Red Faction: Battlegrounds

Template:Game infoboxRed Faction: Battlegrounds is an arcade game available on Xbox Live Arcade and the PlayStation Store. The game revolves around vehicular combat from a top-down view. It has twenty offline missions arranged in a weakly-ordered campaign as well as multiplayer both local and online. The majority of its vehicles come from Red Faction: Guerrilla, although DLC packs exist for both Red Faction: Armageddon, its sequel, and Red Faction: Origins, the SyFy's channels TV movie.

It was created by THQ Digital Studios UK, who

Gameplay

Battlegrounds is a vehicular combat game which relies upon the three vehicle classes of Walkers, Tanks and Light Vehicles. These differ from each other in speed, manouvrability, firepower and armament. Even within the classes there is significant range in capabilities. Additionally, these classes generally work in a rock-paper-scissors fashion with Tanks excelling against Rovers due to there firepower, Rovers excelling against Walkers due to their speed and the walkers lack of turrets, and Walkers excelling against Tanks also due to firepower. Another feature of the gameplay are the weapon and power pick-ups, which can turn the tide of battle.

Vehicles

Light Vehicles

EDF Scout

The EDF Scout Car was one of the most predominant vehicles used by the Earth Defense Force in Red: Faction Guerrilla. In the service of the Red Faction it comes fitted with dual Gauss turrets.

Miner ATV

This is based on the Miner All-Terrain Vehicle, having been modified with a rotating turret, from Red Faction: Guerrilla. Its is fast and manouvrable, but not so powerful in the weapons department.

Rover Flatbed

This appears to be a heavily modified version of the Civilian Pick-up from Red Faction: Guerrilla, for a start having 6-wheels instead of two. It sports one of the most powerful guns on any Rover-class vehicle.

Marauder Buggy (Armageddon Pack DLC)

The Marauder Buggy is a vehicle in the Armageddon DLC pack equipped with a powerful, if unpredictable, grenade launcher.

LAV (Armageddon Pack DLC)

The Red Faction Light Attack Vehicle is their replacement for the EDF APC. Here it comes mounted with a devastating Singularity Cannon.

Marauder Stomper (Origins Pack DLC)

The Marauder Stomper first appeared in Demons of the Badlands, the single-player DLC pack for Red Faction: Guerrilla. Here it comes mounted with an anti-armour gun which fires a shotgun-like cannister shot, extremely effective at close range.

Marauder Chomper (Origins Pack DLC)

The Marauder Chomper was a light dune buggy also from Red Faction: Guerrilla's DLC. It is fast, agile, and not to shabby when it comes to weaponry.

Staff Car (Origins Pack DLC)

The EDF Staff Car isn't particularly the first vehicle that springs to mind when the word 'fearsome' is used, but these are not the usual Staff Cars having been extensively modified by the White Faction. The dual rocket batteries which were retrofitted to the back scream death and it isn't a pushover in armour or speed either.

APC (Origins Pack DLC)

The Earth Defense Force APC in Red Faction: Guerrilla was pretty tough, but it was more feared for the troops it could bring into battle. These APCs, however, have been modified by Adam Hale's White Faction with a massive twin-turret added.

Tanks

EDF Heavy Tank

The EDF Heavy Tank, or Main Battle Tank, was the most powerful conventional vehicle to appear in Guerrilla. It may not be in anyway fast, but its cannon packs an unrivaled knock-out punch and it has very heavy armour.

EDF Medium Tank

The EDF Medium Tank first appeared in Red Faction: Guerrila and is by far the fastest and most manouvrable tank on Mars, though it lacks the armour and firepower of the Heavy Tank.

EDF Artillery Tank / MRLS

The EDF Artillery Tank was the most powerful EDF vehicle in Red Faction: Guerrilla and its deadly streams of rockets from its twin batteries attest to that. While it mightn't have a high speed, or the best armour - it is still a deadly foe at ranges.

EDF Crusader Tank (Armageddon Pack DLC)

Walkers

Combat Walker

Since its debute in Guerrilla, the Combat Walker has always been one of the most deadly vehicles of its time period. Its twin missile pods and cannons turn enemy vehicles into scrap metal. Speed is not a going concern because this is a 'tank hunter.'

Light Walker

One of the signiture vehicles of Red Faction: Guerrilla, the Light Walker was originally blessed with jet packs. In Battlegrounds it may not fly, but it is fast, agile and its fast firing Gauss Cannons still are a dangerous foe.

