Gaming Trend

Gaming Trend Review

Killzone 2

1. Official Site
2. Platform: ps3
3. Publisher: Sony America
4. Developer: Guerilla
5. Release Date: 02/28/09
6. Genre: Action/Adventure

by Ron Burke

At E3 2005 we were introduced to Killzone 2.  Sony showed pre-rendered footage but offered no explanation beyond the promise that it would look as good as the CGI being thrown on the screen.  The press ripped Sony apart for showing pre-rendered footage and the game faded into relative obscurity.  Last year, Sony used Killzone 2 as the anchor for their E3 show, closing their demonstration with a 15 minute live walkthrough of a single level from the game.  Amazingly, what we saw at that E3 demonstration was extremely close to the CGI work we saw in 2005.  I knew that the only way I’d get to see if they really managed to achieve their own lofty goals was to get my hands on the game.

While there is still a month before the game is released to the public, I have a near final version of the game to review.  Several upcoming titles look pretty fantastic, but I can preface my review of Killzone 2 with one phrase – you aren’t ready.

From the moment I put the disc into the console I knew that I was in for a treat.  Strapping into the equivalent of a flying brick, your team hot drops towards the battlefield as fire and disintegrating dropships are hurtling past your head.  Smoke and debris engulfs you as you approach the drop zone, but the incredible visual orgy doesn’t begin until your pod makes a less-than-gentle impact on terra firma.  Helghast immediately swarm your location, explosions engulf the area transforming it into a conflict zone.  As the firefights become protracted, the cover begins to erode as do the surrounding support columns.  Dust and debris mix with smoke in some of the best particle effects we’ve seen to date, creating an intense and often obfuscated battlefield that drowns you in atmosphere.  It is simply incredible.

As solid as the graphical presentation is, the animations are simply out of this world.  Towering Helghast banners flow in the wind as lumbering soldiers pour towards your position.  Clearly the animations were motion captured as the movement is as fluid as we’ve seen in any title to date.  Playing through the game twice I don’t think I ever saw a Helghast soldier die using the same animation.  Similarly, each weapon was lovingly crafted and nowhere is it more apparent than the firing and reloading animations.  The recoil on the rifle and the slight tilt required to lock and load the next clip or projectile looks as realistic as you can imagine.  Clearly Guerrilla spent a great deal of time hammering out the graphical presentation of this title, and it has paid off.  It’ll be hard if not impossible to beat Killzone 2 graphically this year.

The Xbox 360 has 5.1 surround sound.  The Playstation 3 has 7.1 surround sound.  If you have the gear to exploit it and the game utilizes it properly, there is simply no beating having those extra two speakers for a full battlefield experience.  When you couple it with a game like Killzone 2 you’ll be waking up your neighbors.  The bass is heavy and the bombastic soundtrack assaults your senses.  The game is a nonstop battle as you assault the Helghan capital, so expect to be immersed in the rattling sound of recoilless rifles and artillery the entire time.  The Helghan soldiers shout orders over the din of battle, as do your squadmates as they move to flank and counter the enemy.  Combatants on both sides issue forth rough grunts and screams as they succumb to their wounds, and the fighting in the distance serves as a constant reminder that you are not alone in your battle. 

The only hitch, and it is a common one, is that you play Sgt. Tomas "Sev" Sevchenko – a died-in-the-wool stereotypical soldier in every way.  I’m not sure if the ISA top brass have a clone facility, but Sev couldn’t be any more of a ‘blank’ than he is.  You’ll die in this game pretty often, and Sev’s limited voice work gives you no reason to really care about his welfare either way.

If there is one thing that is consistent with this generation of gaming it is the use of oft-half-baked motion sensitive control schemes pried into otherwise great gameplay.  There are even a few first party titles like Lair that came away with less than perfect scores due to a rather forced motion-enabled mechanism.  Thankfully Guerrilla had the foresight to leave well enough alone, giving Killzone 2 a fairly standard control scheme.  That isn’t to say that the game doesn’t sport motion controls, just that they are implemented far better than other games.

Throughout the game there will be times when you’ll be asked to steady your aim, turn a valve, light a fuse, or yank a handle on a remote detonator.  We’ve seen this sort of thing in games like the Call of Duty series, where the sequences in those games take you out of the action, the sequences in Killzone 2 actually add to it.  At any point, the enemy can interrupt you, causing you to have to take several swipes at opening a door if it happens to be in the line of enemy fire.  More importantly, any errant bullets or nearby explosions can disrupt a carefully aimed sniper shot, giving a new dynamic to the usual ‘hold a button to hold your breath’ mechanic.  While the game is usually run and gun, it does help with the occasional headshot hunt. 

