Killzone 2

With mouth open, jaw hitting the proverbial floor, I think some drool dripped from my chin as I gazed upon the beauty that is Killzone 2.
It’s hard not to notice just how good developer Guerilla made Killzone 2 look. Aside from recent PC shooter Crysis, it is the greatest looking game ever made. Buildings have never looked so detailed, nor have firefights so vibrant. Once I was able to detach my eyes from the TV screen, I was engulfed by one of the better shooters made in recent memory.
After playing the greatly hyped Killzone back in 2004 for the Playstation 2, I was extremely disappointed by its shortcomings. I was cautious for the sequel, seeing as how publications such as Electronic Gaming Monthly and Game Informer touted Killzone 2 as one of the greatest looking games of all time.
After jumping into the single player campaign, those fears were quickly forgotten. In the sequel, you control Sergeant Thomas Sevchenko instead of Jan Templar, the hero from the first. The rather generic story only becomes interesting in the in the final two hours of the game. The writing rarely impresses; your crude squad mates spend considerable time discussing what they could do to each others’ butts.
Killzone 2 does include positive mechanics from other games. For example; your character now has the ability to take cover, much like in Gears of War 2. The ability to go in and out of cover so seamlessly creates an immersive, stop-n-pop experience. So many enemies appear on screen during the course of a firefight, the ability to step in and out of cover creates a sense of tension that few games rarely achieve.
Enemy AI won’t exactly blow you away, but it does offer a new approach to an old game design. In some games, one or two enemies appear at a time, making it too easy to kill them one at a time. Developer Guerilla instead decided to include more enemies on the screen in Killzone 2 and give them all different timers. If you try and pick off one enemy at a time, there are five or six others waiting to shoot you.
Your AI partners provide the most frustration. I oftentimes witnessed enemy Helghast soldiers run past my teammates and then not even attempt to shoot the enemy. Repeat this process about one hundred times, and you will understand the annoyance.
As far as online multiplayer, a more streamlined matchmaker would have helped out tremendously. Also, detailing the match type in each server room would be helpful. Local co-op would have also been a nice touch seeing as how you have an AI partner around you for about 90% of the single player game.
Overall, Killzone 2 offers a beautiful, rich experience that’s not without some minor problems like the partner AI or the generic story. But, if you own a Playstation 3 this is a definite must buy.