The X-Files: Resist or Serve is a forgotten fright, and the type of tie-in gem we sadly don't see anymore
Something to Mulder over.
It's 2004, you've created a Facebook account, and you've heard whispers of something called the Nintendo DS dancing on the wind. You're a fan of scary video games and, like everyone, Gillian Anderson. If only there was a video game for you…
It turns out, there was! X-Files: Resist or Serve was created by Black Ops Entertainment for the PlayStation 2, and it was a pretty decent survival horror game! For some reason I had a copy of this growing up, perhaps my dad bought it for himself while I was shopping around for my own digital pleasures. It came from the same Californian folks who made Treasures of the Deep, as well as a few James Bond games. They are not enshrined in the horror hall of fame, but they absolutely gave it their best shot in Resist or Serve.
Because unlike what your initial assumptions may be about this game, X-Files: Resist or Serve is actually a pretty charming game. There are two campaigns for Mulder and Scully, each telling a different perspective on the events of the game, and emphasising the strengths of the two protagonists. It's got fixed camera angles, it's got big open levels to explore and scavenge. It's even got voice performances by Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny, and they're pretty darn good!
Years ago, I remember it being really hard, and that comes down to the sheer tankiness of bosses and regular enemies alike. You really did have to ration out your resources in Resist or Serve, and take the time to kick enemies while they were down. Kick them a lot, actually. Bullets are scarce and you can semi-lock downed goons on the floor by pelting them over and over again, so you're best served unloading a few shots then busting the boots out.
Resist or Serve got middling reviews at the time, with former IGN founder Doug Perry giving it a 67 before picking up the harmonica and doing PR. Perry and his peers at the time saw Resist or Serve for what it was, a decent-enough adventure for fans of paranormal TV dramas. What they probably didn't know at the time was games like The X Files: Resist or Serve wouldn't be around forever.
For all its flaws X-Files: Resist or Serve was a game created to both please fans and fit inside an increasingly beloved survival horror genre, before the giants of said genre decided to focus more on the action following the industry-shaking success of Resident Evil 4. Tie-in games like Resist or Serve would eventually morph into cheaper, less impactful endeavors. Goodbye The Thing, The Warriors, and Matrix: Path of Neo. Hello, Man vs Wild on the Xbox 360. Hello suffering.
Eventually, tie-in games would largely fall by the wayside altogether, which at the time didn't feel too awful a development. No one cried tears when games like Thor: God of Thunder (a Sega-published 2011 hack-n-slash for the Xbox 360, PS3 and 3DS in case you were wondering) walked into the sunset. But this shift meant that tailored, good experiences like Resist or Serve went with them. These days, if you like a show like Alien Earth, your best bet is what? A short-lived mobile game? That's if you're lucky. Maybe you might get a Warzone skin.
But is David Duchovny going to sit in a voice booth for days and record more than five lines of dialogue today? Will this limited-time live service crossover slop earn a space between certain films or episodes? No way pal. Multimedia crossovers these days are about the aesthetics of fandom, they don't have that same fire in their bellies. It's more than ever to let people know how much you like a certain brand, to add its flair to your digital presence. Resist or Serve may be imperfect, but I wouldn't call it a cash grab. A real effort was made here!
As a fan of something, anything really, surely that's what you'd really want? Not just a cosmetic to show off what you love, but rather a game made for those with that love. X Files fans would have played Resist or Serve and felt, damn, this is a game for me! Maybe they liked it, maybe they didn't, but there was something of substance to like.
X-Files: Resist or Serve is not some hidden gem that everyone should bust out the emulator for, but it is decent fun and itself a window into an age that's long gone. A spooky surprise that tried, not only to be fan service, but to find a home inside the wider genre it was made for. A frightening concept today, I'm afraid to say.