Killzone 2
	Genre: First-Person Shooter (Sci-Fi) Developer: Guerrilla Games
Publisher Region Released SCEA NA 02/17/2009 SCEE EU 02/??/2009 SCEA JP ??/??/2009 SCE Australia AU 02/19/2009

Your Account Options

You currently have no privileges related to this game profile because you are not signed into an HonestGamers account. Please log in, or click to register for a free user account.

More Reviews by Suskie
	Diablo III (PC) With so many of Diablo III's core functions being handled on Blizzard's end, the game's performance is directly tied to how well their servers are runnin...
	Prototype 2 (Xbox 360) While Prototype 2 is a definite improvement, it’s not like fixing the first game’s flaws unearths some hidden masterpiece here. It’s not a great sequel s...
	The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Xbox 360) It’s very cold – in the thematic sense, though the snow certainly helps. Skyrim is one of the increasingly few Western RPGs to understand that “dark” is ...
	Mass Effect 3 (Xbox 360) Fans have been railing on BioWare for phasing out certain elements – the side quests are virtually nonexistent at this point, and dialog options are more limite...
	Resident Evil 4 HD (Xbox 360) I didn’t die all that much during my playthrough of RE4, yet I constantly – constantly – felt like I was within an inch of my death, scraping for ...

Best PlayStation 3 Games
	Journey Average Rating: 9.8; Reviews: 4
	LittleBigPlanet Average Rating: 9.8; Reviews: 4
	Sports Champions Average Rating: 9.5; Reviews: 2
	Demon's Souls Average Rating: 9.0; Reviews: 6
	Resident Evil 5 Average Rating: 9.0; Reviews: 4
	Modern Warfare 2 Average Rating: 9.0; Reviews: 3
	Ratchet & Clank: Future Average Rating: 9.0; Reviews: 3
	Silent Hill: Homecoming Average Rating: 9.0; Reviews: 2
	Street Fighter IV Average Rating: 9.0; Reviews: 2
	Prototype Average Rating: 9.0; Reviews: 2

Looking for a good read?
Check out a selection from our database of more than 8000 reviews! honestgamer has weighed in on Cross Edge for the PlayStation 3 and figures it rates 3 out of 10. What do you think? Read the review, then be sure to leave feedback or chime in with one of your own!

User Review

Review by Suskie
November 30, 2010

Here’s a funny thing that happened when I rented Killzone 2 a year ago. I picked the game up early one Saturday afternoon and was finished with its campaign before I went to bed. The next day, I had friends over. We were looking for a decent multiplayer game to kill some time and my roommate’s LittleBigPlanet disc wasn’t working, so hey, Killzone 2! We popped the game into the console and were then dismayed to learn that Killzone 2 doesn’t have local multiplayer. Well, shit.

So, as far as I’m concerned, Guerrilla Games forgot to put multiplayer in Killzone 2. I don’t know why split-screen multiplayer is such a dying breed these days, why developers seem to think that if I’m forced to choose between playing with friends I’m sitting next to and playing with strangers over the internet, the latter would be the more enticing option. Never mind that my roommate’s PS3 wasn’t hooked up to the internet. Multiplayer is a situational ordeal, and in this situation, I had a reasonable opportunity to test out the game’s multiplayer component even without PSN. Killzone 2 had its chance; Killzone 2 blew it.

That simply means I’m forced to judge Killzone 2 based on its single-player experience alone, which is fine, because that’s usually what I do anyway. And as a single-player game, I’m struggling to think of a single contemporary FPS cliché that Killzone 2 isn’t packing. It’s a sci-fi WWII fantasy about impressively muscled American marines battling a nation of futuristic neo-Nazis who all have British accents. (You know, because British accents sound evil.) It’s rendered in a color palette that consists almost entirely of shades of grey, with a few occasional browns thrown in to spice things up. It’s got a two-weapon inventory system. It’s got vehicle segments that didn’t need to be there. It’s got a cover system. Jumped ship yet?

Well, the twist in this tale is one that I alluded to earlier: that I sat down to play the campaign immediately after I rented it and didn’t get up until I was finished, eight hours later. Rentals at the campus video store were only two days long, so I got into a habit last year of racing through games as quickly as possible, but it’s still impressive that a shooter as seemingly unremarkable as Killzone 2 managed to hold my attention for so long. And there was a World Series game that night! And the Phillies were in it! And I still didn’t stop playing! Think about that.