Two years have passed since the Helghast unleashed hell on Vekta, the setting of the first game.  Taking the fight to the enemy doorstep, the game opens with a furious assault on Helghan with the objective of capturing the Helghast leader, Emperor Scolar Visari.  You are a part of a small assault team performing a hot drop to the planet surface in support of the main ISA army.  Your job is to secure the enemy capital of Pyrrhus, and some military genius thought that the best way to do that would be to drop directly into the heart of the city, guns blazing.  In Killzone Liberation, Emperor Visari declared the Helghast would not allow the ISA to take their capital, threatening to use nuclear weapons, even on their own people, to repel them. 

In the first game you played Captain Jan Templar (you'll spot the obviously-promoted Col. Templar early in the game), but in Killzone 2 you’ll be taking control of Sergeant Tomas “Sev” Sevchenko, a veteran of Alpha Team – a special unit tasked with finding and capturing Emperor Visari.  You and four other veterans set off on nearly a dozen high-energy missions throughout Helghan. 

There are quite a few conventions that have made their way into Killzone 2.  The usual progression of weapons is here, moving from issued machine guns to rocket launchers to enemy weapons, culminating in tanks and enemy walkers.  There is really nothing new under the sun there.  The enemies have a fairly normal progression; you'll start by battling fairly weak Helghast foot soldiers, then more elite shock troops, and eventually culminate with the occasional boss battle.  Again, there is nothing new here.  What makes this different than other shooters is how well it is all blended together.  My wife immediately picked up on the heavy action vibe here and commented that it reminded her of a great action movie like the opening of Saving Private Ryan.  The gameplay is visceral throughout, often giving you very little time to rest.  The pacing lets up a little bit to provide a dash of story or character development, but immediately plunges you back into the action.  Like the previously mentioned movie, the game draws you in and doesn’t let you go until the exciting finale.  It is hard to remember a AAA title like this when the awards hit at the end of the year, but I think that Killzone 2 is going to keep people talking…

The single player missions in Killzone 2 span 10 missions in total, each one more explosive than the last.  All told you can plow through the single player missions in two weekends, but there are four difficulty levels to keep you busy beyond your initial run.  Thankfully Guerrilla didn’t rely solely on the multiplayer modes to prop the game up – the single player game is solid and well executed.  Even if multiplayer isn’t your thing, there is plenty of reasons to enjoy Killzone 2.

The multiplayer game features several familiar modes including capture the flag, deathmatch, team deathmatch, and a 32-player mode called Warzone.  You’ll split up evenly between the Helghast and the ISA and compete in timed objectives for points.  It’s a fairly familiar system that is enhanced greatly by a class system not unlike that of Return to Castle Wolfenstein.  If you had any idea how many hours I sank into the multiplayer of that title, you’d know how big of a compliment that truly is.  Much like the wildly successful competitor, Call of Duty 4, there is also a progression system that is based on kills, assists, and overall experience.  You’ll customize your character, gain skills like setting up gun emplacements, snipe, run and gun with light weapons, or play the defender or heavy with a brute character.  In addition to Call of Duty 4, I’m also reminded of Team Fortress 2 – again, high praise indeed.  In the limited playtime I’ve had so far, I believe that it’ll be a worthy competitor for the aforementioned title, and I think it’ll knock Metal Gear Solid IV off its perch entirely.  I’m looking forward to playing the full game with the teams from Gaming Trend instead of my fellow press members. 

There is one glaring hole in the overall experience that surprised me – the lack of online cooperative play.  When you think of the recent titles that have had online co-op you’d have to imagine that Killzone 2 could have had it, given the long development cycle. 

Killzone 2 is a title that grabs hold of you with both hands at your throat and doesn’t let you go until the very end.  Each mission builds on that momentum, closing the game on a bit of a sour note, but with an incredible feeling of satisfaction.  When you’ve completed the single player game, you’ll be treated to a very complete multiplayer experience that looks like it’ll give PS3 owners something to talk about.

Guerrilla took their time getting this title right, and it is exactly what the PlayStation 3 needs – a shining example of why we chose to become PlayStation 3 owners in the first place.  If you want to show off why the PS3 is the most powerful gaming platform in this generation, you only have to load up Killzone 2.

Gaming Trend Score

93

1. Graphics: 100
2. Audio: 90
3. Controls: 95
4. Gameplay: 90
5. Value/Replay: 95
6. OVERALL:93