Killzone 2 (PS3) Review

Well this has been a long time coming for sure!  The hype and frenzy over the first game lead to an OK shooter with good graphics and some new concepts but it was burned at the stake for not living up to the “Halo Killer”  Rep it had been given by the community and the press.  After the infamous E3 trailer in 2004 everyone thought Uh-Oh here we go again, the bullshit alarm starts up and we can’t help but think that this will be another game which won’t live up to it’s trailer and expectations.

Well the day is finally here and it is with much sweating of the palms that I slide the Blu-Ray into the PS3.  The thing spins up I start the disc and I am immediately stunned – no install.

Oh the story…  Always a vital part of a shooter that… actually since COD4 hit the money it’s been more and more important to hit a cohesive narrative stride and Killzone 2 manages to pull this off – sorta.  You play as Sargent Tomas “Sev” Sevchenko, a battle hardened vet serving in Alpha Squad who are on a desperate mission to take down the Helghast – this time on their own turf.  Yeah, following the trend of Gear of War 2 (which is the title most comparable to this – forget the Halo shit) you’re taking the fight to them, this time by gatecrashing their home planet of Helgan with sole purpose of causing as much hurt as possible whilst retrieving their leader Emperor Scioar Visari.  It picks up after the events of both Killzone (original) and Killzone: Liberation and has a few returning faces. You meet Templar, one of the stars of KZ1 who is now in charge of the attacking force and down in the blood and guts with you is fellow returner Rico (Kinda part Cole-Train Part Baird).

Now let’s deal with this first off – No Other Game Looks This Good - let it sink in.  Damn son, I said no game on a console (with the possible exception of Metal Gear Solid 4 but I would need to run them side by side) stop second guessing me. The in game opening footage will do exactly what the producers, Guerrilla, wanted it to do – a). Make your jaw drop, shatter and then dribble onto the carpet. b). Set the scene for the look and feel of the game. c). Show you that this war is messy, muddled and brutal.  Now no game is all about it’s graphics but damn!  If it was Killzone would be a 10.5!  Whilst the opening cinematic played my wife asked me “Is that a movie you ordered?  I thought it was a game?”.  No bullshit either — it looks stunning!

In game things look just as good with so many special effects being thrown around the place it’s just obscene.  The lighting is just perfectly done, even better than in Dead Space which had superb lighting effects.  The shadows have real “substance and weight” to them, they bend perfectly on surfaces and are so smooth.  Character animation is also fantastic with you and your squad feeling chunky and weighted by the equipment you carry.  The Helghast all look menacingly good and die so, so well.

Normally in a shooter you pop some rounds into your target and then drop, or if your lucky they might react in some way to a head, arm, leg shot etc and maybe grasp it or something.  Killzone 2 takes that and almost-perfects it!  You charge round a corner in KZ2 and run into a Helghast trooper — lay some rounds in to the scum and he quivers and shakes and rolls and moves to avoid the shots best he can whilst returning fire.  What you don’t notice immediately is that if you overwhelm them the guy just panics and is desperate to squeeze off any shots he can in your direction.   If you take him down you may not realize immediately also as the torrent of bullets you’re laying down is keeping the enemy in motion.  It’s hard to explain but I would imagine if you really DID shoot someone with that kinda weapon then this is what would happen – it is totally savage and really makes you “feel” the kills.  The in game cut-scenes look gorgeous too.  The game throws an incredible amount of special effects around.  Smoke billows and drifts, flames flicker and move, water ripples and shimmers.  Actually the water “looks” gorgeous BUT it does not react to your character when your in it – weird but not really an issue as your rarely in the water to be honest.  Sparks fly all over the place, guns let our huge muzzle flashes, shell casings eject from guns (and bounce of objects and walls !) – it is a graphics whores wet dream!

