[review] Killzone 2 – PS3

A bullet whizzes by your helmet and into the wall next to you. In the next two seconds, your movements will either cause your frantic death or the succession over your enemies. The score is tied with one kill to go – who will it be?

Welcome to my second review, this time of Killzone 2 for the PS3. I won’t be the first one to say that this game is fantastic, but it doesn’t go without its flaws. Killzone 2 is an action packed, fun filled frantic frenzy with a competitive spin and top notch polish, and is, frankly, one of the best shooters of 2009, or, dare I say, the last couple of years.

Graphics

At the time of its release, no other video game could stand up to the beautiful visuals that Killzone 2 had so easily provided. It reigned as king of console visuals for a very long time, and to many it still remains that way. It is undeniable truth that Killzone 2 is a beautiful game. The rays of light so seamlessly bounce off of objects, the gritty setting is evident on all the grimy walls and rusty rails. Killzone 2 perfectly portrays the objective that Guerrilla was attempting to convey – the atmospheric sense of Helghan, and the scene of war and all its attributes.

Sun shafts, glowing eyes, and a dirty room

There’s really not much to say here. If graphics were ever an issue in games for you, be they too bad or an unrealistic art style, neither of these issues reside in this game. Detail a plenty, Killzone 2 is sure to satisfy your graphical hunger. The only other game that can combat Killzone 2’s graphics is Uncharted 2, which came out in late 2009 (as compared to early 2009). Even if you are part of the small percentile of gamers (according to Kotaku) that does not have an HDTV, the game may not shine in its full beauty, but it will still look great. And for those wondering, this game runs up to 720p – that’s 1280 x 720 pixels, people.

The Verdict: 10/10

Gameplay ( + Multiplayer )

I’ve seen many reviews that not only praise Killzone 2’s gameplay, but demolish it in the same sentence. Killzone 2 has some of the most polished gameplay I’ve seen in this life. Guerrilla comes out with a new approach to a rapidly accelerating genre, and boosts the level of activity to an unquantifiable number. Games are remembered for their gameplay and not their graphics – hence is why Killzone 2 will last through the years.

The single player campaign for Killzone 2 is great in terms of gameplay. Numerous weapons to try your hand at, even a vehicle for your expertise only. All this and more is included in the campaign. However, one facet that the campaign’s gameplay has over the multiplayer’s gameplay, is a first person cover system. To my knowledge, Killzone 2 is the first of hopefully many games to feature this, and do it RIGHT. After countless failed attempts developers kept on persisting, but now its time to learn a lesson from Killzone 2. Without the first person cover system, the campaign would be shoddy and less enjoyable. It makes the game feel less like a game and more like an immersive experience, where you are directly involved, and tactics are more of an option. Take note, though, this feature is not available in multiplayer. Which is exactly something that should have been induced. You see, tactics ring even truer in the multiplayer aspect of this AAA title. ‘Why is that?’, you may ask.

Either prevent your team from dying or revive them when they do

Killzone 2’s multiplayer was nothing short of success. From the moment I first clicked ‘Warzone’ to get to the multiplayer, the well crafted menus suited my perfectly. Killzone 2 contains a host of brand new features you just don’t ever see incorporated with a console FPS. This brings the magnitude of Killzone 2’s success to a highly influential level in the FPS genre. And, if we are so lucky as to see that developers gain inspiration from Killzone 2, we can expect many amazing titles like it. I praise Killzone 2 because it is evident Guerrilla poured their hearts and talent into crafting this fine specimen of a game.

This slice of Wikipedia will put it best for me and save me the trouble:

Warzone, the title of the online multiplayer component of Killzone 2 has been developed by Guerrilla Games in conjunction with the game’s single-player campaign.[]The online multiplayer gameplay is class-based, meaning the player can choose a class of character which is specialized for a specific role to better suit the player’s needs in battle. There are 7 classes in total, in which the player can mix and match two according to their playing style, and can switch abilities upon death. There are 15 weapons available to the player, most of which cannot be used until the player reaches a certain rank. Two of these weapons are secondary firearms, and a further two weapons (Boltgun and Flamethrower) are exclusive to the downloadable maps “Suljeva Cliffside” and “Arctower Landing”. Players play as either the ISA or Helghast, with a few gameplay difference, the character model and respawn points, and the “lean and peek” cover system removed. Each class levels up with experience gained from killing or completing mission objectives, with enough experience they unlock new weapons, skills etc. as well as a new class that is unlocked. Each class has two badges, the Primary badge selects the class and their specified skill, the secondary badge has an extra skill for the specified class but can be swapped to create your own custom class. Warzone plays out through dynamic matches where multiple game types are played in a single round. The game ships with five different game types including Assassination, Search & Retrieve, Search & Destroy, Bodycount and Capture & Hold. Online matches can connect 2 to 32 players, and they can group into six squads of up to four players. If an online match does not have a full 32 players, computer-generated “bots” can be added in to create bigger teams (but only in an unranked match). Killzone 2 also offers a clan system, which allows clans of up to 64 players to compete for “Valor Points”, an in-game currency that clans can use to bet on tournaments. Players can also play offline against AIs with Skirmish mode and unranked online multiplayer but there’s no offline multiplayer mode for splitscreen human players. Eight multiplayer maps are included on disc at release, Guerrilla has stated that further maps will be made available as future downloadable content. A further 6 maps have been added to multiplayer since release via downloadable content purchasable from the PlayStation Store.

