, cause the developers apparently have overlooked facial animation, you'll notice that a lot during the cutscenes, still it manage to catch the atmosphere of the X-files though. Might sound like the graphics are very bad, but don't worry there's a lot of PS2 games that have done worse than this.

6/10

Sound :

This is where the game really shines. They brought the cast from the original series in, to do the voice acting, and they all do a very great job, The music too is just simply amazing. All of this really helps in terms of bringing the spirit of the tv-show into the game.

10/10

Final Comment :

If you're an X-files fan you should take a look at this game.. Everything about it just says: ''THE X-FILES'' its almost like you're watching the series again when you play it.. It might not be the best action adventure game out there, but its still a good game and worth playing, if you can look pass the two facts:

that the game doesn't bring anything new too the scene, and that it doesn't really look that great either..

But overall its a good game that fans of the series most likely will enjoy playing. and to top it off there are a few unlockables too once you beat the game.

Overall Score 7.5

''the truth is out there'' ~ well if you're playing this game right now ''the truth'' is probably spinning around, right in your PS2.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 08/16/05