PS3 Fanboy

Latest news from the PlayStation Day 2008 event in London drops a release date for Killzone 2. Looks like the game has been pinned down for a February 2009 release -- at least for Europe anyhow. That's a little later than we had hoped, but it's all well that it is coming. Just try not to think about it being a year off.

According to VideoGamer.com, who've apparently gotten hold of a Sony UK release schedule, three big PS3 exclusives will be releasing this coming Fall in the British Isles. Killzone 2 and LittleBigPlanet should show up on our beloved console sometime in September, while Resistance 2 caps the trifecta for an expected November release. Sony confirmed that these dates are correct.

Great. Now, we just need to wait for SCEA to give us the heads up on these games and their release dates over here across the Atlantic. Hopefully, North American dates won't be any different. If these games do continue on schedule and actually get released by Fall, then it's safe to say that PS3 owners will be very happy gamers indeed.

[Via Joystiq]

Killzone 2 producer Steven Ter Heide and Guerrilla Games managing director Herman Hulst would be out of jobs if it weren't for the PS3 and Blu-ray. In an interview with Official PlayStation Magazine UK, Heide and Hulst tag team to deliver major props for their system of choice, all while bashing a certain competing console.

"We really need Blu-ray to make the game. I don't know how you could fit it on Xbox 360 without taking some shortcuts", producer Heide explains. And with graphics like those seen in this 25 minute video, there's little doubt that he isn't just speaking the company line.

Continuing on about Killzone 2's Blu-ray dependency, Hulst adds, "Blu-ray isn't important for watching movies; we need it for making games". Something tells us that a few companies beg to differ.

Perhaps we exaggerate a little when we say "all things", but Guerilla Games did give a lot of answers to many of the questions we like thinking about regarding Killzone 2. We'll list out what was discovered below.

• The politically correct term for the release date right now is "2008".
• While the demo is pretty awesome, it's just one level. Incomplete, at that, with no streaming technology implemented yet.
• There will be an online beta at some point (no time soon, we're sure) but there will also be links to the official Killzone website and integration into Home to keep us busy until that time comes.
• After the infamous 2005 trailer, GG was pretty unsure of if they could actually pull off those graphics, but the recent amount of press for the true game has bolstered their belief that they have, in fact, come quite close to that original trailer and are very proud of that. We are too!
• No word yet on user-generated content.
• They refuse to compare their game to Halo 3 because the two games are just that -- two games. They're different in play style and artistic direction. They feel it's more important to improve on what was lackluster in the first Killzone than try to "beat" some other game.

In addition to all this, Guerilla Games is trying to keep Killzone 2 heads and shoulders above the original in the field of gameplay -- busting out alternate routes, different weapons for different types of gameplay, and an all-around greater scope will prove to keep the game worth playing after that first completion. We don't know when we'll hear from these guys again, so let's just let them get crackin' on the game for a while, okay?

It's a gigantic Killzone 2 developer walk-through! The above video is incredibly long, as you could have probably deduced from our subject line -- about 25 minutes. You get a little more backstory into the game, but the real impressive part of this alpha build footage is the freezing of the camera and getting to check out the level the same way the devs get to look at it. This isn't really a gameplay demo, but more of a showing of what's behind the curtain and we greatly appreciate it. We can't wait to see this game get further along production, possibly to the point of a demo. That would be swell, Guerrila Games! If you really dig this video, you can download it and show it off to your friends if you'd like.

Straight from Leipzig, the developers at Guerrilla demonstrated some of the gameplay features of the highly anticipated PS3 first person shooter, Killzone 2. While the game is mostly known for its graphics technology, gamers should be most curious about the way the game plays. Certainly, is the gameplay as advanced as the way it looks? Watch this new footage to see the cover and aiming system in work in this new video.

How did Guerrilla pull of its distinctive "Killzone look?" Their Develop presentation was all about "deferred rendering," a process which adds Hollywood-quality visual effects to the images rendered by the PS3. Extensive post-process effects allowed the team to create "highly dynamic lighting in environments" with "complex geometry" and "MSAA" -- whatever that is.

Those with technical know-how will appreciate the Develop presentation the team delivered, which goes into some intricate detail about how much SPU power is being used by the game. Even with already-impressive results, the team has a long way to go. In fact, there are still "a lot of features planned," such as: ambient occlusion, contact shadows, shadows on transparent geometry, more efficient anti-aliasing, and dynamic radiosity.

[Thanks, sheppy!]

