The Gamer's Quarter

Ryan - SuperWes' Bane · Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2005 6:37 pm Post subject: Killzone for PS2, any good?

I remember hearing that it was supposed to be PS2 Halo killer, but that it really didn't end being that superb. Maybe a 7/10? Is this an overrated or underated score? As far as FPS go, if I can find it for about $20-30 should I pick it up?

ApM · Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2005 8:26 pm Post subject: Re: Killzone for PS2, any good?

dhex · Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2005 8:58 pm Post subject:

killzone is a strong 7.4/10 contender, a high score for a somewhat flawed console fps. despite a strong, gritty, straight-out-of-some-totalitarian-future-like-shit-man graphical aesthetic that really lets you see your character feel the bullets whizz past their (your) ear, it's still not quite up to the honorific "halo killer."
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player 2 · . Joined: 10 Jul 2005 Posts: 585 Location: Madison, WI USA

how's the killzone multiplayer?
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RaBeeWilliams · Beatnik Joined: 07 Dec 2004 Posts: 274 Location: Thibodaux

Well, there are really great maps. I never got the chance to play with others, so I only got to play against bots. but there were certain situations where I absolutely could not get any headway of an opposing team (one mode allowed one team of Helgest[sp] to storm the ISP, while the ISP had to camp in their territory and take out any conflict until time runs out).

This makes me think that only a good form of teamwork is going to be your best offense on some maps, since you can't control what orders you want to send out to your bots and they just go in their own direction once they respawn, anyhow. I'm guessing that would say something good for mulitplayer.

ps: I really liked Killzone's gritty take on console shooters. For once, snipering was not that easy, but had an outstanding reward once mastered, that being 'one-shot kills'. Nice balance with all the weapons, minus the ISP having built in grenade rounds on their standard rifles. In this game, splash-damage reigns king. And woefully, anyone who gets hold of the rocket/grenade launcher is going to take the throne for a good while. Those moments aren’t that fun. But the sprint button comes in handy when you can hear one of the rounds from those guns being fired.

Ryan - SuperWes' Bane · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 1:55 am Post subject: Re: Killzone for PS2, any good?

SuperWes · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 2:48 am Post subject: Re: Killzone for PS2, any good?

Dracko · . Joined: 10 Oct 2005 Posts: 2613

I'm going to go out on a limb and state that Killzone is a Halo killer in the story, character, aesthetic, sound and weapon departments.

I've personally found it far more enjoyable to play than Halo 2 (The first Halo is still quite good), despite it's somewhat glitchy nature, something which I found easily forgivable anyway.

All in all, get it if you find it cheap. It's not bad as most people make it out to be. It's only real flaw is that it got rushed.
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SuperWes · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 8:09 am Post subject:

player 2 · . Joined: 10 Jul 2005 Posts: 585 Location: Madison, WI USA

That's something that I would say...
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Wii #: 8749 9109 9732 3653

"It is a peaceful way of understanding life, to play"
_Marcel Duchamp

dhex · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 8:19 am Post subject:

i fear i was being a bit too subtle.

um, it's ok. it's unintentionally funny. it has the exact same color pallette as shadow of the colossus.
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Dracko · . Joined: 10 Oct 2005 Posts: 2613

player 2 · . Joined: 10 Jul 2005 Posts: 585 Location: Madison, WI USA

Minimilist refers to a movement in modern art that made little to no outside references. Killzone is not minimalist.

Dracko: if you really want to discuss the importance of the game's story, art, sound, etc. you might be interested in saying how they affect the overall experience. I'd imagine that Killzone cares very much about its own universe - discuss how the story etc. draws the player into the game. And then discuss why that matters...
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Wii #: 8749 9109 9732 3653

"It is a peaceful way of understanding life, to play"
_Marcel Duchamp

Dracko · . Joined: 10 Oct 2005 Posts: 2613

dhex · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 1:23 pm Post subject:

first of all, neither of you can spell.

