Killzone 2…the title alone brings mixed reactions from video game fans everywhere.  Some people loved the original game for the PS2, while an equal number of people loathed it. It was hard to find someone who was in the middle on this one. Originally touted as the “halo killer”, the original game seemed to fall a bit short of everyone’s expectations, with the exception of the most rabid Playstation fanboys. The sequel, up until its release, had been touted as the ace up Sony’s sleeve. This was the game that would not only demonstrate the sheer power of the PS3 console, but establish the system as a legitimate player in the First Person Shooter genre.  Was this finally the game to bring the flailing PS3 library within striking distance of the powerhouse action titles of the 360 or the user friendliness of the Wii?

GRAPHICS 9/10

The game has been in development for what seems like forever now. With every gaming conference, Sony would release a screenshot here, a video there, all showcasing the amazing graphics of this game. When the game finally came out, the graphics did not disappoint. The textures are crisp, and the red eyes of the enemy Helghast soldiers eerily glow in glorious high definition.  The character models are all extremely detailed and the lighting effects are top notch.  Everything from blood splatters as your bullets penetrate enemy soldiers to the mist and water effects are executed perfectly.

You’re probably wondering why it gets a 9 if everything is so great. Well to be honest, as good as everything looks there is little to no variety in the backgrounds. Everything is painted over with a dark grey hue, and almost all of the locations look identical. Sometimes you forget whether you are fighting indoors or outdoors. When you first fire up the game, you will no doubt be blown away by the graphics, but as it progresses you will wonder if the backgrounds will ever start to change. There is also a bit of inconsistency with some of the character models. One moment they will look perfect then in the next cut scene they will seem a bit pixelized and jaggy. While it doesn’t happen often, the graphics are so sharp and crisp normally that it really stands out on those moments when they slip a bit.

GAMEPLAY 7/10

The biggest problem with shooters, particularly FPS, on the PS3 are the controls. For whatever reason, they seem to lack the tight responsiveness that seems standard issue with similar games on other systems. Killzone 2 does nothing at all to help fix this issue, in fact it probably has some of the most shoddy controls of any shooter I’ve played in a long time.  There is this constant “floaty” feeling to the controls that just never seems to go away, in fact I found myself actually getting used to it after playing for a while, but that is not a good thing.  Also, there is a bit of lag between your control inputs and the motion on the screen. I’ve played with the sensitivity settings and it can be adjusted so that it is improved slightly, but it is still laggy- and that is playing OFFLINE! Whether or not you can play with the clunky controls really depends on how the rest of the game appeals to you.  For some, the controls will be such a deal breaker that this game will instantly become trade-in bait. Others may want to sludge through and see what else the game has to offer.

Another gripe is the handling of the weapons inventory. You can carry one (yes ONE) weapon, a pistol, a knife, grenades and that’s about it. Need to use a rocket launcher? Well I hope you’re prepared to use ONLY the rocket launcher or a pistol until you can find another weapon. It isn’t game breaking for me, but in 2009 you should be able to carry at least a couple weapons. If Marcus Fenix can lug a boomshot, lancer, pistol, AND carry a boomshield then why the hell can’t Killzone’s Sev carry at least two decent weapons?  Maybe I’m whining, but it really sucks when you’re ambushed and all you have is an empty missile launcher and a pistol to take out hundreds of enemies with. Also, the weapon selection is a bit generic. You’ve got an assault rifle, grenade launcher, rocket launcher, missile launcher, sniper, and submachine gun. The human weapons and alien Helghast weapons are exactly the same. Not to mention the fact that about half of the weapons have iron sights.  An alien race that can travel across the universe and threaten to take over and destroy earth can’t even engineer a decent scope for their guns?

