Reviews// Killzone 2

So, really, you only have one main weapon until you pick up a different one from a fallen soldier or a weapon rack. Initially I thought this seemed a bit restrictive but I didn't find it a problem for the most part. It's not until the very later stages that you find yourself frantically pillaging the dead for their weapon when you've foolishly found yourself out in the open without ammo - or having brought a sub-machine gun to a RPG fight. Whether it's a pistol or a large machine gun, each weapon delivers a convincing punch, which along with the abundant swearing, cements the game's adult age rating.

Even without the gore of severed limbs or grotesquely torn bodies, the brutal impact of each on-target bullet throws out a shower of blood, sending the enemy pin-wheeling. Explosives fling bodies aloft in a spectacular cloud of fire, smoke and debris. With each hit the pitiful Helghast crumple, flail and slump, or mortally wounded they squirm, dying slowly.

The tone and timbre of the game could be compared to some of the grittier war movies. I wouldn't go so far as to hold it up to Saving Private Ryan's opening sequence, primarily because one of the game's failings is in making a connection between the player and the characters within the game. However, where Killzone 2 lacks the subtle but highly emotional glimpse of torment and horror in the eyes of a mortally wounded soldier, it makes up for it in the scale of its battles and the texture painted by the grand yet minutely detailed settings.

From the high altitude delivery, dropping to the battlefield, across the wind torn desert where the dust ceaselessly streams over rocks, snapping at ropes and tarpaulins, it's a visual feast from the moment the game begins.

Detail, detail, detail: Buildings bristle with antennae, cables, buckled rails, hastily attached boards; the features and skin on a soldier's face or a Helghast's mask are textured even in close focus. Even the finer touches, the stuff that will probably go unnoticed, has been closely regarded; the unique lens reflection effect, the movement of scenery in the environment, the trickles of dust from crumbling concrete, and a degree of "dirtying down" is applied to the whole environment.

It's a considerable departure from uniform spacecraft corridors or walkways and the comparatively idyllic hills and gorges from other games in the genre. Hell, even the crumbling, deserted buildings seen in other shooters look like they've had the maid around compared to Killzone 2.

Overall the balance is well tuned. Mostly the game is foot-soldier work, though there are occasions to take control of tanks, exoskeleton-like battle armour and even anti-aircraft gun batteries. As I say, these appear only on occasion and don't make up a large portion of the game.

There are plenty of times where initially it seems that progress is impossible. Looking for a slightly different route or tactic, however, will pay dividends. The exception is the final battle, which was an incredibly frustrating affair.

Admittedly I was playing at "veteran" level - yes, I know what you're probably thinking. I've already admitted to being a bit rubbish, but having played the preview, and being a seasoned FPS player, I thought it the most appropriate.

Still, I'd never actually thrown and damaged a controller until I played that level, which despite several checkpoints felt more like success via a mixture of luck and trial and error than skill. Never the less, persistence did win out (and I managed to fix my controller).