"minimalist"

is the word you're looking for.

secondly, you're both right. except in this case art school boy is wrong, though so was dracko. this sentence:

player 2 · . Joined: 10 Jul 2005 Posts: 585 Location: Madison, WI USA

Was that really necessary?
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Wii #: 8749 9109 9732 3653

"It is a peaceful way of understanding life, to play"
_Marcel Duchamp

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

No

Answer in reference to the thread question.

dhex · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 1:45 pm Post subject:

Mr. Mechanical · Friendly Stranger Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 1276

What's the AI like in Killzone? That was what made Halo such a great experience for me, the way each individual encounter never played out exactly the same was a huge reason for why I played the game through as many times as I did.

The AI of Halo (the first one) is still some of the most dynamic and fun enemy AI I've ever encountered in a game.

dhex · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 5:34 pm Post subject:

it's not terrible. good at laying down supressing fire, but most ai's at this point are ok with that.

i didn't think halo's ai was that fantastic, myself.
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dark steve · . Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 1110

You should have turned up the difficulty. It's really kind of incredible.

Mr. Mechanical · Friendly Stranger Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 1276

Yeah, the difficulty levels really do matter. Don't bother with Easy, that's for grannies who have never held a joystick in their lives, and Normal is only good for the first level or two where you're still learning the controls. Heroic was what the game was designed around, and Legendary is there if you're feeling confident enough to test your mettle against the developers preferred challenge level.

Enemies counts increase the harder you play it at, which increases the dynamics of the battle because they all think for themselves but look out for each other. It's the only FPS I've ever played where I found myself entrenched in ten minute long firefights against a group of enemies. And that's just a single group, there's like, hundreds throughout the entire game.

dark steve · . Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 1110

Seriously! It's a real shame that the campaign feels so unfinished.

Mr. Mechanical · Friendly Stranger Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 1276

Yeah, at least they put all their effort into the part that really mattered: Making the game engage you. That all people ever talk about is the crappy level design is kind of missing the whole point, I feel, as to what makes the game so special.

I mean, yeah. The game is clichéd in just about every aspect from the story to the Flood. It's clichéd as fuck. But it's still amazing as hell once you start getting inside the heads of your enemies. The first time I threw a grenade at a Red Elite on a bridge and he jumped over the side rather than get blown up I grinned for a solid thirty minutes. I had just learned a new tactic to add to my repertoire of alien killing skills.

The first game had so much space and room for the encounters to play out in too. That's what I disliked the most about the sequel. Everything felt too crammed together, it seemed there was never enough room to really sustain a ten minute long firefight. It was just a pretty backdrop that you ran through on your way to the end. You could tell they dicked around too much and had to develop it in six months to make the ship date. Just look at all the things that they hyped up for two years and then cut out at the last moment.

But, yeah. I really like the character designs and the general aesthetic of Killzone. Sounds like a good game to buy on budget nowadays.

dhex · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 8:09 pm Post subject:

for 15 bucks, killzone is probably worth it. for 9.99, totally. it's an enjoyable, pleasant to look at game.

but yeah, i don't think i played halo beyond normal. i got really bored near the end, even though it tried to ratchet up the tension. some games can't be powered through, i guess?
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Mr. Mechanical · Friendly Stranger Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 1276

Well, Halo isn't really the kind of game you play to beat. It's the kind of game you play because the act of playing itself is gorgeous. It was months before I actually got around to beating it for the first time.

player 2 · . Joined: 10 Jul 2005 Posts: 585 Location: Madison, WI USA

Is it weird that I have both Halo 1 and Halo 2 but I can't get myself to play them?
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Wii #: 8749 9109 9732 3653

"It is a peaceful way of understanding life, to play"
_Marcel Duchamp

dessgeega · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 9:02 pm Post subject:

there should be a band called "grandpants".
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chompers po pable · . Joined: 10 Nov 2005 Posts: 142

The Gamer's Quarter
Don't bother with Easy, that's for grannies who have never held a joystick in their lives.