L.E.O. Exo Suit (Armageddon Pack DLC)

The L.E.O. was one of the signiture vehicles of the Red Faction in Red Faction: Armageddon. Here it comes with its usual machine gun and powerful missiles which are capable of homing in on targets to a sometimes shocking degree. Overall it has high firepower, decent speed - but lower armour.

Weapon Pickups

Singularity Mine

Remote Charges

Proximity Mines

Other Pickups

Speed Boost

Speed is a limited time ability which increases the speed of the user, excellent for chasing down fleeing hostiles or making an escape yourself. Its also good in Walkers, who have no rotating turret, for moving sideways to avoid enemy fire whilst keeping them in the sights of the guns. This is made possible by an interfacing module which increases engine efficency and output.

Armor Boost

Armor Boost is a limited time ability, based on the nano-shield used by Ultor in the First Martian Revolution, and makes the user invulnerable to harm. This is excellent for charging into the fray and setting off massive barrel explosions without fear of being wrecked, or, just generally aiding surviability.

Repair

Repair is an instant-effect ability which, while not necessarily repairing you completely everytime, adds a great chunk of health to vehicles. This is a god-send for those on low health. It works by a technology refered to as 'smart metals,' whereby the chasis realligns, dents fold back and holes close when an electric pulse is deployed.

Reconstructor

Reconstructor is a pickup which rebuilds the terrain across the entire map. This terrain mostly consists of explosive barrels which can be used to kill enemies by catching them in the blast so this is more useful than one might think.

Quad Damage (Armageddon Pack DLC)

Hammer (Origins Pack DLC)

Maps

Area 49

Biohazzard

Chem-Zone

Ice Mine Eos

Ice Mine Eos is a Red Faction mock-up of one of the many water reclaimation sites across Mars, required in order to supply the populous with water. It houses Survival, Annihilation and Shooting Range missions.

Marauder Enclave

Parker Town

Particle Cannon 7

The Fortress

Once an EDF Outpost in the Martian desert, The Fortress is now used by the Red Faction for training purposes. Excerises that take place here include only the Speed Trial.

Wasteland

Leveling, Achievements & Bonuses

Leveling

There are 20 ranks in Battlegrounds, and experience towards these can only be gained from the campaign/training missions and from online play.

Red Faction: Armageddon Level Bonuses

By ranking up within the game bonus content is gained within Armageddon upon release consisting 2,000 salvage, the ingame currency, with reaching Level 10 and an original weapon from Guerrilla, the EDF Enforcer, upon Level 20. It should be noted that although Rank 10 can be reached by unlocking enough bronze, silver and gold badges in completing the offline missions, Rank 20 cannot be achieved without online play or possibly the additional offline missions reputedly in the DLC.

Achievements

The achievements for the Xbox 360 (and PlayStation 3?) are as follows:

Welcome to the Faction (5 G) - Gain Your First Rank

Helping Hands (5 G) - Complete Your First Local Multiplayer Game

Taste of Victory (5 G) - Win an Xbox LIVE Game

Scrap Metal (10 G) - Get a Quad Kill in the Training Missions

The Running Man (10 G) - Earn a Gold Star in a Survival Training Mission Without Usining Any Weapons

Total Carnage (10 G) - Kill 5 Opponents in a Row Without Dying in a Xbox LIVE Game

Going Up in the World (15 G) - Get To Rank 10

Skills to Pay the Bills (15 G) - Unlock All of the Training Missions

The Black Hole (15 G) - Kill All Other Players With The Singularity Bomb in a 4 Player Xbox LIVE Game

Bling (20 G) - Gain a Gold Badge in 5 Player Awards

Take That, Winters! (40 G) - Gain a Gold Star in All Training Missions

Faction Leader (50 G) - Get To Rank 20

The Armageddon Pack DLC achievements for the Xbox 360 (and PlayStation 3?) are as follows:

A Taste of Armageddon (10 G) - Earn at Least a Bronze Star in all the Armageddon Pack Training Missions

Rampage (15 G) - Destroy 35 Enemies in the Frostbite Training Mission

The Origins Pack DLC achievements for the Xbox 360 (and PlayStation 3?) are as follows:

A Taste of Origins (10 G) - Earn at Least a Bronze Star in all the Origins Pack Training Missions

Tormentor (15 G) - In Race Mode, Kill a Player 3 Times When They're on Their Last Lap