One thing I will say is that the enemy AI, at least on the hardest difficulty, is excellent. Enemies try to flank, lay suppressing fire, and basically just do whatever it takes to kill you. In most games, you can usually bait an enemy to come out of their hiding spot and come around the corner for you to unload your weapon into their unsuspecting ass. Not the case in KZ2, as the enemies are extremely intelligent and require a good amount of planning to overcome.  Not to mention the fact that they actually know what grenades are and get out of the way when they are thrown in their direction. They take cover when appropriate and even lob a few well placed grenades your way. KZ2 definitely has some of the best enemy AI in any game out right now.

STORY 6/10

Supposedly underneath it all there is a plot buried somewhere…but good luck finding it. I actually read the manual for this game and there is absolutely no background story given. You really don’t know why they’re fighting this war or what the hell any of it is about. I know that video games don’t exactly feature Oscar caliber writing, but this game seems like it had no writing at all! I could give a rats ass about the main characters and it wasn’t until I was about halfway into the game that I actually found out what my character’s name was. They all seem like a bunch of plagiarized cliches plucked from the best of the recently released shooters. Tough talking guy wearing a bandanna? check. Token angry black guy who kicks alot of ass? check. Female intel officer who radios information to you? check. Substitute “Alpha” squad for “Delta” squad? check. For all the time this has been in development and they forgot to add a story. I imagine on release day the faces of the executives at Sony were exactly like the facial expression of the mom in ‘Home Alone’ when they realized they left forgot Kevin. “Holy Crap we forgot to put a plot in the game! AHHHHH!”

Again I’m not expecting anything groundbreaking, but at least give me enough story to make me want to play as the character I’m playing as. Give me enough to make me at least a bit curious about what happens next. Sadly I found nothing like this and my motivation for plowing through this game’s campaign was to try to figure out whether they simply forgot or just didn’t give a crap.

ONLINE 8/10

My online experiences with this game have just been unbelievably laggy. Whether thats a fault of the programmers or the PSN, I have no idea. I do know that I can play Street Fighter IV on PSN with very little lag even when the connection sucks, so I’m guessing it is something to do with the way the game is designed. The online modes are your generic deathmatch, capture the flag, territory types and there is also the option to play offline in a sort of training mode using bots (similar to local multiplayer matches in Gears of War 2). I wish I had more online experience with this game since it seems pretty deep as it features different classes of soldiers and an experience system that allows you to level up. Unfortunately, up until now, lag has limited my enjoyment of the online component.

SOUND 9/10

The sound in the game is great. Bullets flying, explosions, soldiers yelling- its all here and very clean.  I have no complaints about the sound other than some of the voice acting can get a bit irritating at times. I don’t have a problem at all with profanity in games. In fact I think its downright hilarious at times. The cursing in KZ2 though seems a bit awkward and forced. While I have no doubt that soldiers in such a situation would be cursing like crazy, it helps when the cursing makes sense. Not very often, although it is noticeable, it seems like they are cussing just to fill an “F” bomb quota for each sentence. It reminds me of little kids learning to cuss and just stringing together expletives for the hell of it. Pretty cool when you’re 6. Not so much when you’re a grown man and a member of an elite military unit and you still haven’t gotten cussing down to a science. Just a minor gripe, but I just had to bring it up.

OVERALL 8/10

This review may make me seem like a 360 fanboy, but let me assure you I am not at all. I honestly think the PS3 is a far superior machine (technically) and some of my favorite games this generation are on the PS3. I know this review seems pretty negative, but only because I had such high hopes for this game. I liked the original and thought it had a ton of potential with a few tweaks.   Killzone 2 is not a bad game by any means, but compared to the stiff competition it is facing not only on the 360 but on the PS3, it definitely drops the ball in some areas. I will most likely play through it again just to make sure I didn’t miss anything the first time and with the hopes that some of the flaws will become a bit more tolerable. I would recommend getting a hold of a demo for this game before buying it, as the demo is exactly like the finished product, although obviously shorter. I was really hoping this would be THE killer app for the PS3. Looks like I’ll have to hold my breath and pray for Metal Gear Solid 5…..