Real Talk From The HipHopGamer

The Developer’s Eye – Spec Operation Presents: Killzone 2

Posted on 02. Mar, 2009 by joey3d in Real Talk with the HipHopGamer

Platform: Playstation 3
Players: 1 Player (2-32 Players Online)
Developer: Guerrilla Games
My Score: 9/10

Since the video a couple of years back, Killzone 2 has finally hit the shelves, but is this a battle to remember or a short dud?

Gameplay: The game is intense, leading you head on into battle with little introductions to the characters (if you are a new comer to the series). The action starts really quickly, you wouldn’t care less if the story was lame or not. You would be to busy trying to find cover or die trying. The controls at first can seem unnatural, pressing multiple buttons to see what they do is not the best idea at first. The game offers tips that guide you through the controls. If you are not comfortable, there are more controls options to choose from…..but mostly likely you will stay with the original.

You begin the game with a M82 rifle. It’s your best friend throughout the whole game. In Killzone 2, you are given only a primary and a secondary weapon. Every gun is just as strong as the last one and that is a great feeling. The game also has a cool cover system that comes in when necessary, which is a plus on that part.

Graphics: The graphics are the best I have ever seen since Crysis (PC), using high-res textures and smart lighting that brings out Killzone 2’s true beauty. On the other hand the game plays smoothly with minor pauses for loading and fast thinking A.I. responses. On a very small amount of times, the FPS suffers a bit because of many things happening on the screen at once but they is very minor and most of the times, you won’t even notice it thanks to the game’s amazing motion blur. The level of destruction is far beyond any I have ever seen on a console, particles breaking out the walls, sand moving swiftly under your feet, etc.
(Ars Technica says it has “some of the best graphics yet seen on the PS3,” and is a “solid take on the war-gaming genre.”

Sound: The awesome sound of firing a gun has never sounded this real, hearing a world of explosions, enemies screaming and your partner’s last breath for help, could simply take your breath away……seriously. The enemies taunt you has to come closer, your partner warns you to find cover and the voice acting is very believable.

Online: The online game is almost twice as bigger than Metal Gear Online, with far more players and more reasons to stay online way more often. The online game consist of different game modes which you only have to load once to enjoy hours of amazing fun. The ranks are really deep with so much to unlock. In-Game soundtrack is only available online as well, which is a good thing. Listening to Drowning Pool’s Bodies, while fighting in a all out war is one of the best feelings in the world.

Developer’s Eye: The Killzone 2’s game engine is based on the Playstation EDGE tech kit, mostly used on deferred shading, which gaves Guerrilla more availability to lighting and shading during the making of this game. The engine in some parts of the game, took the PS3 to the extreme causing small errors and slightly bad texture pixelation but thanks to the motion blur, it’s hardly noticeable. The Cell Processor plays this game at a fair great speed until the action of the game fills up the screens, then the Cell Processor is pushed just a tad to far. This game engine has been updated since the Developer’s Conference back in 2007. The engine (just like most others) has some small flaws, (example: 32 players online in one small room shooting each other with everyone’s bluetooth on, causes most PS3’s to lock up and freeze and require reboot.) this should be fixed in a couple of weeks with a patch but for right now…keep a distance. and the maps are so huge anyway that this rarely happens. Sony’s Manager said that “This game will only work on a PS3″……and i can’t agree more.

Final Thoughts: The true exclusive that shows the PS3’s power. Every time you turn off the system, you feel breathless and amazed at what you just witnessed. The online game will have you coming back even after you finish the game. A definite MUST OWN!                         -3D (Joey)