Hype, hype and more hype.  I can barely remember the last time the gaming industry had so much hype in one year.  The year 2004 could well go down as the year that more hype was generated about the games being released than any other year.  It’s amazing with the games being released in 2004 that any game can live up to the hype that surrounds it.  While the hype for Killzone might not have been as loud as it was a year ago, there was still a large amount of buzz surrounding the game.  Killzone was supposed to be the PS2’s answer to Halo and push the PS2 to its limits in terms of graphics and gameplay.  As gamers have learned so far this year, not every game lives up to its hype but sometimes we are still left with entertaining games that shouldn’t be overlooked. 

The story of Killzone revolves around the struggle between the ISA and the Helghast.  The Helghast have always felt themselves to be the shunned and forgotten race when compared to the members of the ISA.  The Helghast's have finally had enough and launch an attack against the ISA.  It’s up to you to stop the Helghast at any cost and save what is left of the ISA before the Helghast take over. 

The game is set in a futuristic setting with a very grim, dirty and destructive view of the world around you.  The Helghast have destroyed almost everything in their path and the world is in ruin because of the battles being waged.  The majority of the stages depict the world in this horrible manner with bullet holes populating everywhere and large areas being blown to pieces.  The game’s graphics even have a grainy tone to help represent the horrors of the war.  This definitely helps set the tone and mood of the game nicely by making sure everything isn’t presented in bright, vivid colors but in dark, brooding tones. 

The game plays out similar to other First Person Shooters but with a dash of scripted events with a mixture of freedom of movement.  It seems the majority of FPS games rely on the scripted events during the game to set the action and story during the game.  Killzone is no different with the majority of the game playing out during the scripted events.  For example early in the game you have to defend a bunker from the invading Helghast and your character is restricted to movement inside of the bunker.  So during this part of the game, Killzone is following a linear and scripted path to keep the game moving and keep the player involved in the game.  But during later missions your limits are lifted somewhat and the entire stage is now available for exploration.  Now this doesn’t mean the game still doesn’t follow certain scripted events but it at least gives the players more freedom to try and finish the missions/objectives in different ways. 

Before the game was ever released one of the biggest focus of hype surrounded the graphics.  Gamers were blown away by how amazing the graphics looked on the screenshots released.  Killzone was the game to push the PS2 to the limit in terms of graphics.   That is a true statement but I think the PS2 still needed some help because the game doesn’t run as smooth as the screen shots indicate.  You will notice the game engine popping up parts of the scenery around you at a moments notice.  The textures of the characters in the game will change several times while you’re moving near them.  The framerate is also slower compared to other FPS games, probably close to the 30 FPS but with some drops in the 20s when the action gets intense.  But the graphics aren’t a complete waste because the overall look of the game is well done with the gritty look of the entire game.  I think the developers pushed the PS2 too much or needed more time to work out the kinks on the game engine.  After you play the game for a while you really won’t notice the problems with the graphics.  In fact the graphics have a more polished look to them than the preview version I played earlier this year. 

The game includes several different multiplayer modes as well, which can be played offline or online.  The multiplayer mode online will allow up to 16 players to play in a game at one time.  The game includes 6 different gameplay modes in multiplayer, Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Domination, Supply Drop, Assault and Defend and Destroy.  Besides the multiplayer mode the game even includes 4 different characters that you can use during the game.  You start off the game with one character and unlock the other 3 characters as you finish different stages.  After you’ve beat the game you can then play through the different stages with the other characters to find areas that you didn’t have access to earlier. 

In the end Killzone is a game that doesn’t live up to the hype but it does offer a nice package for PS2 owners.  This isn’t a Halo killer but then again this isn’t a Halo type of game.  It’s a first person shooter but it is a different type of game than Halo.  Halo has enough hype to worry about and Killzone could very well fill in the gaps for some gamers.  It’s a game that might be rough around the edges but it still gives gamers plenty of entertainment. 

Gameplay 7.9 

As I mentioned earlier this is a FPS (First Person Shooter) which is something the Dual Shock controller for the PS2 was almost designed for.  You control your characters with the two analog sticks and first with the shoulder buttons.  The controls are smooth and responsive at all times.  The AI of the enemies would range from down right stupid to amazingly intelligent.  But I really believe the AI has more to do with how certain events are scripted then to actual intelligence of the computer-controlled characters. 

For example during several stages you run in a group of Helghast soldiers that will run straight towards you.  So you can open fire on the soldiers and the majority of the soldiers would just keep running to you.  But other sections of the game where the enemy is already hiding from you then some of these characters would have the accuracy of Olympic winning marksman.  I would even run into fire from the enemy even though I was hiding in a bush or behind some type of scenery.   After a while most of the stages did feel the same with the same type of events happening: The initial rush of soldiers and then the challenge of the skilled enemies that will take cover and wait for open shots. 

I found the best approach to the game was to take it slow and steady and wait for the events to unfold.  Rushing into a battle was usually the wrong course of action.  Even after you unlock the extra characters they never seem to help you during the game.  The other characters would always be behind you telling you what to do or to watch out.  But you can’t control the other characters during the game and most of the time you had no idea what they were doing during the game.

