When I was asked to write this review I was slightly apprehensive. I usually review computer hardware; a process that requires playing games and running performance benchmarks on them, but one that is almost entirely objective and has little concern for personal opinions. Writing a game review, on the other hand, is entirely subjective. A single game can, at the same time, yield a tremendous review from one writer while receiving an abysmal score from another. This is not the case with computer hardware, as the performance numbers achieved in testing are generally hard to refute and almost always agree with the numbers produced by other reviewers. However, I would like to think that those reviewing this game would be producing very similar verdicts in the end, as its audience is inherently limited by its computer requirements. You see, you need a very special piece of computer hardware to run this game with any sort of playability, and the people that have this hardware probably only have it because they understand its potential impact on the future of gaming.

I am, of course, talking about CellFactor: Revolution, the first game to fully utilize the power of AGEIA’s PhysX Physics Processing Unit.

Features, Characters, etc.
If CellFactor: Revolution (CFR) is a more computer intensive game than Half-Life 2 (and trust me, it is), then this is merely the result of it being built around a different foundation. The designers of Half-Life 2 were certainly looking to bring revolutionary game play, interaction, and visuals to their well established and critically applauded Half-Life story. The designers of CellFactor: Revolution, seem to have built their game for the sole purpose of demonstrating the impact of truly boundless physics and cutting-edge graphical effects on game play. There is a story line in CFR, but if anything, for now, it is just an attempt to build distinction between each of the three characters in the game.

There are probably readers out there that already doubt my ability to review computer games based on the fact that I am drawing comparisons between the famed Half-Life 2 and this game they have likely never heard of. In reality however, these two games are the only two that I know of that allow you to interact with your surroundings in such a way that objects in the game, besides those carried on your person, can be used as weapons and/or tools. To be fair though, the only other common feature of these games is that they are both first person shooters. Whereas Half-Life 2 is an epic action-adventure FPS, CellFactor: Revolution is a basically a multi-player death match-style FPS.

The single-player aspect of CellFactor: Revolution is a short-lived one. As mentioned before there are three different kinds of characters in the game: Black-ops, Guardians, and Bishops. The back story of the game, which is what allows there to be three different characters with varying levels of “psychic” power, is your typical “planet earth in the future after a series of cataclysmic events” mixed in with a bit of “all-powerful governing body (LIMBO) has created cybernetic warrior robot things to combat a human resistance (GUARD) and restore order”. The combat style in the game is based squarely around the “PSI” powers that are exemplified by the Bishop character, “a hyper charged genetically-altered warrior with the most advanced application of PSI powers possible.” A step down in the PSI powers classification system is the Black Op solider. This character is your typical advanced warrior with all these fancy high-tech weapons blended with a little bit of PSI abilities. The final class consists of the Guardian character, a cybernetic powerhouse that touts some tremendously powerful weaponry and the ability to move very fast. Each character has a series of five training exercises that you can complete in order to gain an understanding of each of their unique abilities.

Guardian

Black Op

Bishop

When it really comes down to it, all of these characters are fairly evenly matched in terms of capability and destructive power, but there can be little doubt that the creators of the game intended to showcase its primary feature with the Bishop character. Expecting this, it was the Bishop character that I selected to start with. The five training missions that Bishop is required to complete are arranged such that the special abilities of the character are built upon with progression. CellFactor: Revolution’s single player campaign mode does a very good job of educating the player about how to use and in what situations to use the various special abilities of whichever character is being used. As a seasoned FPS player, the aiming and movement in the game came naturally for me. There is, however, a learning curve with many of the special moves, as they are unlike any move you’ve used before in any other game.