Killzone 2:

I’ve played my fair share of FPS [first person shooter] games, starting with DOOM and Duke Nukem in the mid 90’s. Duke Nukem was dope because it was the first game that really had me digging into the Map Editor and created my own levels. It was also the last game I did that with though, haha. Most FPS games share the same premise of load-in, shoot-to-clear and then move on. The only variables that have really any change are gun weight, control maneuverability and proportion. Other then these things they are all based on pointing and shooting your way to victory…even if it’s a D&D styled game like Heretic where you are using magic and what not…you are still pointing and clicking (or button tapping if console gaming).

[left: Duke Nukem] [right: Heretic]

What gives any FPS it’s ability to stand apart is that nitch game play, such as competent AI in single player modes or unique match types in multiplayer online gaming. Outside of these things developers have to pay attention to environment textures and physics. If your passing the same exact copy pasted building or you are seemingly ice skating around levels when you should be marching like a soldier, you are going to end up being removed from your immersion into the world.

Few games are able to provide the atmosphere as well as the features to keep a title from having a short expiration date. There is definitely a mold that most FPS games fit into and most don’t even fill that it out. Killzone 2 has successfully cracked…but not broken this mold.

Controls:

To go ahead and say it, I don’t believe there has ever been a better control scheme then the COD4 [Call of Duty] layout. I understand some like sprint and zoom set to other buttons, but for me melee and sprint set to tapping the analog left and right sticks inward is genius. It allows for instinct to kick in and respond to confrontation with the appropriate action by default. If someone pops out at you from around a corner you may clench the controller and thus melee perfectly or sprint away and out of danger due to the fact that your thumbs are already on the analog sticks. The triggering being set to R1 is perfect in the sense of simulating the actual handling of a gun. The shape of your hand when pulling the trigger is almost the same and at best the most similar to actual weapon handling. Deviating from this perfect layout is pointless. I don’t believe that having FPS control layouts different from game to game adds anything to the game. Of course every game needs alternate layouts to satisfy everyone. Luckily this is the case in Killzone 2, only in the reverse sense.

The default layout in KZ2 is a disaster in my opinion, however if you set the scheme to “alternative 2” and toggle crouch to tap on and zoom hold you will find yourself as close to COD4 & 5 as possible. Make sure to bump your X&Y sensitivity up one notch each as well. The movement in KZ2 differs greatly from COD in the sense that when you pull your point of view around you have to add the weight of your helmet, torso, arms and gun to it. COD’s right analog stick controls your neck and eyes only, without any inertia to be considered. Your gun and arms are weightless so when you whip around to line up a shot, you will be able to do so without over compensating.

As you pull your right analog stick around in KZ2, you will notice a continuation of your arms and gun. At first this is aggravating because you will probably be so used to the absolute aim of COD. You will also notice an extreme kick with guns and heavy head bob as you walk and run as well as with the melee and reload animations. The key to adjusting for this is to go easy on the L&R analog sticks. The less you throw yourself around the field, the less you will feel like you have a canteen full of whiskey. Go half force on your movements and make sure to duck & cover as you reload so you wont take fire due to your vision suffering while doing so. Once you grasp the controls and feel in this game, you will love it and more then likely find COD a bit too easy. Killzone 2 is more of a simulator then anything. Shooting, running and negotiating a battlefield is extremely hard to do in real life…they’ve made this apparent in this game.

[picture: ISA fighting Helghast]

Single Player:

The Killzone 2 campaign is something you can really grab onto. This is not a casual FPS by any means and if your looking for a simple shootemup to play through for a few hours your money is better spent on something like F.E.A.R. 2. You won’t be able to slow down the constant onslaught of Halghast, you won’t be able to Rambo through any section of the game and run straight to an objective. Played on Veteran mode it seems as though every Helghan is an actual user controlled enemy in multiplayer mode. This will detour a lot of gamers after the first few deaths on the first level.

The story in Killzone 2 is good enough to keep you going, but nothing ground breaking here. If you haven’t played the first edition of this series on PS2 or the follow up on psp you may be a little lost on why this conflict is taking place. Killzone 2 resumes action as if you just finished playing Killzone: Liberation. I recommend taking a wiki for all the story facts. A quick touch on the over all is…”In the game, the Helghast are a faction of human descendants who colonized the planet Helghan many generations ago. The planet’s harsh environment forced the Helghast to adapt and mutate so much that they can no longer be considered human. They are stronger, faster and more resilient than their human cousins, and possess a burning hatred for humanity.” -wikipedia It’s a pretty dope concept if you think about it. Humans colonizing out in space, adapting, then eventually waging war on humans back on Earth.

Throughout the game you will foot from shootouts to various vehicles and back to foot again disabling weapons systems and clearing paths for convoys and ISA. There is no co-op mode in single player which would have put this game into a classic category a long side the 360’s Gears of War. It’s unfortunate that there are only NPC [non playable characters] accompanying you along through difficult battles in which their AI just doesn’t meet the skill of the Helghan. You’ll find yourself dying quite a bit due to stupid team AI or trying to save them because they ran out into fire. You’ll need to rely on yourself and your guns to get your team through.

