No pun intended but this game is a blast!!!
Graphics:The story may be weak but the graphics sure as hell aren't. First the most striking feature about Red Faction:Guerrilla is that the destruction looks fantastic, seeing a building crumble brick by brick has never looked so good. the effects like the electricity and explosions look good. The character models look fine for the most part and most of the characters have good voice work behind them. The only bad part is that after a while a lot of the environments look kind of the same and can be a little boring and plain,but this is not a huge problem. Over all the actual graphics are great and the destruction looks pretty much amazing.
Gameplay: Now I am split down the middle with the gameplay with all of the gameplay. First the basic controls all work, you run, you shoot, you drive etc. The shooting is third person and you have a cover system the driving is a lot better than I thought it would be and fells good, over all everything works. Next let me explain the side missions,this is a open world game and there are a lot of side missions that are limited in variety,but still very fun to play. For example a side mission could be rescuing hostages,causing destruction with a walker (which are a blast to use),Guerrilla raids and a few more that are pretty fun. What I like is that the game makes you play these side missions if you want to continue the game because you need to lower the EDF influence to liberate the area. Along the way when you destroy buildings you collect salvage which is currency in the game. Using this you can buy new weapons and upgrade some of your other weapons and armor. Now the story missions is where I am a little biased because I wish I could like them more but most of them feel very similar to the side missions, which isn't bad but I feel the story missions are a little lacking.But the over all gameplay is still a blast and if you like destroying stuff, then look no further.
Multiplayer:The mulitplayer is similar to the single player with a few tweaks. First they get rid of the cover system and the left bumper is now used for backpacks you find along the maps, which there are a variety of. There is your basic deathmatch,team deathmatch,capture the flag etc. But these all have the destruction elements from the single player and are there for much more fun to play. You also get a few different types of modes such as a mode where one team has to protect their structures and buildings,while another tries to destroy them. All in all the multiplayer is fun but can feel lacking since there is not real upgrade system. You also get a mode called "Wrecking crew" and can be fun to play if you have a bunch of friends over because you take turns destroying as much as you can in a map and trying to get the highest score.
The Verdict/Final score:
Story 7: Rather weak and predictable but not terrible by any means.
Graphics 9: The destruction looks amazing and everything else is no slouch.
Gameplay 8.5: I felt the story missions were a little lacking at times but the side missions and the over all gameplay are still a blast to play.
Multiplayer 8.5: Rather lacking, but still a great edition to a solid game.
Enjoyment 9: This game was a treat to play through and is very entertaining to play.
Final score: 8.4 (8.5)