Killzone 2 - Review

War. Perfected.

Killzone 2 is the first major PS3 exclusive of 2009. With years of hype and expectation on its shoulders, much pressure has been on Guerilla Games to deliver after a less than impressive showing with Killzone on Playstation 2. Can the sequel banish the demons of its older brother and deliver a truly defining first person shooter experience for this generation of consoles?

Killzone 2 begins as the ISA (Interplanetary Strategic Alliance) invasion of Helghast – the home planet of the Helghan – begins. In the previous game, the Helghast, led by Scholar Visari (and voiced by the brilliant Brian Cox) invaded the ISA planet of Vekta, and the counter invasion is an attempt by the ISA to arrest Visari and put an end to the bloody conflict. The game’s intro begins in a Starship Troopers style narrated telecast, crossing over from an ISA narrator to Visari, as the starships of the ISA enter Helghast space and the first troops begin landing.

INTRO VIDEO:


You play as Sergeant Tomas Sevchenko (or “Sev” to his squad mates), a member of Alpha Squad led by the hardened vetern Rico and joined by Corporals Garza and Natko. The game’s early story involves setting a foothold in the capital city of Pyyrhus, before other events occur which lead you on to the story’s conclusion. The story itself is nothing that hasn’t been done before, but what is done is done exceptionally well, with fantastic set pieces and tense action moments, which when all brought together is more than enough to get you through. The odd emotional moment doesn’t hurt either.

Voice acting at times does feel a little strained, but is believable and in my opinion is done very well for the most part. The characters do feel real, and the sense of comradery between squad mates – despite the occasional bickering – only adds to the atmosphere.

If there is one thing that Killzone 2 does better than any other game I’ve played it’s the atmosphere. Guerilla Games have created was is without a doubt one of the best looking (if not THE best looking) console games ever. Everything is detailed from atmospheric environments to weather patterns and even the shell casings from the bullets. The attention to detail is just incredible and the screenshots in this review can’t do it justice as you need to see it in motion to believe it. Every surface reflects light like it really would, all light sources are independent and respond accordingly, everything! You will find yourself fighting across close quarters alleyways, open cliff side deserts and even on moving trains. The last level is really something to behold from a visual and technical standpoint.

This attention to detail also translates to the weapons, which reflect appropriately depending on light and shadows and respond like real weapons with insanely accurate kick back of the weapon as you unload a full clip. Coupled with this is the sense of inertia that they have managed to implement into the controls. The weapons feel like they should in real life, despite the fact that the weight of the controller in your hands never changes. When using a pistol or light submachine gun you can turn and aim more quickly than say when you’re using a heavier weapon like a rocket launcher or one of the games unique weapons. This “weightiness” translates into other movements like climbing ladders, jumping and sprinting.

The weapons are fun to use and most have ironsight aiming for nailing quick headshots. In fact, thanks to the widening of the reticule from going full auto the game requires you to shoot like a real soldier – in short bursts – to make sure your shots are accurate enough. The reloads are also beautiful, with unique variations for each weapon. I find myself wanting to reload as often as possible; not jusy because I should have a full clip but also because it looks so freakin’ good! Initially you’ll find it difficult to part with the standard ISA rifle as its helpful dot sight and all round suitability means it has no real downsides. But once you start to experiment with all the different weapons you’ll quickly come to appreciate the variety and will be hard pressed to find a favourite. Certainly one of the best features is the aiming on the sniper rifle. The game requires you to hold the SIXAXIS steady whilst aiming, otherwise the crosshairs will move around. This is meant to simulate holding a real weapon in your hands. It works great, and can be used for small adjustments in aiming. But what makes it even better is that when a grenade goes off near you, the controller will vibrate, causing the crosshairs to move. It is a truly incredible sense of realism that has been implemented.

SIXAXIS also features when placing explosives and turning valves. It’s quite intuitive and is ultimately a clever yet simple implementation of the oft forgotten feature of the PS3 controller. The game also uses surround sound brilliantly in a pivotal part of the game.

