Killzone 3

So of course, since they decided to release on the same day, everyone is trying to compare Killzone 3 to Bulletstorm and say which is the better game and so on and so forth.

Time to jump on the bandwagon.

The history of Killzone as a franchise is actually really interesting to me. The first one came out on the PS2 without much pizazz. It seemed like any other first person shooter, didn't really have anything going for it. Then buzz about the PS3 started to circulate, and in steps Killzone 2 with a mind-blowing in game cutscene that had graphics way beyond what anyone had experienced at the time. Of course, then there were delays and delays and by the time it finally came out, everyone else had caught up and the graphics only seemed very well done instead of crap your pants awesome. And sure enough, the gameplay seemed like any other first person shooter, just with a leaden sense to your movement and firing that seemed to add realism/weight to what you did. So now Killzone 3 starts getting hyped and all of a sudden it's being treated like this behemoth of the PS3 exclusive lineup with 3D, Move support, a robust multiplayer system and of course jetpacks. Now, I cannot speak to the 3D or Move features since I don't have the money for either, so alas, most of Killzone's novel improvements are lost on me (as I suspect are they on most people). Nonetheless, does this third and probably not final Killzone game live up to the hype? Yes and no.

Stack it up against Killzone 2, and the improvements are enormous. Shooting seems more fluid, movements still carry that leaden sense but not in a restrictive way, the story pacing is solid, enemy AI is responsive and often deadly, and oh yeah, the jetpack is pretty awesome. However, it also falls into a lot of the traps of stereotypical story based first person shooters. Yes, there are some great action set pieces, but they seem almost tacked on, like your standard on-rails sequences or moments that screamed "HEY LOOK AT THIS BIG THING, BE IMPRESSED AND THEN KILL IT!" or "THIS IS INTENSE BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF ENEMIES FIRING AT YOU! RIGHT? RIGHT?!?" In short, the moments didn't stand out. Most of the game came down to just shooting literally hundreds (there are achievements for killing 500, 1000 and 1500 Helghast...I hit over 500) of Helghast in the head over and over again. Now, I do have to give them credit that the environments were spectacular and it never felt like I was retreading an old area, and that the pacing was strong enough that an area never outlasted its welcome. Yet, much like the story itself, they all still kind of blended together.

So then we come back to Bulletstorm, because it's almost the complete antithesis to Killzone 3. Bulletstorm's AI is terrible, Killzone's is great. Bulletstorm's set pieces are amazing and memorable, Killzone's are good but easily forgotten. Bulletstorm has big bulky men shouting at each other for comedic effect, Killzone uses it for dramatic. Bulletstorm has lush, vibrant jungle environments with very distinct areas, Killzone has beautifully detailed urban and snow-covered environments (and one jungle section) that while they stand out in their beauty, don't stand out otherwise. What it all comes down to is, surprisingly for me, Bulletstorm is the better game. Or rather, it's the game I want more games to be like. Killzone 3 is the perfect example of a high-end FPS that provides a very solid and enjoyable experience, but also unfortunately just seems to be a variation on the mold all other FPSs adhere to.

The point is this. Killzone 3 is a fun game. The multiplayer, as little as I've experienced of it, also appears to be doing some innovating that looks pretty interesting (I'm just not good enough and so get my ass handed to me regularly). Its main problem is that it just doesn't stand out as anything more than a high quality shooter. Good on the Killzone franchise for becoming a big name from humble beginnings, but once you've faced this same problem three games in a row...maybe it's time for something else to come along and take the exclusive crown.

Killzone 3 gets a 7/10.