Killzone 3 Review




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Developer: Guerilla Games Publisher: SCEA
Release Date: February 22, 2011 Available On: PS3

You know what is a stupid term? “Halo-killer.” When was the last time you actually played a first-person shooter that was

anything like Halo? When did you play a game that made you stop and think, “This makes me never want to touch Halo again.” What is this, 2002?

Apparently, that was what Guerilla Games and SCEA were originally going for with Killzone. They never met that mark, but Killzone and Killzone 2 were solid games, despite the various amounts of criticism that they received. Whether or not Killzone 3 is a “Halo-killer” is irrelevant. What it is, actually, is one of the most impressive shooters I have ever played on a Sony platform.

I really enjoyed Killzone 2’s campaign, and I fought through the Helghast all the way until the very end, when the ISA grunts Sev and Rico managed to kill off the Helghan leader, Visari. The events of Killzone 3 pick up right where Killzone 2 left off, but the story jumps around a bit. You begin by infiltrating a Hig base on a mission to rescue Captain Narville and execute Chairman Stahl. Things go wrong, but such is life in Killzone 3. The campaign is nine missions of pure chaos, stretched between moments of terror and insanity with intermittent cinematics to give you a breather. There is never a dull moment, but the show really goes down on the battlefield.

Technically speaking, you won’t find a better-looking, better-sounding shooter with better music than Killzone 3 on the PlayStation 3. You will be hard-pressed to find any complaints when you play through this game’s single-player or multiplayer components. The soundtrack is truly incredible; some of the epic tracks in this game rival those found in the Lord of the Rings films. The sound effects explode out of the speakers, and the graphics will hush any of those who were upset with the grim color palette and lack of artistic variety featured in Killzone 2.

Playing Killzone 3 is much easier for beginners than Killzone 2. Although the game is still difficult compared to Halo, the controls have been adjusted and the mechanics have been enhanced so that the game does not feel quite as “heavy” or “bulky”. To put it bluntly, your character feels less like a human tank in Killzone 3. The iron-sights aiming works better than ever, but firing from the hip was my preferred method throughout most of the game. I enjoyed using the variety of assault rifles, submachine guns, light machine guns, rifles, explosives, and special weapons throughout the campaign. I just wish that the hit detection was more accurate. I often felt like my bullets would go straight through their targets, especially with the wimpy pistols in the game’s arsenal.

The multiplayer is a well-balanced component of Killzone 3 that works through its diverse character classes and three well-developed gameplay modes: Guerilla Warfare, Warzone, and Operations. Guerilla Warfare is the typical deathmatch-style option and delivers a lot of fun games, but the chaotic pace of the game is a little too much for my liking in some of the maps. It doesn’t take much to kill someone, so balancing an even kill/death ratio is something to be proud of. Dying is common, so you have to get used to it to have any fun. Warzone throws the ISA and Helghast into random deathmatches and team-based objective games over the course of seven rounds. The winning side is the team with the most wins throughout the match. Finally, Operations is a mode featuring in-game cutscenes that display the top players from the offensive ISA and the defensive Helghast teams; the game continues as long as the ISA is able to penetrate the defenses of the Hig players.

I really enjoyed playing online and I found a lot of balance within the character class system. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the Infiltrator class. Using this setup, players can activate a “Disguise” that allows them to sneak into enemy ranks, and unless an opponent looks directly at you, they can be fooled into thinking you are an ally long enough to put a shotgun blast or submachine gun clip into the back of their heads. The Marksman’s “Cloak” is actually much better when it is fully upgraded, allowing you to be completely invisible until causing mortal damage or death to an enemy, as well as offering a sniper rifle in the weapon load out. Other classes offer their own benefits, but it is ultimately up to the player to decide which one works best for each situation or map.

Killzone always had more bark than bite in the past, but Killzone 3 escalates the franchise to the elite ranks and stands as the top PS3-exclusive FPS to date. Although there are some issues with things like the cover system, the difficulty curve near the end of the campaign, and laggy connections online, Killzone 3 is the closest thing to the “PlayStation Halo-killer” that people have been looking for since the original game came out on the PlayStation 2.

I would recommend this game to anyone with a PlayStation 3 looking for an impressive experience. Although the gameplay is still difficult to master, its accessible controls will allow beginners to pick up and enjoy the Killzone experience for the first time like never before. Believe it or not, I hope this is not the end of the Killzone series. Killzone 3 is my personal-favorite shooter of 2011 so far, and I continue to play online frequently. Sony recently released the “Steel Rain” map pack for $4.99 on PlayStation Network. Check that out if you’ve already purchased Killzone 3 or plan to in the future.

Graphics: 9.5
Sound: 9.5
Gameplay: 9
Creativity: 8
Replay Value/Game Length: 9
Final: 9 out of 10
Written by Cliff Bakehorn Write a User Review

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