Killzone 2 Preview

Killzone 2 – Hype Wagon Derailed

Preview written by Zikron on 2/6/09
Last edited on 2/6/09

When I went to Gamestop to preorder my copy of Killzone 2 I thought I was going to get my little code and would be able to start playing the demo that day. I was excited, I thought Killzone 2 had the potential to be Crysis on the PS3. When I got home and entered the code only to find out it was rejected and there was fine print on the card saying the demo would go live on February 5th, I circled the date on my calendar.

Well February 5th has finally arrived and the demo is available to play. The Killzone 2 demo is extremely short at only 15 minutes long and you only get a small glimpse of what is to come so take that in consideration before moving along.

The demo appears to start towards the beginning of the game but not the first level. You come flying in on a drop ship and unload with a team in the middle of a battle. The scene is cool but not epic and that could be because the gamer has very little connection with the characters. You progress through the level with your team and end up in a Rainbow Six position where you have to defend a soldier as he unlocks a door before the demo ends.

Killzone 2 looks great it is up there with Gears of War 2 with the best looking video game. The textures and models are more detailed in Gears of War 2 but Killzone 2 does a lot of tricks with blurring the camera and throwing debris on the camera in a realistic manner. The animation also seems to be a tad bit better in Killzone 2 even when the action picks up it never stutters. Of course this could be because the game is displayed in 720p not the 1080p I've come to love and expect, especially on the PS3.

The gameplay is ok but really isn't anything special. I felt the computer AI was extremely dumb and was never presented with a challenge. I will go back and play it on harder difficulties to see if this changes. While protecting the soldier at the end I was anticipating a horde of soldiers to try and take my position so I took cover behind a rail and waited. It didn't seem that anyone had come until I stood up and realized there were three baddies on the other side. The top of my head and my feet were clearly visible yet not a single shot was fired at me until I stood up. I found this extremely disturbing and am hoping this is addressed before final release.

Overall I am left thinking that the demo should have been longer and more along the lines of the Fear 2 demo where it shows variety the game has to offer. All the excitement I had for this game though has been cut in half and think it has gone from being a must buy to a rent and decide on the multiplayer. If you like KatanOmega and will buy crap for the eye candy though this game needs to be in your collection.

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