Killzone 2’s shooting mechanics are great and in my opinion are a breath of fresh air from arcade shooters like Resistance and Halo. Killzone 2’s slow placing, accurate firing and innovative cover system ultimately results in a more methodical progression, which is just like the way real gun fights occur. You can’t take many hits, even on the easy difficultly levels, and heroic bursts into open space will get you killed. The harder difficulty levels are quite a challenge, and this is only enhanced with the removal of the HUD (heads up display) and cross hairs from the Elite difficulty, meaning you don’t know how many grenades/ammo you have left and practically forces you to always aim down the iron sights… again like real life!

This sense of immersion is what sets Killzone 2 apart from any other shooter. The graphics and presentation compliment the gameplay and realism and vice-vearsa. This extends to your squad mates and enemies who – thanks to the voice acting and graphics – feel like real people that you are fighting with and against. A.I. on both sides is great, with enemies and friends cleverly using covering fire to allow advances and grenades to flush you out if you dig in. The Helghast know how to flank you and your squad mates, and it’s up to you to lead the charge and press on in the level. Mastering the cover system is required at the higher difficulty levels, and only with that, an understanding of the weapons and enemies and a sense of awareness have you any hope of completing the game on the hardest mode. The last level on the game even on normal mode is something to behold. It is this intensity that helps make Killzone 2 different. That last level will for some be unlike anything you will have played before and there are genuine moments of panic as you feel the Helghast closing in around you. Every battle responds with advances and retreats and ultimately it is up to you – the player – to make sure the ISA gets through it.

The brilliance of the game’s design extends to multiplayer which sacrifices the cover system from the single player in favour of a more fast paced and deep progression system of badges and classes. Like any other shooter you gain experience from matches – for kills, completing objectives, anything – and all this helps to level you up. As you progress you unlock new classes and weapons which have specific class-unique abilities, like the Engineer being able to place and repair turrents or the Scout being able to cloak and then tag enemies with his scanner.

This progression and the great game modes like Warzone make for a truly great online experience, with team play a necessity to succeed. Once you start playing with all the varying classes you’ll be hard pressed to give your PS3 a break and cool down as it is highly (and I mean HIGHLY) addicitive. All this and still the jaw-dropping visuals of the single player and it all runs with a butter smooth framerate. Throw in voice chat and excellent level design to suit all players and game types, Killzone 2’s multiplayer alone is worthy of the €50 price tag.

Killzone 2 is exceptional on all fronts, with amazing visuals, intense and satisfying gameplay, fantastic multiplayer and an all round great immersive experience unlike anything that has come before it. It’s been nearly half a decade in the works, but the wait has been worth it. Guerilla Games have been venerated as the top quality developers many believed they really were, Sony have a huge grin on their face for silencing all the doubters and PS3 owners have a game, or rather an experience, that they and only they can enjoy knowing that at the end they have played one of the best FPS games of all time.

Presentation: 10

Flawless in every sense of the word, definitely the best looking game I've ever seen from enviroments to all the little details.

Gameplay: 10

Intense, methodical, rewarding. Killzone 2 gives you a bit of everything every step of the way.

Story: 10

It might not be new, but what's done is done well, with plenty of memorable moments and great storytelling.

Design: 10

Butter smooth, intuitive implementation of SIXAXIS and a nice trohpy set, not to mention excellent level design.

Content: 10

Once you put it into the PS3 you won't want to take it out. A rewarding multiplayer coupled with a single player game that takes on new tactical measures with increasing difficulty, you couldn't ask for more.

Overall: 10

~The Damo (I'm BACK!!!)

AVGN Double

Hey all, long time no post, I've just been crazy busy and normal service will be resumed next weekend. In the meantime here's two new AVGN videos:

Michael Jackson's Moonwalker:


Milon's Secret Castle:


That moonwalker video practically inspired me to learn it....

~The Damo

Killzone 2 - Preview

Welcome to Helghan Soldier!

Boy oh boy! I have been waiting a LONG time to do this preview. Since...late 2007 I think. Well the time is almost upon us, Killzone 2 is set to hit store shelves on the 27th of February and with pre-orders in Europe alone at 1.1million units, what is it about Killzone 2 that has people going crazy???

