Hey guys =)
 
I've just finished up with the Multiplayer beta for KZ3 (downloading the single player overnight) and really enjoy it. I was thinking of playing through KZ2 just to get some story before playing 3 when it drops.
 
The thread title is prettymuch it, will I lose a lot of the story by not playing the first game?
 Thanks <3

Helghast attack people, people go and attack Helghast. Shit goes sideways. There you go, Killzone 1 and 2 right there.

Start of KZ2 - You realize Rico is an idiot wannabe gangsta.   
 
End of KZ2 - FUCK YOU RICO~~~~~~

How could you not have played the great Halo Killer that was Killzone 1. For shame!

" How could you not have played the great Halo Killer that was Killzone 1. For shame! "

I say you can skip Killzone 1.  The only thing I'd say that the first one could do is that you can recognize some characters in the second one.  But story wise, not much to it.  I heard reading about the fiction somewhere is pretty good cause they have a way more developed universe than what they have just in the games or something.

I played Killzone 2 without playing 1 and I was just fine.  To be honest, the story isn't all that engaging anyway.  You're the good guys, the other guys are bad, you need to shot them.  Any detail beyond that isn't all that important.  Plus, most of the details seemed to be Killzone 2 specific.

" You're the good guys, the other guys are bad, you need to shot them. "  

Not at all. KZ1 and 2 are drastically different games. Even the returning characters (Rico, Templar, Evelyn) feel like completely different people and the story is barely connected and nothing Wikipedia can't fill you in on. 

I would say do not even touch Killzone 1, even though it looks amazing for a PS2 game, the game controls horribly, a far cry from the refined controls they had in Killzone 2. 
 
As far as story goes, you ain't missing much since there's a different protagonist. The only thing I would recommend you to see is the intro video of Killzone 1 (cause it's downright awesome) but the rest of the plot is mostly forgetable.

You won't hate Rico as much, which might be a good thing as he seems to be in Killzone 3 a lot. 
 
But no - Killzone 2's storyline was a paper thin mess that takes about three sentences to explain.... actually, I think I can do that - let's go:  
 
1) The Helghast once invaded a planet of the ISA, and the ISA kicked them off, now the ISA have gone to Planet Helghan (the eye-glowing-est place on earth) to capture the leader of the Helghans 
2) They fight a lot, then they fight some more, then they fight again, then there's a little fighting, and to top it all off, they kill some more dudes. 
3) It doesn't quite go as planned, the ISA manage to achieve their objectives, but the Helghans destroy the bulk of the ISA forces in a pyrrhic attack, and that sets up Killzone 3. 
 
There you go - that's about all you need to know. There are one or maybe *gasp* TWO plot points I left out (in case you're worried about spoilers), but that's pretty much all you need to know. Killzone isn't played for its story, much in the same way Call of Duty games usually aren't either. The story is just there to give structure and a goal, nothing more.  
 
If you want to know why people hate Rico so much, you have to play Killzone 2. You should not play  Killzone 1 - that game, ambitious as it was, was a monumental mess and a classic, classic case of how being too ambitious can cripple a game. Killzone 2 was ambitious, surely, but not as ambitious as Killzone 1, which attempted current generation graphics on PS2 hardware. I'm not saying they achieved current generation graphics, but they tried, and they failed miserably - so much so that it looked bad AND had a lousy frame rate AND had bland, enclosed environments. Killzone 1 was a painful, painful game. 
 
Luckily, Killzone 2 was pretty awesome, so all's forgiven, and it looks like Killzone 3 will be also great. 
 
But don't buy Killzone 2 - Multiplayer's a wasteland (at least in Australia it is) and that was at least 50% of the reason to buy it in the first place. Better just buy Killzone 3, which will have a lot of folks playing it.

no

Don't play Killzone now. You'll regret it. Just got straight to number 2.

The one amazing thing i found when i just popped killzone 1 back in was the melee! I totally forgot how Luger could throw her knife into the neck of a helghast soldier before running up close and slicing his neck with the implanted knife, so cool and now that i think about how they're focusing alot on melée in Killzone 3, it was kind of a weird omission from Kz2.

Nope. Killzone 1 is not necessary for anything. Great looking, badly controlled first person shooter. Just play 2 because it's pretty fun, build Rico Rage (someone tradmeark that!), then play 3. 

No. It's shit. Though playing it will probably make you admire KZ2 even more.

" Hey guys =)  I've just finished up with the Multiplayer beta for KZ3 (downloading the single player overnight) and really enjoy it. I was thinking of playing through KZ2 just to get some story before playing 3 when it drops.  The thread title is prettymuch it, will I lose a lot of the story by not playing the first game?  Thanks <3 "