The Killzone franchise seems to keep going with better and better performances each time out. I’ve always liked the series, and remember it fondly going back to the first one for the PS2 back in 2004. Now that I’ve been playing Killzone 3 for almost a week — including in 3D — it’s easily one of the best first-person shooters on the PS3.
The game continues the story of the war between the ISA and Helghast on the planet Helghan, and literally picks up right where Killzone 2 left off. Complete with imagery, uniforms and symbols that I would say are clearly inspired by militaristic regimes like the Nazis and Soviet Union, the Helghast make interesting villains. For me, personally, they are far more memorable (not to mention cooler) than the Covenant could ever be in the Halo franchise (of which I’m also a fan).
Part of the reason I say that is because despite the interplanetary warfare, Killzone 3 continues a story where humans are fighting people who basically are human too. There aren’t monsters here, unless you count the mechanized baddies that you have to take down, but instead conventional fighting forces that seem to have access to crazy weaponry.
With all this in place, the game plays really well, and looks phenomenal to boot. The visuals are extremely detailed, especially in the junkyard mission, and the colours and textures look fabulous. You lose a little bit of the saturation and lustre once you start playing in 3D, but the depth and overall experience seems more fluid and natural than what Call of Duty: Black Ops was in 3D.
The level design isn’t a huge departure from the previous game, though the variety of locales makes things interesting. You get a weird jungle, an arctic location with snow falling all around you, a junkyard, a Helghast base and even moving monster machines. The weapons have also seen an upgrade with mobile mortars, energy-charged guns and even a cool jetpack that you can use to fly around in spurts. Mounted weapons are also there to detach and use freely.
Enemy AI is solid here, so expect a fight to the death. As the game progresses, the level of sophistication and desperation combine for some unpredictable moves. They throw grenades a lot more than they did in Killzone 2, and will not hesitate to melee attack if you get too close. Your fellow ISA troops, on the other hand, weren’t given the same level of smarts, unfortunately. Some of the same stupid things from the last game happen again. They don’t take cover properly, aren’t very accurate and Rico tends to make things a bit too difficult for you sometimes.
Meanwhile, multiplayer is a lot of fun when you’re ready to take on the world. I’m a particular fan of the Infiltrator role, whereby you try to cause chaos behind enemy lines by being disguised. Also love Assassination mode, where one team has to try and kill a target being protected by the other team.
If you’re a fan of shooter titles, you will probably really enjoy Killzone 3. The gameplay could use fewer cutscene interruptions, but the story is worth following, and the dialogue is well done too. But the action also speaks for itself, which is why this is a pure fragfest.
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