Killzone: Liberation review (PSP)

2004's Killzone on the PS2 left a lot to be desired on the shooter front, and it's perhaps this sad truth that lead Guerilla to change the gameplay dynamic from an occasionally stealthy first-person shooter to an isometric, top-down and ultimately intelligent action romp.

Liberation is still most definitely a shooter, but the changes that have occurred during Killzone's metamorphosis onto the handheld push it beyond the run-and-gun formula that the first game laid out to much dismay.

Impressively, Liberations compacts all the thrills and spills of your average threatening shooter into a completely non-threatening bite-size format with minuscule to no loss of action at all.

Synthetic humans

In terms of story, Liberation isn't too far fetched from the original game. You once again don the role of Templar, fighting the outwardly never-ending battle against the Helghast. This time around though it's you that's chasing them, and in a battle of sheer firepower, you and your team must outflank, outshoot and outwit those pesky Helghast scum bags.

This is pretty much the extent of the narrative as far as it goes for Liberations. Although there are some undertones of political activism, most words are exchanged for bullets and hand grenades.

Knives, sharp sticks...

Liberation is most definitely a shooter. You fight your way through decaying landscapes, saving hostages, hurling explosives and ultimately shooting lots of people, but the execution of this formula is what breathes new and exciting life into this game.

The game starts you off with the basic, weak assault rifle. If I'm not mistaken, by the sound of it, it's the same as the starting weapon from the original game. While not particularly powerful, the weapon is quite accurate and can take most enemies down as long as your bursts are timed well.

As you progress through the game, completing missions 'n' such, more 'starting' weapons are available to you to select before a map loads. Although it's not particularly easy to know what weapons are best suited for which mission, it's good to have a variety at your disposal; ranging from assault rifles to hand guns to good ol' sniper rifles. It's got 'em all, but while you're certainly kitted out, Liberation ensures a lot more than run-and-gun.

It's a dry heat

This came as a shock to me after playing and knowing the first game. Killzone for the PS2 was nothing but a mindless shooter and although there were sections where stealth and tactics were emphasized and recommended, the only thing that reminded you of it was the silencer screwed to the end of your weapon.

Liberation, while in the same vein as the first encounter, makes some welcome changes to the original formula. Stealth doesn't come into the equation, but this time around you've gotta use your brains as well as your brawn to overcome a multitude of enemies that put the word 'horde' to shame.

Stand up fight?

Plenty of tactical thought and planning is required to properly complete a level. Cover must be acquired in all situations and planned routes are a must if you wish to stay alive.

Running into the crowd of enemies with an itchy trigger finger will get you nothing but the reload screen, and with some rather respectable AI behind your enemies, your chances of survival are questionable even if you maintain cover.

Or a bug hunt?

The Helghast execute a variety of their own tactics to try to take you out. Although there's the odd enemy who'll stand still without shooting and welcome your hail of fire, the majority of them implement the same sort of tactics that you do as the player.

If you fire into a crowd they'll all duck for cover, popping up momentarily to unload a few rounds in your direction. They'll throw grenades at you, bait you and even shoot explosive barrels if you happen to be near one.
That all sounds rather simplistic in writing, but the number of times they'll catch you out is surprisingly high. The shoot-cover method works well in general, but staying alert is a must if you're to catch out that one guy who breaks away from the pack and attacks you from an unsuspecting direction.

You could fry a whole city with this puppy

To mix the somewhat repetitive action up a little, some of the missions give you the opportunity to pilot tanks. While these sequences seem like overkill when faced with nothing but Helghast troops, a great sense of power comes about from hopping into one and mowing down a crowd.

Driving and shooting at the same time can be a little arduous, but once you've scaled a few terrains, it becomes second nature, all with a little help from the game's pseudo auto-aim.

On foot and driving the weapons work the same way. Although there isn't a definitive auto-target, your character's aim will focus on an enemy once you've fired a few rounds in their direction. The beauty of this method is that you're still open to attacks – especially with such impressive AI – but not so much that you can't land a hit. It works incredibly well.

All we need is a deck of cards

The action gets rather intense sometimes with explosions, gunfire and rag doll physics, but Liberation manages to maintain a steady and impressive frame rate. While I'm sure this is mostly down to skilful programming and game design, the sometimes unimaginative maps – in terms of textures and variety – are undoubtedly a contributor. The battles take place on lacklustre terrain, but much like a real war – I can presume – the importance lays beyond your footing onto whom is at the dangerous end of your weapon.

Realism certainly plays a part for the sound effects side of Liberations as well. Everything from gunfire to explosions to the superb – if a little cheesy – voice acting creates a truly masterful atmosphere for the PSP.

Game over man

There really is very little wrong with Killzone: Liberation. There might be a few niggles such as map navigation and repetition, but as the whole it's a truly challenging and rewarding experience for anyone into casual tactical shooters.

The similarities between it and the first Killzone are tenuous at best, but each and every change is a welcome one when a game as polished as this gets released.