The weapons in Killzone 2 are varied enough to keep you excited about the change ups, but not interesting enough to really go on to long about. The basics are here, light assault and full assault, hand gun with infinite ammo, RPG and so on. A lot of the guns reminded me of Far Cry 2. The “green dot” scope on your main assault rifle is best used if the target is really far away. In COD4 & 5 you can iron site or dot scope close range and stay effective, here you will find yourself better off hip firing to maintain any accuracy. For me this is a bit of a disappointment as I like to site in as much as possible when attacking and choose my area of damage. Headshots are a must in KZ2, especially in MP [multiplayer] otherwise it takes way too much damage to put anyone down. The difficulty in a FPS should be in being able to hit your target, not trying to keep tons of fire on one soldier to put him down. This would keep with the realistic feel of the rest of the game, instead the tank like enemy soldiers just feel out of place after a while.

It’s a mistake these days to not have a co-op option in addition to not having a voice command option for your NPCs. If you could command your NPC team mates with your voice activated commands to attack certain targets or provide cover, dumping tons of fire on a single soldier would be a bit more manageable.

Killzone 2 is the best looking FPS game I have ever seen. It’s better looking then a lot of other genre’s games for that matter. It’s almost a shame that you can barely appreciate it as you are battling through level after level. I almost want to just let a friend play so I can check it all out. Smoke from explosions pulls along the ground and through the air with the direction of the wind. Fire a RPG and the smoke trail will react with the environment. Crumbling pillars mixed up with runny liquidy spilling blood after a cascade of fire makes for an epic show and keeps you wanting to do it again and again. The red eyes of the Helghast will glare off walls if they are close enough or glimmer in the distance as you size up a headshot through thick dusty wind.

The sound in the game (multiplayer and single player) will fully envelope you into the war experience. Communication and reactions to the battle from the Helghast can be heard all while your team mates are yelling at you to take cover as a frag beeps just before the deafening explosion. This all makes for a crashing symphony of destruction and mayhem that keeps you right on the edge of your seat. The weapons sound amazing, cracking off in the distance and thumping with the clanks of metal shells dropping all around. Chunky reloading sounds over top of the wurr of mechanical turrets and flying technician bots. It’s something you really have to hear.

The whole campaign will take you 8-9 hours to complete depending on your skill level. The quality of the levels will definitely have you replaying them to see if you can handle them a bit better each time.

Multiplayer:

Assuming you’ve read through the previous section, I’ll just cover the MP game modes, classes, clans and ranking.

Killzone 2 has your basic multiplayer game modes with only minor adjustments. There are five game types including Assassination, Search & Retrieve [capture the flag], Search & Destroy, Bodycount [team death match] and Capture & Hold [domination]. In search and retrieve you will be finding enemy propaganda and bringing it back to a secure location while the enemy is trying to do the same. All the rest of the game types are your basic multiplayer game modes.

The game gets interesting online with the class system. There are 7 classes all together with the ability to combine them according to how you like to play. These classes and abilities are all unlocked by completing challenges and receiving ribbons. You need a total of 8 of any ribbon to unlock addition features by obtaining a medal and so on.

Some notable classes are the Technician and the Engineer. The Engineer can set up an automated turret which targets the enemy, he can also repair ammo dispensers, mounted weapons, and automated turrets. Turrets really add a whole new level to the game play. Turrets are relatively weak when attacked but are very effective when built to protect an opening or hallway. The Technician has the ability to open up new spawn points throughout the map by tossing out a green smoke grenade. The spawn point is only open as long as the grenade is still kicking out smoke, once it runs out a Tech must then toss out another up to two at a time. A Technician can also throw out a beacon that calls for air support from a sentry bot which targets the enemy. These flying sentry bots will dodge enemy fire but are also relatively weak.

[picture left to right: ISA - turret, medic, technician, engineer, assault]

SOCOM: Confrontation’s promised clan system was a complete and utter failure. Luckily the same can’t be said here. You register your unique clan, assign officers, manage communication and challenge other clans for valor points. Board ranking can be broken down player individually into best all time, best of the day, week and month. The servers are stable and handle very well with virtually no problems with lag or disconnection.

Ranking up is rewarding enough with all the different classes and weapons that come along with each level. Points are given out sparingly so it will take you a bit to finish out your rank and then of course comes the class combining and obtaining all of your medals and ribbons.

Summary and rating:

All in all, Killzone 2 is one of the best FPS games out there. With only minor flaws like single player team AI, maybe a bit too much head bob and control layout issues (which can be fixed) it’s easy to see how the unbelievable graphics, epic single and multiplayer battles full of class strategy and steady hardcore simulated warfare will keep you spinning this game in your PS3. MY RATING: 9/10