Still, it’s next to impossible to make Killzone 2 sound good, because in all honesty, it isn’t. It embraces every cliché in the book, and some of them aren’t even pulled off very well. The two-weapon inventory, for example, has been a near-staple of the genre since Halo, and with good reason. Killzone 2 misuses it, though, since you’re required to carry a pistol at all times. Not only does the pistol suck – because the pistol always sucks – but it means that you only really have one free weapon slot. The strategic undertone that is the very reason this system exists is suddenly gone, because why would you haul around situational stuff like a sniper rifle or rocket launcher when you can opt for one of several all-purpose assault rifles instead?

But while I could nitpick Killzone 2 to death with stuff like that, it’s the controls that come through as the game’s most crippling flaw. There are plenty of questionable mapping choices – crouching and taking cover are both assigned to the same trigger, it’s impossible to zoom from cover without physically removing your right hand from the controller, etc. – but the biggest issue is aiming. Namely, it’s too sluggish. Yank that analog stick all the way to the left or right and you’ll notice that your character has an incredibly difficult time turning himself around. So if someone’s shooting at you from behind, it may take a second or two for you to fire back.

So why don’t I simply adjust the sensitivity, you ask? Well, you can, but then suddenly aiming isn’t precise enough. Suddenly your reticle is flying past your intended targets. See, aiming with an analog stick is about more than simply giving the player the ability to adjust sensitivity. It’s about creating contrast between a full tilt of the analog stick and a slight nudge. I should be able to make a precise headshot and then do a quick 180-degree turn without having to fiddle with the options menu in between.

I guess what I’m getting at is that I’m grateful I never got the chance to give Killzone 2’s multiplayer a test run, because I couldn’t imagine battling with these controls in a competitive environment. In the much more predictable context of a linear single-player game, though? Well, there were two bosses in particular that were able to relocate themselves very quickly (the final boss can literally teleport), and those instances were made unnecessarily frustrating by the fact that I couldn’t turn myself around fast enough. Otherwise, meh, it’s tolerable.

That, by the way, is my reaction to the entire game. With so many clichés in one game and no new ideas of its own, Killzone 2 is to people who hate cookie-cutter FPSs what a game like Blue Dragon is to me. But I could see myself recommending Killzone 2 to people who accept that even the most generic shooters can be worth playing if they’re handled with the right level of seriousness and dedication. With games like these, it’s all about presentation. Presentation is the reason I beat Modern Warfare 2 in one sitting and, conversely, why I still haven’t finished Black Ops. In this case, the game’s rather spectacular set pieces, brilliant sound design and almost overwhelmingly intense action – rarely is there a moment when you don’t feel you’re in danger of being struck in the head by a stray bullet – make for an engaging eight-hour play.

And while I’d still have to think for a moment before I called Killzone 2 the best-looking game I’ve ever seen, it’s remarkable when a game leaves me unable to distinguish the CG cutscenes from the in-game ones, or wondering if there even are CG cutscenes, if it’s possible that the game really does look that damn good.

And, I mean, even the story is fine. I’ve heard complaints that it’s too generic, but Christ, look at what you’re playing. What the story does is give an appropriate context for this war-torn landscape, and the game’s set pieces almost feel like a futuristic and fully interactive version of the first 20 minutes of Saving Private Ryan. Plenty of shooters have done that with more skill and panache than Killzone 2, and I can’t work myself up to recommend the game as a purchase. But then there’s no escaping the fact that I played it from start to finish without ever looking away. So hey, if you’re into this sort of thing, rent it, play it, enjoy it for eight hours, return it, and never think of it again.

Rating: 6/10

Feedback

Facebook()

Forums(15)

You can click the tabs on the above bar to choose whether you wish to read comments from visitors who have posted on Facebook, or from registered site users who have left feedback on the forums. Please leave a comment of your own if you have anything to say!

Info | Help | Privacy Policy | Contact | Advertise

© 1998-2012 HonestGamers
None of the material contained within this site--from reviews, guides, cheats and editorials to message board posts--may be reproduced in any conceivable fashion without permission from the author(s) of said material. This site is not sponsored or endorsed by Nintendo, Sega, Sony, Microsoft, or any other such party. Killzone 2 is a registered trademark of its copyright holder. This site makes no claim to Killzone 2, its characters, screenshots, artwork, music, or any intellectual property contained within. Opinions expressed on this site do not necessarily represent the opinion of site staff or sponsors.