Ryan - SuperWes' Bane · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 9:51 pm Post subject:

I'm definitely gonna look to pick this up for a good price then. And I'm also going to look into the international thing. Thanks for the info Wesley E.

Szczepaniak · . Joined: 19 Feb 2005 Posts: 770

I really liked Killzone, more so than Halo... but that's another topic of discussion.

My only gripe with Killzone, is the choosing of different characters. It breaks up the flow somewhat, especially since the game isn't quite worth playing though with each of them. I stuck with the main bloke. Quite a fun title. dhex is right, a good 7.4, out of ten. Some will love it though.

dessgeega · Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2005 11:29 am Post subject:

stay tuned to the gamer's quarter for more grandparents holding joysticks! (really.)
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dhex · Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2005 11:38 am Post subject:

i'm surprised there isn't a special japanese fanart category for pictures of megaman doing it with the elderly or whatever.
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sawtooth · . Joined: 02 Nov 2005 Posts: 419

Me too!

I can get you a picture of megaman having sex with a female cutperson, though. With a surpised iceman in the background.

... it's swedish, though. sorry.

Lestrade · Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2005 3:14 pm Post subject:

dhex · Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2005 3:54 pm Post subject:

what about that hardcore grandma gamer thing? i don't think that's entirely a hoax.
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Ryan - SuperWes' Bane · Posted: Sun Jan 22, 2006 6:35 am Post subject:

Finally beat this game today, and I did like it for the most part. A little too rough for me though. The Vehicles, weapons, and feel of Halo was much better than this game, but this was by far one of the best FPS I have ever played. It has a little replay value if you want to beat different levels with each of the different people, and I also enjoyed the Multiplayer with my friend. Online Play looks interesting too. I guess once I get the online adapter I'll have to start playing more games online. The new PS3 is going to have it built in, right?

Mr. Mechanical · Friendly Stranger Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 1276

I think I'm halfway through Killzone. Level 5, the docks, right? This is a long level and it kind of starts to drag near the end. I keep playing though because I want to see what other locales I get to visit. I've heard mention of a super fortress. I'll bet that place will be pretty cool to shoot bad guys in.

Ryan - SuperWes' Bane · Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2006 12:21 am Post subject:

The battles get pretty hairy the farther you get into the game, and the AI is better too. I really hate the Elite guards . . . and the docks? You're maybe 35% through. I think the docks is only the 5 level or so. Who is your favorite playre btw? I ended up using Rico the most.

Mr. Mechanical · Friendly Stranger Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 1276

I'll probably end up using Hakha for the rest of the adventure. I have a thing for those Helghast weapons, especially that heavy machine gun of theirs. I might switch back to the girl, as I like her night vision (however useless it may be) and her quiet, sniper-like pistol. Her movement is also more lithe and catlike, much more responsive than the more sluggish male characters. I've also noticed several places that only she is able to access, usually via a small hole in the wall, so it will be interesting to see what kind of alternate areas there are to explore.

35% you say? Hmm, this is turning out much longer than I expected. A review I read said the whole thing was over in about six hours or so, yet I know I've been playing for at least that long. What a nice surprise.

Dracko · . Joined: 10 Oct 2005 Posts: 2613

The only problem with playing as Hakha is you don't get to hear his wisecracks while doing so.

Luger is a lot of fun. I don't know about you, but I feel that she really changes the way I approach the game.
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"This is the most fun I've ever had without being drenched in the blood of my enemies!"

