Killzone 2

I normally have some smart arse comment to make about Playstation fanboys hoping to strike up some sort of hostility, mainly because seven thousand pounds for a dust collector used to be a major bone of contention for me. Gradually as more Playstation 3 specific titles are released I grow more fond of the not so dusty games console.

The latest addition to the too short Playstation 3 exclusive list is Killzone 2. An extremely immersive first person shooter that boasts some very new features that haven’t been seen on the Playstation 3 yet. A new A.I. system that your decisions do not only effect the movements of your enemies but also of your team mates. As I played through the game I noticed more and more quirks that start to push this game one of the most enjoyable first person shooters I have had the pleasure of playing.

As a member of the ISA called Sev you have been sent to the world of Helghan and your objective is simple – capture the Helghast leader, Emperor Visari, to bring the war to an end. You are not just any member of the ISA, you’re a part of an elite group called Legion. You and your squad have to clear out areas like the capital city of Pyrrhus and capture it. Whilst carrying out orders you will quickly discover that the Helghans are a highly formidable force to deal with who react quickly to their surrounding areas. Not only are the Helghans dangerous but the planet is also extremely hostile so you have to stay sharp at all times.

As you traverse the planet through the game each level has multiple layers. There has been an excellent job done of using almost every square inch of each map. You are being shot at from nearly every angle so you are forced to pick your cover points very carefully. Very rarely are you able to find a spot where you can just sit and pick off the Helghans so you have to constantly be on the move. Fortunately there are loads of available cover spots for you to choose from.

There are loads of weapons to help through the game and I have generally found the one lying around is a pretty major hint on what you need for the following section. You find a shotgun, you have loads of cover and corners to pass, you find a sniper and you have loads of turret gunners to clean up. Using the guns work well. Reloading varies from gun to gun which it should do and swapping to your secondary weapon is always the quicker option in that tight situation. Most hip fire is quite inaccurate as you would expect but move to scope view and the kick from the gun is reduced to nothing and you get a far cleaner shot.

The control system has been well thought out. It works mainly in one of two ways. You can either use the ‘Call of Duty’ system where you would use L1 to bring up the scopes, or the ‘Rainbow 6’ method where you would click the right stick for your scopes. The rest of the buttons are can be moved around for reloads, melee, jump, action and cover.

The rest of the controls are very customisable with regards to sensitivity, inversions and toggling scopes, crouches and cover. I do not normally spend any time on customising my controls and to be honest with all the well known configurations available in triple ‘A’ titles, why should I spend any time doing this? However, with some perseverance I got exactly what I needed to make the game as comfortable as possible for me.

Once I got all this correct it really helped me move and aim with more precision. The Helghans are constantly on the move from behind barrels, through doors to shoot you through the windows, up and down stairs and do what it takes to stop themselves from getting shot. The layout of the levels push you to use the environment to you full advantage or it will be used against you.

Not only do you have to keep your eyes open, you have to listen to what is going on. I do not have an excellent sound system but even on my television I was very aware of team mates and Helghans moving around me. When you are doing well you can hear your team congratulating you and if you do not pay attention they tell you to get into cover.

When getting hit and shooting the enemies the bullets hit with a very real sound, that deep thud that makes it sound really painful. This is just one of the sounds that make the game very immersive and it drives you to play for a little bit longer, or for a considerable amount of extra time.

Killzone 2 is a much needed exclusive title for the Playstation 3. There is a huge amount of content to get through and it is done in such a way that it does not appear drawn out. I did not try the game on easy or normal, I went straight for hardcore and I think it was the right move. I am no expert at first person shooters but the game was a reasonable challenge.

With so many high class first person shooters on the market across PCs and consoles it is very difficult to compete. We already have Call of Duty, Rainbow 6 and Farcry to name but a few but Killzone 2 has pulled out all the stops by pushing the hardware in the Playstation and it is amongst the must have titles.

I am glad I was pushed to brush down the black dust collecting machine (a very powerful dust collector though) to play Killzone 2. I am becoming more attached to the Playstation as they start to release more titles that push boundaries. The game in itself is excellent and I only hope it isn’t too long before more titles of the same calibre are released.


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2 responses to “Killzone 2”

  1. Alex avatar
    Alex

    Great! Finally all the hype has a game behind it, good news for the still growing PS3!

  2. Del Torro El Sorrow avatar

    “A new A.I. system that your decisions do not only effect the movements of your enemies but also of your team mates. ”

    A’la Call of Duty 2, from all those years ago?

    “The rest of the controls are very customisable with regards to sensitivity, inversions and toggling scopes, crouches and cover.”

    You have somehow ended upo with a different control system to the one I’ve used that is so clunky it often doesn’t move with a slight tilt of stick, at full sensetivity.

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