There's one thing Resistance: Fall of Man really has going for it -- attention to detail. The part military, part sci-fi shooter includes little touches everywhere, such as the growing stubble on lead character Nathan Hale's face during the game's four-day timeframe. Propaganda posters plaster the walls of underground bunkers. Outside an abandoned fish market, a list scrawled in chalk details the catch of the day from long ago. Smoke plumes out of half-destroyed buildings. Glass realistically spiders when shot. Spent ammunition litters the floors.

No casual gamer will pay much attention to these trivial details, but that's why it matters. In the context of the actual game, these minor things come together to form a world that feels eerily plausible. Due to a miscalculated throw, a grenade misses its target, sails through a nearby window and harmlessly detonates. As the bullets whiz overhead, the shielding safety of the half-wall disintegrates into a cloud of plaster. Bolts of energy soon start eating through metal, and while weaving to avoid them, there's barely enough time to save a fellow soldier from a getting clubbed over the head before the next volley. After lengthy and nerve-wracking battles, when every enemy has been defeated, areas turn into smoking, shattered ruins littered with corpses -- and that's when the deadly Stalker tank turns up.

Safe to say, Resistance delivers big on its promise of epic battles and the uneasy chaos that comes with them. Unlike other first-person shooters, these battles aren't pre-scripted walks in the park either. Battles and their outcomes occur on the fly, with the actions of the player making a substantial difference in who lives and what dies. Nor are the Chimeran enemies easy pushovers. They're vicious, intelligent foes that make the best of their environment and weaponry, resulting in a hearty appreciation of the respawn checkpoints that, outside of one key area, have been placed in smart locations.

Fortunately, not all of Resistance's encounters include epic battles in open spaces. There's plenty of creepy corridor skirmishes, complete with unexpected encounters and some yelp-inducing moments. Notably guilty are the stealthy Menials that seem to come out of nowhere and attempt to munch on Hale's innards, literally requiring a fast shake of the controller to throw them off.

Despite the various situations and weapons Resistance presents, the open-ended nature of the game allows for any weapon to be useful given the right strategy. It's up to the player and their play style, not the design of the game, to decide which weapons to use in what situations.

For example, the Bullseye weapon first seems to be nothing more than a weak machine gun with a weak spread. However, its alternate fire places a homing beacon on an opponent, transforming the ineffective swarm of bullets into a precise instrument of death. The quick zoom of the Fareye sniper rifle, in conjunction with its ability to slow time, allows for headshots in the wake of a heated battle. Not only can the Auger's blasts pass through walls, but its alternate fire sets up a temporary shield that's only vulnerable to other Auger fire. Things only get better with more playtime, not just because more weapons translate to more techniques, but because additional weapons and difficulty settings appear after beating the game.