Graphically amazing but falls short when it comes to content
First of all, let's talk about the graphics.
This is probably the most awesome looking first person shooter I have played. It's graphical side makes you want to play the game more and more. From the weapon models to the superbly rendered cutscenes, every visual aspect of the game is a delight to sink into.
Killzone wouldn't be Killzone if it didn't have a overpowered roster of big guns and in that aspect, it doesn't fail either. From menacing melee weapons to speeders fitted with missile launching peripherals, Killzone 3 has got it all. Now you also get to fly around on a jetpack, being able to enjoy the scenery from high distances. These are all also smooth to control, and makes shooting a joyful experience.
Now to the negatives. What frustrates me the most is that Killzone is becoming a COD or whatever. Call of Duty was a great series until they started to milk it and offer the same old stuff. Killzone 3 is entering that path too. It's all flash, no substance. Just run, shoot, kill. Run, shoot, kill. In Killzone 2, there was more of a challenge. It was enjoyable to explore the various locations, blowing up crap and killing enemies. There was more to the previous 2 games; they offered goals to meet. Killzone 3 is just you gunning down everything in sight. Sure, it's fun but whats the point of buying this. You might as well purchase Call of Duty or any other FPS which are all about the booms and flashes and not the quality.
Another issue is the co-op mode. It only supports local play which is complete trash. You would at least expect a polished experience when playing locally but the game is plagued with game breaking issues such as the frame rate dropping to unbelievable levels which is quite hard to believe seeing as the game is running on a PS3 with Blu Ray capabilities. Not only this, an online co-op mode would've been much more enjoyable, being able to delve into this majestic looking hellish world where you can destroy stuff with your online partner.
The multiplayer is above average. There is a competitive edge, but it takes almost no skill to be good. You'll probably unlock everything you require fairly soon, and all the guns are quite unbalanced, and feel overpowered. While this isn't much of an issue, it doesn't make me want to return much to the multiplayer mode and so I feel that the developers could've improved on that side. The online maps are also of a been there, done that kind. They're generally small, and are quite open spaced, not leaving much room for intensive exploration during online firefights. There are a few good maps, but overall, Killzone 3 isn't really doing it for me.
Now to the campaign. To save you from reading a lot of crap, and me from typing a lot of detailed crap, I'll summarize the experience. It was complete and utter ****. How could they possibly go wrong!?
I mean come on. This is Killzone 3!!
With all the cool weapons and awesome additions such as jetpacks, why could they not give the campaign importance so using these extras would actually be rewarding!?
The story is just so stupid. With all the characters and amazing locations, why could they not craft a half decent story for this game? Killzone got it right. Killzone 2 had a decent singleplayer mode. But Killzone 3, by far the more technically strongest game in the series, how could it not offer a good campaign. That aside, shooting can be fun but for a minimal amount of time.
I'm not trying to hate on Killzone 3 but I was expecting much more from SCEE and Guerilla. Being a fan of the series (owning all the Killzone titles, including Liberation for the PSP), I find it difficult to see a promising series starting to become rather stale in terms of quality. The game will offer you fun for a couple of days but the multiplayer would most likely disappoint the fans, the story of the campaign would make most feel like they wasted a few hours of their life, and if anything, only the stereoscopic 3D format (that is of course, if you only have a 3D TV) and awesome graphics (accompanied with the huge variety of futuristic guns) would make you come back for more.
For the money you pay, you're not getting much in return. However, the game is fun, and is worth the play once the prices fall short like the content.
7.2/10
(A review by a Killzone fan. Not a hardcore fan, but an average guy who enjoyed the previous games in the series)