The classes are especially well done. I personally am not at the max level in the game, but I have done plenty of time with all the weapons and classes, etc. When I mentioned earlier how the multiplayer demands the cover system because of its stronger approach on tactics, I wasn’t kidding. At the same time, there is reason to vouch for no cover (although nobody is really at a disadvantage). Were the cover system in place for the multiplayer, snipers would go practically undetected, engineers could hide and replace sentry turrets at their nearest convenience, and anybody could lob grenades at the enemy and be protected in the next moment. And while all this is true, it does not excuse the amount of trouble that is done when a team is being spawn killed. Not only is it horrendously difficult to combat spawn killing, but it is especially easy to do so with an intelligent team. For this reason some of Killzone 2’s issues hold no restrictions. But it is particularly useful that one of the seven classes can put a green smoke marker – which indicates a location which his allies may spawn on.

Killzone 2, outside of its core ingame play, is executed flawlessly. During spawning you choose a location to spawn (there normally aren’t more than one), and so long as it is a pre designated spawning location, it is protected by sentry turrets. Depending on the server (more on this later) you join, there will be all five gametypes toggled, or a selection of them. When creating a server, if you were to toggle on all the gametypes (and of course, maps but that really isn’t important), you would play a rotation of all the gametypes on the same map, without the map ever resetting. It seamlessly integrates the gametypes together. You also choose your weapons and badges (basically your classes) while spawning. All at the same time, you can join squads! Squads are premade in the menu, but the first person to join is a squad leader. You can send requests to squad leaders to join their squads, or the other way around. All these features function well together, and UI for it is done in harmony. During my playtime of Killzone 2, I’ve had many memorable moments, all due to the great engineering of the game and the fantastic gameplay. But if there’s one thing that irks me, and many others, its the heavy (or sticky) aiming. Most say its realistic, I say bahh, and then I finally got used to it and stopped complaining.

The Verdict: 9/10

Story

Personally my perceived weakest point of the game, it suffices, but it does not exceed my expectations. It is a story of revenge – the Helghast are pissed and want their planet back. The ISA said hell no and began to invade Helghan. Well, at this point, you have to show off your mad skills and take down the Helghast and their grandpa of a leader (who, if you’ve played and beaten the game, you’ll know is a royal idiot). The story fails to explain some key points during the campaign, which I won’t mention for spoiler sake. The only reason this category won’t be marked down more than a few points is because the story is not an essential element of this game. While it is thrilling to go through the hell of Hell-ghan (get it? haha…. yeah) and come out successful (minus plot twists), it seems that some of the moments are best left untold, or, in other words, left out of this game. Because they cause a dire action on what could’ve been a more rational and explainable story, making you ask, “How did that happen?” or “Why did that happen?”

All in all, the story really managed to surprise me once, with a well executed plot twist. The other times, it just felt like, “what the hell am I doing here?”, which was quickly replaced by my being in awe of the amazing gameplay and graphics. Killzone 2 is barely saved in this regard, but for me to give it something of a bad rating, it would need to be essential… and its not. Mostly because this is an FPS game, but the other half of me wants to negate that notion because of the various holes in the plot. Either way, the story does what justice does, albeit not as good as the special forces do justice.

The Verdict: 7.5/10

Presentation/Content/Other

Guerrilla has done a good job in the other areas of the game. Killzone 2 includes some extras, credits, and the usual. But what I love is how Guerrilla included a server browser with this game. Being a console game, you normally wouldn’t be suspect of not having a server browsing system, but this just adds to the greatness of the game. Servers are created by you, the user, with all the options at your side, that is maps, gametypes, etc. Sadly the population drops quite a bit if you don’t have the downloadable extra maps, but there is always one or two healthy, large servers available even if you haven’t shelled out the PSN cash for them.

Along with servers is the inclusion of clans. The clan integration with the Killzone website is done well, and players can bet points on tournaments to see which clan will win. Not having participated in it myself, I can’t give proper judgment, but it sounds like a lottery (well, except for the fact that you can win).

This image has nothing to do with this category

Killzone 2 also bears a more contemporary control scheme – which seems to act as an adaptation of multiple title’s signature controls. So it takes a bit of getting used to, but they’re good. Like all other PS3 games, you can’t completely customize your controls, but there are four presets to choose from. Note that changing sensitivity or toggling critical aim doesn’t eliminate the atrocity of the built in heavy aiming… so do what you can to get used to it. Killzone 2 takes good advantage of Sixaxis, like being able to spin a loading screen to make the long wait seem even longer. It also takes what shouldn’t be pro skill to turn a wheel with the sixaxis… but you know, there has to be something to remember this game by. However, the best instance of the sixaxis being used is the aim of the sniper rifle when the scope is in use. In other words, if you have a high blood sugar level, sniping probably isn’t your thing in this game.

The Verdict: 10/10

In the end, Killzone 2 is a well crafted game that puts its foot in the door of new concepts and, instead of using the door for its intended purpose and swinging it, Guerrilla throws a nuke at that door and barely has enough time to get into suitable cover. Hence why we didn’t see Killzone 2 for all those years.

Overall: 9.1

This game deserves your attention if you’re an FPS fan. Just please, do me a favor and don’t expect a marvelous story.

Killzone 2 – buy it today!