Graphics 8.0 

This isn’t a fast paced FPS game.  If you take this into consideration then you can probably add a half a point to the graphics score when you first play the game.  But even if you don’t, you will get use to the slower pace after a while, which fits the game nicely.  If the developers had the game running at a faster pace, I’m sure the graphics would have been even choppier and uglier.  The overall look of the game was well done with look of the game matching the plot exactly.  The grime and grit of the graphics were a nice touch as well, which adds to the atmosphere as well.  The framerate was steady during most of the game but would take a hit during some heavy fighting.  I also noticed that the graphics on some of the latter stages were smoother and more polished than the earlier stages.

The majority of the stages look fantastic with a ton of detail during most of the areas.  However you will run into some areas were some of the textures of the walls and other surroundings look very bare and basic.  But then the next stage will look astonishing, so it’s a game of hit and miss.  Sometimes the graphics are incredible, while other times the graphics could use another pass by the artist.  The graphics for the characters during the game were a mixed bag as well.  During the first person view the animation of the enemies and your guns were well done.  But once a character would die then the textures of the character would sometimes change instantly while standing nearby.  For example if I were standing to the left of a character I would see all of the details of the texture, from the blood to the details of his armor.  But if I moved to the right the textures would change and I wouldn’t be able to see the blood or the details of the armor. 

Sound 7.6 

The first item I noticed about the sound and music was the music playing during the game menus.  I loved the music since it’s based on an orchestra score and it sounds amazing.  It was a great score and fit the overall tone of the game.  The sound effects for the different weapons in the game came across loud and clear.  However many of the gun sound effects sounded similar to each other, except for the larger, heavier weapons.  The voice acting of the characters in the game were well done, especially during the cut scenes.  But I did notice a ton of repetition of the voices during the stages, especially with the Helghast phrases.  After a few stages the repetition and phrases got old quickly. 

Difficulty Medium 

Mark my words now; take it slow in this game.  Even if you are a FPS freak, this game’s difficulty can get to you but only if you’re reckless.  Taking it slow during the game will help alleviate the difficulty of some of the harder AI moments in the game.  If you see a bunch of Helghast coming towards you, fire off a grenade or look for cover.  What I noticed in the game was the computer would use the least expected way out of a situation frequently.  For example some of the weapons have a secondary fire option that fires a powerful blast that can cause some serious damage.  It’s a nice feature to use to take out an enemy with one hit, but it’s a feature the enemy can and will use.  The game allows you to select the difficulty from easy, normal and difficult. 

Concept 7.7 

A futuristic FPS shooter isn’t a fresh idea in the gaming world.  However the idea and the storyline was well done in Killzone.  It probably won’t win any awards for originality but it’s enough to keep gamers entertained.  The way the game plays out has been done before but Killzone tries to keep it fresh by including online play and including some stingy AI.  The ability to play the game as one of four different characters is a nice touch and something that isn’t done that often.  Killzone offers enough but it doesn’t include anything that I would consider genre breaking or defining.

Multiplayer 8.0 

The developers obviously had online multiplayer in mind for Killzone but didn’t forget about offline as well.  The online and offline multiplayer modes include 6 different modes: Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Assault, Defend and Destroy, Supply Drop and Domination.  Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch are you standard FPS deathmatch games where you run around and kill as many opponents as you can.  Assault is where the two opposing forces (Helghast and ISA) compete against each other to defend an objective from the other side.  Defend and Destroy is almost the same as Assault but each side having the same goal of defending an objective.  Supply Drop is where each side competes against each other to determine who can capture the most supplies.  Each supply is a key object that is located on the maps.  Domination is where each side fights to capture key locations on the map in order to take control of the battlefield.  The side that controls all of the key locations wins the game.  Up to 16 players can play in an online match and voice chat is also supported (but the game is broadband only, sorry dialup users). 

The game plays almost the same in the multiplayer mode as it does in the single player mode, but with more freedom to run around (and blow people up).  This is where the game engine has a little problem keeping up because the game feels slow during the multiplayer games (online or offline).  The slow frame rate and pace of the game can make the game feel as if it’s running on low batteries.  The pace of the multiplayer game will probably take some getting use to, especially for FPS veterans.  Also there was still an occasion where I was unable to connect to an online game.  Hopefully this was just a minor issue but it’s been an issue ever since I tried the online beta test months ago. 

Overall 7.8 

In closing it’s hard for anything, be it a game, a movie or an album, to ever live to enormous hype.  Killzone might not live up to the initial hype that was generated but it’s still an entertaining game.  The solid controls, good graphics, and solid gameplay make up a respectable game that PS2 owners should try out.  But the repetitive sound effects, slow frame rate and occasionally texture problems with the game engine will have some gamers looking for something else.  What I found really interesting was the fact that I wanted to play the game.  I didn’t want to stop playing, which is usually a sign of a solid game.  Sometimes it’s hard to believe that this game was even released for PS2 but then again it makes me wonder about the future.  What if Killzone is a franchise that keeps going and is released for the PS3?  What type of hype could we generate for that version of Killzone?  Hmm................