I'm In A Killzone

Killzone (finally) came from GameFly yesterday, and it's been a post-work fake violence stress-down ever since. I didn't really know what to expect considering how hyped the game was prior to release and then how ho-hum it's actual relase turned out.

In short, it's pretty good. The graphics are extremely impressive for the PS2, although not without it's faults. When a Helghast soldier dies inside a wall and the collision error causes his legs to twitch wildly as the model tries to figure out where it can land ... well, the ensuing laughter breaks immersion somewhat. And you can feel the poor PS2 struggling to keep up with the code, and it's evident even as you see the level of detail swap out right in front of you sometimes.

Still, there are some pretty tight mechanics behind all the pretty. Sure, the Helghast aren't going to win any AI awards. Their training seems to include the skill of walking right past me and then wondering where I am and why I am shooting them. The game does use a lot of cover and close quarter combat quite well, however (even if, as The Girl puts it, you throw grenades like a girl).

The story is definately of the style over substance sort. They assume you won't notice just how generic the tale is as long as there are enough explosions in your way. Basically it's a fairly generic shooter, just an exceptionally beautiful one. I haven't play Black just yet, but I'm getting a sense of deja vu just from the reviews I've read. I'm guessing it's like Black, but not as graphically and impressive and three times longer.

Getting labelled a Halo-Killer was probably unfair for the title. I can't recommend it at full price, but it's definately worth at least a rental. I'm having plenty of fun with it and probably will play it through the end.




tagged: game, gaming