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Exclusive Interview: Resistance 3
by Chris Hawke
3.9.11

You submitted the questions, we got the answers. Following on from our 'Ask Your Questions' article, Insomniac's James Stevenson has been kind enough to answer your questions regarding Resistance 3, which is almost upon us. Better get cracking, then.

Will Nathan Hale show his alien, bullet-riddled face in Resistance 3? What will post-release DLC comprise of? What does the future hold for the Resistance series? All these questions, and more, have answers below. Have fun.

Is Resistance 3 going to answer the major questions regarding the history of the Resistance universe? In particular, are we finally going to see the complete picture of who the Chimera are, where they came from, and what is their relationship to Earth and humanity?

For the players dying to know more about the mythos and the lore, there are lots of nuggets hidden throughout the game. The overall story of the game is more about one man and his journey across the country, though, rather than necessarily getting into the high-level story about the Chimera themselves.


How long will the Resistance 3 campaign be?

It’s around the same as the others; give or take your skill, and difficulty level, maybe a shade shorter. We think it’s a varied and well-paced campaign though, and should be really satisfying. Plus, you can replay on a higher difficulty level to continue levelling your weapons up.


What have you, Insomniac Games, learned on the Resistance 3 project that you wish had been more apparent when developing the previous installments?

Just having time to play the game was such a luxury. Moving to a three-year development cycle allowed us to really step back and take a look at the game as a whole with months to go. In the past, at that point we would’ve been scrambling to finish the game. This time we were able to make major changes in pacing and training of players, and it made a huge difference for Resistance 3.


Will we get online trophies via post-release DLC?

We will have some DLC, but we won’t be adding any trophies in the DLC. For us, we wanted the full trophy suite to be available to campaign/co-op players, and to allow medals and statistics to form MP side of it for those that like it.


In split screen co-op mode, will you be able to use two Move controllers and two navigators?

No, it will be Dualshock only for split screen.


Is Resistance 3 going to have that same cooperative perk system the second one had? Or is it going to be a more streamlined experience?

We actually are back to campaign co-op for Resistance 3. One of the big reasons we shifted was due to overwhelming fan feedback on Resistance 2 that they were disappointed, so we removed it. Furthermore we knew that, to get the level of polish on R3 that we required, we would have to reduce the scope. So making sure our co-op was playable through the campaign, instead of as a separate co-op campaign, was huge in that goal.


What's been the biggest influence on the design around the third game? What did you absolutely want to make better?

The biggest thing we wanted to do this time was create a very focussed, atmospheric experience. We wanted to tell the personal story of Joseph Capelli – and not make another military shooter. So, we looked at a lot of great films that do a really good job showcasing a brutal personal journey. For instance, The Road was a big influence. And on the game side, we looked at Half-Life 2 and Metro 2033, both very atmospheric experiences.


Will Nathan Hale make a return or be referenced in one form or another?

We actually discussed this quite a bit at the beginning of production. Should Hale come back? Should he be a major boss in the game? In the end, we felt like it’d be really cheesy to revive him, and that his legacy would be best left if we kept him buried.


Just how far across America can we be expected to hike?

So far! From Haven, Oklahoma to New York City. Let’s just say you couldn’t make a day-hike out of it.


With Insomniac branching into multiplatform games like Overstrike, are there plans to introduce Xbox gamers to the Resistance series?

Sony owns the Resistance IP, so it’s unlikely that that will happen.


Just how much will Resistance 3 expand and possibly shake up the canon of the series? Could we expect to see a future game set on an alien world?

You know, the Resistance universe is so vast that there are many, many possibilities for a tonne of exploration. So, who knows! There’s already a future game announced for PlayStation Vita that’s being developed by Nihilistic, called Resistance: Burning Skies, which will take you back to the US invasion.


Will Resistance take a back seat after Resistance 3, so Insomniac can focus on Overstrike or Ratchet & Clank?

We’re just focussed on supporting Resistance 3, getting Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One out of the door, and continuing development on Overstrike and our Insomniac Click Facebook game. As far as what else is down the road, anything is possible!


Many fans were upset with the general tone of Resistance 2. Do you think Resistance 3 rectifies this and aims to please the core fans more?

We like to think Resistance 3 combines the best parts of Fall of Man and R2. The result is the definitive Resistance experience for fans of the series. I think when they get their hands on it they will feel the same way.


And one very specific one from a reader:

This is a really important question, because I really want to buy the Survivor Edition but I currently live in Germany, so I have to know if the German (USK) version of R3 comes with the English language pack or not.

If English is set as your primary language on your PS3, it should automatically be in English. So, yes!

Thanks to all you who you sent questions in, and thank to James Stevenson and Ryan Schneider for the interview. Be sure to stick around, as we have many more games and developers simply queuing up for a GGTL interview in the near future, including one for an upcoming Bethesda game.

...if only I could remember what it was called.

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- Chris Hawke

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