Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Immersive"

What a surprise this was. I'm a bit late to the party but after the lukewarm reviews & the original KZ, I wasn't in a hurry to play it or just expecting much at all. But its actually a great game. Possibly more than any other FPS, this really immerses you in the war. The graphics are simply jaw dropping & the way the effects are used is just genius - there's always dust, dirt, ash etc. flying around the battlefield - it just gives it a genuinely gritty look & makes the battlefields a really horrible place to be.

The weight of the guns is fantastic too. Adding to the immersion, all movements are really deliberate & show in the gun on screen. It doesn't feel like its just floating in this, you feel as though you are controlling an actual person & the gun is a very heavy & powerful thing. Its great. Then there's the sound... There's always stuff going on, bullets flying all around you, soldiers shouting & even in the quieter sections there's always the sound of the wind flying through metal or machinery working somewhere. If you've got a good setup you're in for a real treat. All of this together really pulls you into the experience more than any game I can remember.

Obviously all that would be for nothing if it wasn't enjoyable to play. Thankfully, it is. Because of the weight of the guns in this, it does feel very different to any other FPS you may have played which takes some getting used to. But after a couple of levels its no longer a "problem" - if it could be called one in the first place - then the weight works in the games favour as the guns are just so much fun to shoot thanks to the sense of power.

There's also a cover system that works much better than you could imagine. Unlike most games of this type, the camera doesn't switch to 3rd person when you go into cover. It always keeps you in the eyes of Sev & fully immersed in the battleground. This works since the sight is always kept just above or around the side of any cover you get into so you can still always see what's going on around you & hopefully spot when the surprisingly good AI is trying to flank you. Because of this, cover never makes you invincible either like in most games. Sit hiding behind a wall all day & you're dead. You still need to keep pushing forward, switching cover & fighting. The constant threat of danger really amps up the excitement.

The story is rubbish though it has to be said, as is the voice acting & the fact the view is really low down so you feel 3 foot high running around with 6 foot giants which is quite comical at times & is really off putting at first. You're constantly been followed by a character called Rico who is just really annoying too. However towards the end some epic set pieces happen & the story does pick up slightly, unfortunately just as it gets exciting it ends & expects you to wait for the 3rd. Typical. Small problem really though & you'll mostly be having too much fun shooting red eyes to dwell on this too much anyway.

I also had a quick go on the multiplayer. It has an absolutely brilliant mode where it switches between all game types on the fly in a single match. 1 minute you're capturing bases, then the next it'll have you C4-ing buildings, then hunting down 1 specific opponent on the enemy team, then having a standard team deathmatch, then… Well, you get the idea. Its genius & I really don't know why it hasn't been copied by every game out there. However I have only played a couple of matches so I cant say just how good the MP mode is really.

Yet, even with all this praise I cant bring myself to rate it higher & place it amongst the best games of this gen. This is a cop out on my part, but its just missing something that makes it truly special. & I have no idea what it is. I'm hoping as gamers you'll have felt this too. As much as you love a game, sometimes you cant figure out what's stopping you from liking it even more.

Anyway, highly recommended.