Well ladies and gentlemen, let me take you back to 2005. 4 years ago, the PS3 was still in development, and Sony began advertising new games for the PS2's younger brother. One of the games that got a trailer was Killzone 2, sequel to the love-it-or-hate-it Killzone on PS2. Killzone tried to push the PS2 to its limits, but in fact went beyond it, and the console could barely play the game. It sits with an average of 70/100 on most aggregate websites to this day and it was any wonder why Sony decided to give a sequel the light of day. At E3 2005, this now famous trailer hit the scene:

I suggest watching in "High Quality" using the toolbar in the bottom right.


This trailer is quite obviously CGI, but the important point was that it was built to PS3 specs, meaning, theoretically the game could look like this upon release. When it emerged that it was in fact CGI but it was in fact what the developers hoped the game would look like, the shitstorm that hit the media was unreal, with unthinkable abuse being thrown around by fanboys on all sides. I mean look at it! How could any game look that good?

Well Killzone 2 sat quietly until 2007, when at E3 it was revealed that actual gameplay footage would be on show. Following the trend from 05, media publications were quick to criticise saying how people would be fooled again, and that Guerilla Games and Sony would never even come close to the target render. Well in 2007 those critics were left with a bitter taste....



Now this is in fact gameplay footage, but there were still doubters saying that there was no way this could be actual gameplay. It looked good, but still wasn't close to the CGI and as had been the custom they came under for heavy criticism again.

However, all that changed in 2008, when the pre-alpha code was on display at E3 2008, where people could actually play the game. Suddenly perception started to change, this game was becoming remarkably close to this CG footage. There were still doubters, but they were now few and far between, with most realising that Guerilla had in fact pulled off what was once deemed to be the impossible.

Multiplayer Trailer:


As anticipation grew, it was revealed mid-Novemember 2008 that media outlets had received a "Preview Code", meaning the game must be close to the final product. The improvements in visuals were incredible, with many now realising that the game may just have surpassed the CGI. How could a game look better than CGI??



Just when anticpation had reached an all time high, it was suddenly revealed in January 2009 that reviewers had received the FINAL CODE. The release date was set, reviewers were ready. But was the internet and all gamers across the world ready?

Gametrailers Full Preview:


Killzone 2 will continue the story from Killzone and Killzone: Liberation, with the ISA launching a counter-invasion to the Helghast on their home world of Helghan. Killzone 2 plans to give gamers the most immersive experience ever seen in a game. With visuals unlike anything seen on consoles before, and gameplay to match according to most reviews and a healthy average score of 93/100 based on 40 reviews with all the major publications having their scores counted, means Killzone 2 looks set to be a strong contender for Game of the Year 2009...and it's only February....

~The Damo

I Rarely Do This....

But this video somes up better than anyone can do in words what is going to happen over the next month or so in the video gaming world.... even Hitler is screwed....




The Beginning of The End....

~The Damo

How men think?

What are you thinking about??

That's the question most women seem to think men struggle with. Truth of the matter is, we don't struggle with it, in fact, we absorb it. So much so that in the seconds between the question being asked and giving an answer, a man's mind is working it's hardest, not because it's difficult, it's because we think about it a lot. Hopefully the comic below will explain....


I suggest you click on this link to view it full size:

Credit goes to.... you know who you are!

~The Damo

Jose Punks the World!!!!

Brilliant....just...brilliant!!!!

Jose Quits Setanta Sports:


Jose Packs His Bags:


~The Damo

Guitar Hero: World Tour - Review

GH: WT is the fourth installment in the Guitar Hero franchise. What sets this game apart from its predecessors is the inclusion of the drum kit and microphone, transforming the Guitar Hero experience from a single player game to a party one. Rockband and its sequel have proven that the ability to play as a band is an incredible selling point and so the Guitar Hero franchise has had to reinvent itself to keep up with the competition, but the question is, has it worked?

