Not a Killer App but Pretty Close
My review is posted on my blog here but I'll just copy it here: (Pictures are from the wiki)
During times like these, it’s difficult for a first person shooter to stand out. To be distinct from the massive crowd of shooters, a game has to offer a large dose of creativity. Those that don’t are often regarded as generic, and are soon forgotten. Killzone 2 seems to be a sort of exception to this observation. Although very little new gameplay elements are implemented, it proves to be an excellent shooter by showing considerable strength in core areas. Killzone 2 leans on proven mechanics, but uses them well and manages to feel unique.
The game is set after the events of the original Killzone (PS2) and Killzone: Liberation (PSP). The story is simple enough to follow. It revolves around a war between the humans, and the Helghast, a human-like race consisting of bald males who speak with British accents and wear gas masks. A human space colony was invaded in the first game, and so in Killzone 2 the fight is taken to Helghan. The Helghast are portrayed as a totalitarian empire, let by the charismatic Scolar Visari, voiced by Brian Cox (Troy, The Bourne Supremacy).You play as Sev, a rational and collected marine in the ISA battalion.
Subtle connections to World War II and the Iraq War are made by the game. However, the game narrative is certainly lacking. The main campaign doesn’t make a strong enough effort to make neither the war effort nor the characters matter until the last few missions. By that time, the strange sudden instances of dialogue and emotion seem out of place. Ultimately, Killzone 2 is a shooter, and as such a respectable storyline is not expected. But I felt there was the potential for a strong player-character connection, which would allow the ending to be what it was trying to become. Developmental dialogue doesn’t have to be cheesy, of which the writers seemed to be frightened. The speech steers as far away from emotion as possible, as the typical conversation will involve lines like “Sev! Find a way to take down that tank!” or “Sev! Get behind cover!”, followed by an exchange of profanities.
The atmosphere of Killzone 2 is powerful. Unlike the previous sentence.
In a sense, this dialogue is fine, as it adds to the gritty tone of the game. Killzone 2 relies heavily on its mood. The tense atmosphere of Helghan is fantastically created. Painted in greys and browns, the visual design is gruesome and ominous. It’s nothing you haven’t seen before, as testosterone-pumping games like Gears of War use a similar palette. But the distinguishing characteristic of Killzone 2 is how far it goes in using strong visuals to achieve the overall tone. Being a first party company and receiving tremendous support from Sony, Guerrila Games has made use of it’s abundance of resources to craft a game that shows off the Playstation 3 hardware like no other.
Believe the hype: Killzone 2 is the best looking console game. I have beaten the game and logged several hours online. Yet still I find myself gazing at my TV for a while, getting killed while I lose myself in the beauty of the game. I’ll periodically discover visual details that I hadn’t seen before. Individual shards of glass fall off of windows, instead of the entire window shattering. Spit can be seen from Visari’s mouth in the middle of a speech, specifically when he says “pride and purpose”. The sun sometimes causes lens flare in your eyes. Quite simply, you’ll never get bored of looking at the game. They say that graphics are the least important aspect of a game. And it is true that gameplay is most important. Furthermore, I am of the belief that publishers should be spending more time refining game mechanics than visuals. But when the graphics are this good, no one is complaining.
Helghans. They're all bald, you'll see when you shoot off their helmets. They also have muffled British accents.
However, that isn’t to say that the gameplay is bad. Although COD4 veterans will need time to adjust to the aiming and movement, the shooting mechanics are solid. You’ll see a little spray of (your target’s) blood when you make a hit, and a blot of (your own) blood on your screen when you get hit. In Killzone 2, shooting at the enemy’s legs causes significantly less damage than firing at their head or torso. This is a nice inclusion, a touch of Hollywood realism. The amount of damage you can take is less than in Halo but more than in the Call of Duty series. As well, it is important to note that KZ2 is not a tactical shooter like many seem to think. Singleplayer plays similarly to COD or even Gears of War, with its cover system.
The main draw of the game is the multiplayer portion. It features a ranking up system, where you unlock classes and weapons the more you play. It’s a sort of cross between COD4 and Team Fortress 2. It works well. However, Killzone 2 isn’t all borrowed features. A multiplayer match doesn’t just focus on one game type, but rather all of them. You’ll play Bodycount (Team Deathmatch) for three minutes, then it’ll randomly change to the next game type. These include variations of Capture the Flag, Search and Destroy, and Assassination. It’s a new system and it is thoughtful. Many shooting games offer these modes but the audience always turns to Deathmatch. This way, you get a bit of each mode. However, game settings can be changed, and as such a good third of the online matches are Team Deathmatch only.
As well, there are some balancing issues online, in terms of the classes. The assault class features the use of rocket launchers and doubled health. This has led to matches full of kamikaze bombers. Additionally, the tactician class can create spawn points anywhere on the battlefield. Like anywhere, including area very near (or sometimes in) the enemy’s main spawn point, leading to utter chaos and 0% fun. The good news is that Guerrilla Games is still doing work for Killzone 2, so hopefully changes will be made. I’ve only encountered a couple of these types of matches online, but it’s a bummer nonetheless. If things get really bad, there’s an offline mode where you can play against bots. I really don’t want to go there though, bots are for losers. The last gripe I have is the fairly common occurrence of hit detection lag, meaning sometimes your enemy won’t die until a second after you shoot them. Minor, but potentially irking.
Killzone 2 wouldn’t be what it is if the graphics were half as good. I may be shallow, but the game is nothing you haven’t played before. Sure, the shooting is sound and the multiplayer is solid. The campaign is well paced and the weapons are distinct. But in the highly competitive market that the first person shooter genre is, being good just isn’t enough. Halo’s strongest point was it’s highly supported and featured multiplayer. Call of Duty 4 made it’s mark with an incredible campaign, extra tight gameplay, and a system of ranks and unlocks in multiplayer. The first blockbuster shooter of 2009, Killzone 2 includes many of these previous games’ strengths, and uses them very well. But it also flaunts its awesome visual design and truly immersive atmosphere. The result is a great first person shooter that any fan of the genre - and any PS3 owner - should try. It falls short of being a killer app, but in a generation of action games, Killzone 2 stands tall among the best.
