The Resistance 3 multiplayer beta has been live for a few weeks now. Americans were able to log on a couple of weeks ago, with New Zealand gamers joining the fray recently. Owners of SOCOM 4 were also granted early access to the public beta.

The R3 multiplayer beta offers gamers a chance to try out various weapon loadouts and two maps (at the time of writing, only two maps were accessible, this has now increased). The two maps on offer when I played were Trainyard and Seaside. Trainyard takes place in well, a train yard, and is a pretty interesting map to play from a multiplayer perspective.

Maps with enclosed spaces are great for intense encounters and offer many hiding positions from which to attack the opposing team. Like most multiplayer maps that include buildings, “hot spots” are scattered in various areas, with a lot of the shooting and killing going on in the middle of the yard. This is a good spot to avoid unless you want to run the risk of dying fairly early on.

The problem with coming late to a beta is the advantages other ranked players will have over you in terms of upgrades and perks. Resistance 3 offers various weapon perks as well as passive and active abilities that you can unlock as you level up. Some of these added abilities are accessible via killstreaks so it pays to work on hitting your target and often.

You may notice some gamers running around with shields, or ‘dopplegangers;’ mirrored images of themselves. These are just a couple of the unlocks you can acquire. And then of course there are the various weapons you’ll find/unlock, most of which are pretty cool such as the ‘Augur’ which allows you to use an x-ray scope to see through obstacles to hit your target!

What I particularly liked about the Resistance 3 multiplayer beta is that it’s very intense and you need to be prepared to move very quickly across the map. Staying on the go is definitely key to gaining kills and leveling up. While there is the opportunity for those that like sniping their targets to do so, I wouldn’t recommend it, especially in the earlier stages of your game.

Playing with ranked players gives you the added advantage of utilising their knowledge of the game (which I did on occasion). If you don’t know what you’re doing, just ask! While you may not always be greeted with friendly responses, it doesn’t hurt to try. The sooner you’re familiar with the gameplay, the better the experience will be (and winning is always good!)

Communication is also key in multiplayer games and having a mic can be a huge advantage. Tactically, there are many opportunities for good players to find you simply because they’re communicating with each other. I recommend grabbing a PS3 compatible headset if you intend on picking up Resistance 3 when it releases.

Overall, I was impressed with what the Resistance 3 multiplayer beta has to offer. The only hitch I experienced was lag which Insomniac Games are aware of and are working on. That aside, Resistance 3 looks like it’s shaping up well on every level. If you’re keen to read up on the campaign, check out our Resistance 3 campaign hands-on here. I also discuss the multiplayer beta on the latest Well Played podcast which you can check out here.