OK lets say it now, Killzone 1 looked good for a PS2 shooter, but left many feeling jaded on playing.  So how does Killzone 2 do on this front?  Damn fine actually.  Now I enjoy a good shooter or two.  I have played all the major franchises since Wolfenstein 3D so I know what I am doing – in case you wonder if I have lost it later.  Gameplay wise Killzone 2 plays very much like and other post COD4 shooter – that’s NOT a bad thing.  Gameplay wise this is not a COD4 beater – just so your expectations are set at the right level – but in my opinion it come the closest of anything out there today.  You take control of Sev through the fighting and mostly the controls are your standard first person shooter fare with only a few odd movements on the buttons.  For example to zoom you press R3.  Not a big deal but I am so used to using say L2 or L1 for zoom that I did spend parts of the first house crouching instead of zooming in. The other main change is that you use some Six-Axis – no wait don’t cry!  You use it in two smart ways.  The first is on the load screens, you can tilt the controller about and watch the weird tableau move in front of you a bit like the hologram pics you get. The second in game is when you turn a valve or set a charge.  For example you hold down L1 and R1 to grip the valve then turn the controller the direction it needs to go, let go then grip again.  Simple but a good usage indeed.

As mentioned previously, the game takes place on the Helghast home planet of Helgan.  It’s a bleak barren shit-hole that has been ravaged by war and the turbulent stormy weather that lashes the planet.  One thing you can definitely criticize KZ2 for is that it plunders the FPS cliche book for inspiration. The single player campaign sees you working with your Alpha Team squad mates to try and push through to capture Visari.  The locations are varied as much as possible but you will find yourself in industrial areas mostly. They all look stunning and have never been so well realized, but they are the same sort of industrial complexes etc you used too.  They do mix it up a little and notable changes are desert like sand swept areas which offer a good break from the grays and blues of the industrial zones.  As mentioned before the Helghast like to move when shot at rather than take it like most FPS adversaries.  Now once you’re into the games – maybe chapter 3 or 4, they turn up the heat on the AI.  I played the game straight through, picking Normal from the start and found it to be suitably challenging for sure!  The Helghast troops bob and weave as the head for cover, they blind fire over obstacles as well as when they are running for cover.  They will move cover to find a stronger vantage point – hell they will even tumble roll !  They certainly will not just lay down and take it!  Many a time you will be concentrating on a few foes in front and suddenly realize 2 or 3 of them have broken off and they are now flanking you.  The usual bloodletting in an FPS is tinged with a real feel of claustrophobic panic.  You really feel like you are surviving through the levels more than just making your way through (much like Resistance 2 and Left 4 Dead – oh and COD 4).  These gun battles are intense – if you remember the set pieces that games like Medal of Honor used (eg Omaha Beach) then you will understand the intensity but this time it’s not just a set piece IT’S THE WHOLE FRIKKIN GAME!  Fights range in scale from large battlefield fights where you have to slowly push forward inch by inch taking down enemies as your squad makes it’s way through.  Other times you will be in a small room, your squad on one side of the wall, the Helghast troopers on the other and there is only the remnants of a window between you and all hell is breaking loose as both squads partake in this intense gun-brawl.

As is the norm now there is no life bar or first aid packs you just recharge, ala COD, GoW, Halo etc.  Your damage is represented by the screen slowly getting covered more and more in your blood as the shots rain down.  Very nasty but also effective.  The one BIG change in the gameplay is the use of a cover dynamic – yes I know this has been in use since GoW BUT this actually adds something to the standard.  It uses a unique “peek” system that, when behind cover (L2) you can do the usual blind fire, you can peek over or around too.  When peeking around you can then lean a little further and actually aim your shot with a scope as you would in normal combat.  This really helps you pick off the relentless Helghast hordes and is a nice addition to the now standard cover system.

Sound wise this game displays audible levels of excellence on par with it’s visceral ones.  The rousing tongue in cheeky “American-ness” of the opening sequences, the hard hitting backing tracks accompanying you during the fights all have a clarity of purpose.  Not only do they suit the situation well but feel right, lending huge amounts to the atmosphere and pulse pounding tension.  The voice acting, was dragged in to the spotlight prior to release in rumors surrounding it’s quality.  Now these guys won’t win at the VG BAFTA’s next year but I have hear A LOT worse in my time.  They are simply adequate to good rather than spectacular performances.  The dialogue is corny US blockbuster fare but what more would you want in this game?  Also, why are the Helghast all British?  It’s not like we ever tried invading other peoples countries or anything, sound effects are also top notch and well used.  The explosions are deep and booming in the 5.1 mix and you really feel like you are in the middle of  hell when you are surrounded by enemies all blazing guns and bullets flying.  Your NCP team mates have a stock bag of phrases and sayings but they are used well and the chatter and banter between the team mates is there to try and build your sense of “belonging”.  It is the same kind of group dynamics as Gears but doesn’t quiet work as well without Marcus to pull it all together.  That said it works well enough as long as you can look past the need of the dev’s to use swear words almost constantly.

