The X-Files: Resist or Serve

The X-Files: Resist or Serve

Developer(s) Black Ops Entertainment
Publisher(s) Sierra Entertainment
Vivendi Universal Games
Distributor(s) Fox Interactive
Platform(s) PlayStation 2
Release date(s)
  • NA March 16, 2004
  • EU May 21, 2004
Genre(s) Survival horror
Mode(s) Single-player
Distribution DVD

The X-Files: Resist or Serve is a survival horror game for the PlayStation 2 video game console, based on the television series The X-Files and released in 2004, three years after the final season of the television series. This is the second game based on The X-Files, after The X-Files Game. It was also supposed to be released for the Xbox console, but that version was cancelled.

Plot

Intended as three new episodes set during the show's 7th season, the game follows FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder (voiced by David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (voiced by Gillian Anderson) as they travel to a small town in the Rocky Mountains to dig into the source of some strange and unexplained murders. Sightings of ghostly apparitions, zombies and hints of alien presence lead them on a chase for an "inhuman" killer. During the course of the story, Mulder and Scully follow leads to a remote location in Siberia and then discover, and search, a mysterious half-buried alien space ship. Players can play as Mulder or Scully as they attempt to prevent alien colonization of Earth.

The game follows The X-Files series' established canon, including the elements of alien colonization and the "black oil" (also known as Purity or the Black Cancer). Players also investigate various sets from the series, including the FBI office, Mulder's apartment building, and the Russian camp where Mulder and Alex Krycek were subjected to the black oil. Many of the major and minor characters from the show make appearances, including Skinner, Kersh, The Lone Gunmen, Krycek, Marita Covarrubias and the Cigarette Smoking Man.

Production

The game features Mark Snow's theme music from The X-Files series, as well as voice acting by the show's actors. Additionally, bonuses with the game include "behind the scenes" footage (featuring several of the male actors recording their lines while wearing bright red lipstick, a common practice used to get better enunciation and crisper sound) and commentaries from the series.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores
AggregatorScore
GameRankings66.29%[1]
Metacritic67/100[2]
Review scores
PublicationScore
Game Informer6.5/10[3]
GameSpot7.6/10[4]
GameSpy[5]
GameZone5/10[6]
IGN6.7/10[7]
Official PlayStation Magazine (US)[8]
X-Play[9]
The Times[10]

The X-Files: Resist or Serve received mixed to positive reviews upon its release, and holds a rating of 67 out of 100 on Metacritic,[2] and 66.29% on GameRankings.[1] GameSpot gave the game a score of 7.6 out of 10 and praised the game's story and voice acting, as well as the likeness to the show's actors achieved by the character models used, while criticising the repetitive combat, obstructive camera angles and frustrating puzzles.[4] The IGN review was similarly mixed, praising the story and writing while criticising it for adhering too closely to the Resident Evil formula, including the use of zombies as the primary antagonists, stating "if you're looking for something new or interesting in the survival-horror genre, don't look here."[7]

External links

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "The X-Files: Resist or Serve for PlayStation 2". GameRankings. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "The X-Files: Resist or Serve Reviews". Metacritic.
  3. ↑ Juba, Joe (May 2004). "The X-Files: Resist or Serve". Game Informer (133): 100. Archived from the original on March 16, 2008. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Massimilla, Bethany (March 25, 2004). "The X-Files: Resist or Serve Review". GameSpot. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
  5. ↑ Steinberg, Steve (April 5, 2004). "GameSpy: The X-Files: Resist or Serve". GameSpy. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
  6. ↑ Bedigian, Louis (March 28, 2004). "X-Files Resist or Serve - PS2 - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on March 15, 2008. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Perry, Douglass C. (March 23, 2004). "The X-Files: Resist or Serve". IGN. Retrieved November 30, 2012.
  8. ↑ Davison, John (June 2004). "X-Files: Resist or Serve". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. Archived from the original on June 3, 2004. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
  9. ↑ Miller, Skyler (September 7, 2004). "The X-Files: Resist or Serve Review". X-Play. Archived from the original on September 8, 2004. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
  10. ↑ "The X-Files: Resist or Serve". The Times. June 26, 2004. Retrieved June 9, 2014.(subscription required)