Read - Presentation (in PDF form)

The BBC warns you right away that when you "sit down in front of a playable level ... it is immediately clear that Killzone 2 will be one of the most cinematic and immersive games ever produced on a console." Those are some big words to describe an incomplete game! If only that were all, but the BBC continues its praise by assuring PS3 fans that Killzone 2 looks like something you'd only see on a high-end PC.

Not everything was rosy, though. The BBC criticized the incomplete build, stating the "game mechanics of the level I saw are not particularly innovative," and that overall "Killzone 2 is an archetypal shooter - a futuristic action title that draws on the symbolism of World War II to create a sense of familiarity." Throwing grenades still needs some work, and the hyper-realistic violence will probably spark more debate about the worn-out violence-in-videogames stance. We don't really care -- we just want to get our hands on this game!

After winning the Special Commendation Award for Graphics, Guerrila Games' managing director Hermen Hulst answered some questions about their reaction to getting such a prize, especially after all the hype and expectation. Since playability of your title was a requirement for getting nominated, Hulst is particularly flattered.

About all that hype and expectation, Hulst commented that while the 2005 E3 trailer was ambitious, it remained achievable. They fully intend to live up to the promise of the original trailer and will work on the game until they feel it's ready for the public. Since they got an award that only playable games should have been considered for, we also think they're moving on the right track. The final product will undoubtedly look far superior to even the demo we saw at E3 this year.

Lucky for you, we check Gametrailers all the time for the latest footage of our favorite games. If the downloadable E3 trailer of Killzone 2 from the PS Store wasn't enough to satisfy, we've got some more in-game footage detailing parts of the demo we weren't able to see. Sure, there's a lot of button-pushing and tower-shooting, but to think about all that's happening on screen at any single moment is pretty awe-inspiring. Much more happening on these battlefields than, say, in narrow corridors. Let us know what you think!

Sony released a new Q&A with the Killzone 2 developers at last night's event. The Sony-published interview doesn't provide the most critical look at the game's development, but nonetheless offers a new look at this hotly anticipated game.

How big is the team currently at Guerrilla?
135 people

Please describe the work atmosphere at Guerrilla.
It's a very creative environment, with a great international workforce. We have over 20 different nationalities inside the studio.

What is the premise of Killzone 2?
It's 2 years later and the ISA are invading the Helghast home planet of Helghan. The goal is to capture the Helghast leader and bring the war machine to a halt.

There's a chance we may be seeing a Killzone 2 release as early as September. Game Planets is reporting that the latest issue of Power Unlimited magazine states that "expectations for the PlayStation 3 premier shooter are high, and Sony aims to release Killzone 2 during September."

While we're going to reserve judgement for now, we wouldn't be surprised if this was true. We first got a glimpse of the game two years ago and, judging from the way Sony is handling the Killzone 2 presentation at E3, they must have something spectacular to show us now. A pre-Halo 3 release would also do the game a great deal of good, especially if its as groundbreaking as they say.

We'll keep you updated as and when any developments occur.

[Via N4G]

One place says Killzone 2 will be at GDC while another source gets told that no, in fact, Killzone 2 won't be at GDC at all. Who to trust? It's a tough call, since we reported on a pretty lofty rumor stating that a demo for the new game may just make an appearance at the Game Developer's Conference. After going over the two linked stories above, you may think that, indeed, IGN has the correct story. They spoke with Sony, after all, right? But, CVG has "well-placed sources!" This is turning into more and more of a big deal, but it really shouldn't. If it's there, neat. If not, well, damn.

Now is the time for all of the beautiful readers out there to think about the two conflicting ideas presented here and discuss them in a rational, logical, adult manner. Personally, I'd like to believe the game will still make an appearance. It's not like Sony would try to hide its trump card, right?

Heh, Face/Off was a funny movie. Was it supposed to be funny? Doubt it, but movies where the point is to get as many big stars as possible (Ocean's Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen) so they can draw in as many "admirers" as possible are just silly. Luckily, Face/Off just had two or so big celeb names. I digress. Over at 1up, there's an interesting blog entry discussing Sony's answer to the Halo 3 beta arriving soon.

The answer? According to Luke Smith, Sony will respond to the beta even before it's released -- the Game Developer's Conference. Phil Harrison is one of the keynotes (all the keynoters are actually very important... I mean, Miyamoto? Awesome.) and what better way to rise up to the Bungie challenge than announce a playable Killzone 2 demo? The game's rumored to be very far along in development, so why not? But please, don't call it a Halo-killer. That term is really annoying. But if this speculation turns out to be true, Killzone 2 will inevitably have that phrase tacked onto it.