Now the thing you really want to know – the Multiplayer.  Well, the multiplayer is LARGE – I mean it is going to take sometime to get in to the real meat of it, so with that in mind I have taken the easy route.  I am writing this review prior to the main release date so the servers are busy but not rammed full like they will be.  I want to make sure I don;t say “Hey no lag guys!” only to find that is bullshit when the masses come down on the system.  So I will write a separate feature on the multiplayer over the next week or so because it deserves it’s own bit, but for now we will do a quick skim over.  It’s good… Oh you want more huh.. It’s not as good as COD 4… Ah that got your pleasure center dead on.  It might not be as good BUT on initial plays (I have put in about 3 or 4 hours online) it may well be As good as COD4 multiplayer <- There’s your quote there Mr Sony rep LOL.  The multiplayer breaks down in a slightly different yet familiar way.  KZ2 absorbs all the goodness from COD’s marrow but adds a few nuggets of something juicy itself.  In is the perk like “badges” system allowing you to earb grades and level up your status.  Now, sprinkle that juicy COD marrow with a little Team Fortress 2 pepper as KZ2 introduces classes in to the mix.  You can choose from 7 classes, being those of Infantry, Medic, Engineer, Tactician, Assault etc.  Each class has 2 badges to earn which adds to the character in that class.  Maps can hold from 2 to 32 players and from the matches I have played looks great and run silky smooth.

KZ2 comes with five different online game types Assassination, Search & Retrieve, Search & Destroy, Bodycount and Capture & Hold.  The real unusual element is that after each “round” you have a free for all fight between Helghast and ISA troops untli the next event happens then it’s on to a new game type.  So you might well be playing Search and Retrieve, you win then the next round sees the enemy hunting you as the game switches dynamically (no loading) to Search and Destroy.  It’s a simple idea that noone has done and it works very well.  It keeps the pace up, keeps you guessing and no boring waits for things to load (apart from scenario changes on the 7 levels)… trouble is when do you take pee now!?  Like I say I am not getting into it fully now but so far it looks great fun and could be as much as a time burner as COD 4 online!

So to the conclusions my friends.  Longevity maybe a concern but with such a meaty online element it can be forgiven (Hello COD 4 I’m looking at you boy!).  That is not to say the single player campaign is all thatvslight as it weghed in at around 8 hours on my first play through but I will say that might be due to the fact that at later stages the difficulty goes way high – fun but high – so if you drop the difficulty you might clear it in 6.  Only real complaints are the annoying little pause that happens when assets are loaded in sometimes or when the game saves – I would of gladly of taken an 8 minute install to avoid those.  Despite claims otherwise the frame rate DOES dip on odd occasions but it’s like maybe by a frame or two and I was really looking   The intense firefights and survive by the seat of your pants kinda action is very well done, the game looks far too good.  So much so that other games will now be ruined for me like last year when I had finished Metal Gear Sold 4.  There has been heaps of criticism for Killzone 2 “not doing anything different”.   Well all I can say say is “so what?”.  It does what it does soooo well why would you want it to do anything different.  It is a perfectly executed modern shooter that can hold it’s head up with COD4 and even via for it’s top spot.

In my opinion I found this game better than playing Gear of War 2, the pacing was better, the looks, the action and the overall cohesiveness of the package all combine together to push Killzone 2 ahead of almost all the completion with the exception of COD4.  The multiplayer is going to be huge, it will be what Sony wanted Resistance to be online.  I certainly think that if you are remotely interested in FPS’s then pick it up.  If you are a shooter fan then Damn Son!  Why have you not got it yet?  If you want to know if this is a system seller I would have to say “Erm….” and you can quote me on that! If you like shooters and want the best looking game on any console (possibly platform I would have to get Crysis running next to it) this HAS to be your choice.  Sure it has problems, the fact that at times you look shorter than everyone else is a bit weird because of they having the camera about where your eyes would be, although it ends up seeming like your character has a horrible hunchback.  The cliches and the difficulty issues all weigh down on the score as does the odd bit of weird NPC scripting but these are small items in an otherwise rosey garden.

Bottom Line: Get it!  It will melt your eyes, make your ears bleed and turn your palms sweaty and blistered but it is so worth the ride.  It’s not perfect, it’s nothing too new but man is it good fun to play.

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