Ryan - SuperWes' Bane · Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2006 12:35 am Post subject:

The thing that made this game longer for me was the lack of help you usually get in games. It felt nice to get lost, backtrack, and find my way around. Especially in the jungle stages. Too many games these days hold your hand as you go through them, or don't leave any option but to go forward and finish the game. Like I could set down a gun I thought I had no ammo for at the beginning of a level,find the ammo, go back get the gun and refill. I find that useful. The later levels' ambiguity lengthen the game somewhat, and the increasing difficulty of the bad guys had me getting killed on more than one occasion. I'm not sure whether or not I like those huge expansive levels I played in Halo or the more fragmented, but still connected levels of Killzone.

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

So, ummm, I finally got around to playing it after picking it up for $15 about 5 months ago.

I don't like it at all. It is super transparent and very poor as a FPS. The weapons are stupid and they sound like kids toys. The enemy manages to always, always hit you when they should have the ability to, or when it would make about a million times more sense to hit someone else that is out in the wide open. The enemies are also not restrained by the need to reload their guns like I have to after each stupid use of the buckshot.

Oh, the scripting is terribly transparent. I mean, this may as well be a side scrolling game ala contra. Seriosously you can really only go in one direction and if you get lost it's usually because you haven't killed something yet to open a door.

Now... I know this was talked about, but I feel like a gawdamned retard not being able to jump and only being able to melee attack when I am in the right area. Also, why the hell are the "human" characters not wearing a damn helmet?

I am about 2 hours in at level 3 or something... I am pretty much hating it right now because one little mistake costs you your life or a really good chunk of it. So turning a corner and running into two guys will get you killed (oh, yes, it is more "realistic" that way, but ummm... this game isn't exactly going for realism). I am going to try this level again really quick, but every time I die it is usually because I am being shot and have NO clue who is shooting at me.

This is mainly because the sound is terrible, specifically the spacial sound of the bullets and the people. If someone has to tell you something "mission critical" you can hear them no matter where you are. I have to use surround sound to figure out if I am anywhere near the person and locate them when their voice enters the rear speaker channels. Also, pressure sensitive buttons rear their hideous head again. Why the hell do I have to use so much force to press a damn buttton? Where is the good old on/off button of old? I mean, I understand that you have to hold a trigger down all the way to fire a gun, but seriously, this is not the same thing. Precision shots with the sniper rifel are really bad, but worst is when you come around a corner and are getting turned into Swiss Cheese by helmet heads only to die and realise that you were never firing the gun because you weren't pressing hard enough on the button.

gahh
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DaleNixon · . Joined: 08 Jul 2005 Posts: 179

To be fair, Shaper, you just finished playing through Half-Life 2. Are you using a DualShock 2 or the Logitech Wireless controller?

dhex · Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2006 5:58 pm Post subject:

after half life 2 everything else seems like a bucket of crap.
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dark steve · . Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 1110

Yeah.

Also, try playing as the woman? She gets more interesting things to do (or she did in the demo).

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

TheRumblefish · . Joined: 29 Jan 2006 Posts: 258 Location: Florida

Dracko · . Joined: 10 Oct 2005 Posts: 2613

Having replayed it again recently on a friend's X-Box, I've gained a new appreciation of Halo 2. However, I still dislike the first one. The series seems to suffer from the exact same problems, and benefit from the exact same brilliance, as its spiritual predecessor, Marathon.

Just like Marathon, Halo is grossly unbalanced and has overly complicated level design which breaks the flow of the game too quickly and makes me lose interest. And just like Marathon 2 and Marathon Infinity, Halo 2 fixes the balance issues and its maps are generally better thought out, though still not directed enough. I don't think level design is Bungie's forte, but I underestimated the storyline in Halo the first time I played through the games, I've come to realise. In Marathon though, the storyline got bogged down by the gameplay. This is less of a problem with the Halo series, which has a more cinematic feel to it.
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"This is the most fun I've ever had without being drenched in the blood of my enemies!"

dark steve · . Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 1110

Marathon is basically a hypertext novel when it's really on, so yeah, that's a good assessment. Although as usual, there are a lot of reasons to forgive the original's various level design issues.