(mashedmarket)

A very curious thing’s been happening to me lately, and it’s something I can’t quite explain. Basically, I’ve been playing like a gamer with a normal attach rate. Resistance 2 has its hooks sunk deep into the pleasure centers of my brain and shows no signs of relenting.

I received the game for Christmas, along with a number of other titles that I’d been pretty excited to play. After two short days, I had finished with the single-player campaign. Frankly, it wasn’t all that satisfying. I’d expected a whole lot more. And then I checked my “scorecard” after the credits quit rolling.

Much to my surprise, there was an “XP” statistic. Huh, I thought. Experience Points?

This seemed very strange for a first-person shooting game. I’d known that the cooperative component made use of leveling, but hadn’t realized playing story mode contributed. And, to tell the truth, so far as I’m aware it doesn’t. You receive separate XP totals for each of three game types: single-player, co-op, and competitive. Seems like these collectively tally into an overall rating that’s basically not tied to anything. And yet…I’m hooked. I’ve been playing for over three weeks now and have no intention of starting another title any time soon.

Multiplayer games aren’t usually my strong suit, but working together with a good group in the phenomenal cooperative campaign has been great. So much so that I’ve been dabbling in deathmatch. Er, really I kind of play lots of it. What’s funny is that I’m still no good. And not exactly getting better, either. But I keep coming back because, no matter what happens, I’m gaining experience. Apparently it’s quantifiable!

Kidding aside, what Insomniac’s done here is brilliant. They’ve provided a powerful incentive to keep folks playing. Unlike most strong multiplayer games, Resistance 2’s online space isn’t dominated by early adopters and fanatics; rather, there’s a healthy mix of “n00bs” getting gibbed right alongside seasoned veterans. Even if these less skilled players haven’t ever come out on top of the heap, they’re most certainly being rewarded for improving, albeit incrementally. Hell — I know it’s been more than enough to keep me going…and with all these other new games sitting around, that’s saying something loud and clear.