World Tour sees you take the role of a rockstar and has you performing across a whole host of venues. The game allows you to create your own rockstar, and dress him/her in whatever way you like, as well as customising whatever instrument you play. You have the option of playing guitar, bass, drums or vocals.

The features five difficulty modes; Beginner, Easy, Medium, Hard and Expert. Not being a particularly well versed music person I started out on easy mode. Well in actual fact I started on beginner but it's totally insulting so I recommend you go to easy mode. Putting it simply, Guitar Hero is a helluvalotta fun!! It's such a different experience to play a game like it after hours spent in Resistance and Fallout. The Guitar Hero gameplay is well known, even by those who haven't played it. The discs on the screen are associated to the music that is being played, you play the note when it hits the strike line by pressing the appropriate fret button and strumming at the right time. I'm gonna avoid the technicality of explaining hammer-ons and fret tapping and just say that the game is very easy to play. And even though it is easy, it's still very enjoyable, as you are very conscious of how well you're playing, given the "Rock meter" on the left as well as the combo indicator and note counter.

To compliment the difficulty levels, there is naturally a great range of songs which vary in difficulty as you progress, i.e. the songs you play in the first performance are a lot easier than those in the last one. The setlist available is great, and you'll be hard pressed to find a song that you don't like. Yeah, sure, you may not like a certain band or whatever, but the quality of the songs on show is fantastic - all of which are master tracks and no covers. There is also a host of cameo appearances of familiar faces in the music industry like Ozzy Osbourne, Sting and Jimi Hendrix to name a few.

The game is tied together by points and cash. Points earned are determined by how well you play, including high combos, obtaining star power, long strings of successfully hit notes and so on. The cash you earn is based on your overall performance and other particulars like a "Hot start" and "Never going red on the rock meter". The points are uploaded to a worldwide leader board and the cash is used to buy more venues and gear for your rockstar. What you're wearing or how your instrument is decorated doesn't influence the level of your performance, at least I don't think it does. What adds to the GH experience is the on screen performance of the virtual band members. All the actions are beautifully rendered in the 3d cartoony like style of the series and are accurately portrayed according to the actions/notes you're playing, as well as set pieces that may indeed imitate the bands from which the songs were taken.

I've only too complaints when it comes to World Tour. Firstly, there are times when it feels like the notes your striking either don't represent or don't coinicide with the music that is being played. This is definitely more evident in the lower difficulties but you don't really know it on the higher ones. This then leads to my second problem: it feels as though the step up between difficulty levels is sometimes too difficult. For example, on easy mode you're only ever required to hit Green, Red and Yellow. Medium is Green, Red, Yellow and Blue. And finally orange is introduced on hard mode. Now on first glance that's ok, but the transition to hard mode is more significant as you have to start changing your hand position, whereas in medium or easy you can just leave your hand as it is and strike the notes as required. I would suggest that a better difficulty progression would involve all the notes from the start, but having to strike them less frequently, so you get used to moving your hand.

It is a minor complaint when you consider that the difficulty progresses as you work your way through the gigs. And what's great about the game is that you actually DO feel yourself progressing, be it a higher score or a longer string of successful notes or whatever. You CAN see your progression! And playing through a song that you've mastered is still as fun as it was the first time you played.

Guitar Hero: World Tour has a lot to offer, and is certainly one to break out when you're having a party. Then you can be like a real band where you kick the crap out of someone for a rubbish performance, as well as all the coke and booze.

Presentation: 8.5
Yeah it looks good for what it offers, but you never feel WOW-ed by the visuals at any point. We all know they could get more out of the 360 and PS3.

Gameplay: 9.3
Plays great even if it is a little hard at time. Once you get motorin' it'll be hard to drop the guitar, drum sticks or mic.

Design: 9.0
One of my cymbals doesn't work, and as I said sometimes the notes seem out of sync, but it doesn't distract too much from the overall experience.

Content: 9.0
Great set list and tonnes of replay value. I would prefer if they gave more of the treatment Rockband gets with the worthwhile updates.

Overall: 8.7

Bring on Guitar Hero: Metallica!!!!!

~The Damo