Floors, walls, entire buildings...you name it, and in the original Red Faction, it was supposed to be destructible. Unfortunately, the possibilities weren’t as endless as they appeared. With Guerrilla, however, Volition is looking to craft a third-person sequel that uses next-gen technology to fulfill the Geo-Modding potential of its first-person forebear.

Our time spent in the open-ended, sandbox world of Guerrilla began in a wind-swept desert base. Stone buildings dotted rolling sand dunes in all directions. Eager for some action, we checked our map, revealing flashing blue arrows to the south. That, explained a Volition representative, was a raid, one of many active events that can be played or skipped entirely — things happen whether you’re there or not.

Hefting a massive sledgehammer, we stepped forward but found our progress blocked by a long stone barricade. Sure, we could have walked around it — or even jumped over it — but there was a quicker way. Tapping RT brought the hammer sweeping across, shattering the barrier.

Next, we ran toward a hill overlooking the raid site, at which point a tank came lumbering in from the side. Selecting an assault rifle, we popped off a few rounds into the driver’s head and claimed the vehicle for ourselves.

Holding A vaulted the tank over the hill as we sprayed foes (and unlucky friends) with the mounted turret’s bullets. Unfortunately, our steep, rapid descent prevented our vehicle from halting before crashing headlong through the side of a building. The structure groaned as we stumbled from the tank; stones and dust fell like a curtain from the ceiling.

As enemy soldiers swarmed in, we decided to test Volition’s claims of realistic weight-bearing architecture. We equipped our sticky mines and threw one at each wall. Scrambling through the entrance we’d just created, we turned around, whipped out the rocket launcher, and let fly. The resulting chain explosion crumpled the building like a house of cards.

Not yet finished, we spotted a towering mech-like vehicle idling beside a nearby building. The Mining Walker roared to life after we climbed in, and pressing RT caused its mechanical arms to scoop upward, tearing through buildings like they were paper.

After a few more minutes of smashing through buildings, we parked the Walker and went home, light-headed and giddy. Fun weapons? Check. Truly destructible environments? Check. Far too long until release? Sigh…check there, too.