Preview: Resistance: Burning Skies

Resistance: Burning Skies will take the first person shooting action from the Resistance series and put itself literally into your hands. Prepare for kicking some Chimera ass on your PlayStation Vita.

Name: Resistance: Burning Skies
Genre: First Person Shooter
Players: 1
Multiplayer: Yes (4-8 players over WiFi)
Platforms: PlayStation Vita
Developers: Nihilistic Software
Publishers: Sony Computer Entertainment
Release Date: 29 May 2012

As New Jersey fire fighter and National Guardsman Tom Riley, you’re about to come face to face with the brutal Chimeran invasion force in this blistering shooter built from the ground up for PlayStation Vita. The latest installment in the hugely successful franchise focuses on a new mission that parallels and complements the existing Resistance storyline.

First person games doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to handheld platforms, mostly due to the lack of a second analog stick. However this will hopefully give Resistance: Burning Skies a big boost due to the fact that the PlayStation Vita will allow smooth first person shooting action functionality with the help of a second analog stick. This is one big bonus the handheld folks have been waiting for. Burning Skies makes use of the touch-screen controls, due to the lack of analog sticks that can be clicked and the missing L2 and R2 buttons.

The touch-screen can be tapped for an alternate fire mode and an icon in the lower right corner can be used for a melee attack. The grenade cooking also makes for some unique and innovative touch screen-mechanics. You can cook your grenade by aiming and moving your finger slowly over the screen. It promises to utilize the controls fully and in a unique way.

On the multiplayer side of things, you can play 4-8 player matches, providing you with 4 vs. 4 team modes, as well as 2 vs. 2 multiplayer matches. XP is earned through kills and performing killstreaks, allowing you to unlock upgrades for your weapons. The game provides players with 3 different multiplayer game modes: Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch and Survival. These modes will be playable with friends using the PlayStaion Vita’s WiFi connection, but it won’t be playable online. The built-in microphone and Bluetooth headset can be used to communicate with your amigos.

Let’s hope that Resistance: Burning Skies makes portable first person shooting a truckload of fun.