Killzone 2 and Modern Warfare 2 are by far the top First Person Shooters (FPS’s) of 2009, but which one truly takes the cake? Both games have their pro’s and con’s, however Modern Warfare 2 is of course the top selling game of the two. This doesn’t necessarily mean that it is the better game, but then again that doesn’t mean that Killzone 2 is either. The purpose of this article is to provoke the question upon us, which game really defined first person shooters on consoles last year?
Let me compare a few the aspects from each game, so it will be easier to come to a conclusion.
Gameplay
Killzone 2 was highly embraced for it’s graphical quality, and it definitely delivered in that aspect. Ever since it was first shown a couple years prior to it’s release at E3, people had been wondering if it would really look that good. Guerilla games did not disappoint when the game arrived. What makes it even better was that the game required no install to run, even given the technical beast that the game is. However the game actually would have benefited from an optional install, because there are parts where the game freezes when moving to new areas. What’s more impressive is that the graphics barely even decrease while playing the game online, while most online shooters suffer a huge graphical decrease to accommodate the amount action you will experience playing online. The point remains though that Killzone 2 is a game that is easy to fall in love with graphically, and not many console games matched it in 2009.
Modern Warfare 2 looked as amazing as all the previous Call of Duty games. The Call of Duty series has always been hailed for it’s superb looking presentation, and Modern Warfare 2 did nothing less than impress even further. It is hard to compare the look of the game to Killzone 2, as the settings are very different. Killzone 2 looks dark and gritty, where Modern Warfare is set in bright but very torn down areas. Modern Warfare two has more color, making everything look realistically beautiful. However as usual the graphical quality suffers on Modern Warfare 2 when playing online, though it is hardly noticeable.
Online
Killzone 2’s online mode was highly addictive, it kept you playing trying to rank up and earn new weapons and ribbons. It also featured long engrossing battles, lasting around 25 minutes a piece. During these battles the game switches through the various different types of objectives, such as; Bodycount, Assassination, Capture and Hold, Search and Destroy, and Search and Destroy. Switching between different kind of objective based games while the match is still live made it very gripping, and it was a nice touch. It made you try very hard to be a team player, “OK we lost that last one, but now I am going to make sure we win this next objective”. Unfortunately Killzone 2’s online didn’t have the same longevity that Modern Warfare 2 does.
Modern Warfare 2’s online mode is so addictive that it becomes a daily routine for people to log on. Killzone 2’s online may be great, but Modern Warfare 2’s blows it out the water in every which way. There is just so much to achieve on Modern Warfare 2’s online, and it makes you eager to unlock as much as you can, as well as rank up and complete challenges. Modern Warfare 2 feels like an event every single time you log in to play, the competition aspect is just too high. You want to be a higher rank than all of your friends, you want to be that guy who scores the top spot every match, you want to have the best kill/death ratio. When you play Modern Warfare 2 online you feel like you are playing to accomplish something, not just for fun. This is something Killzone 2 missed out on.
Single Player Campaign
Neither game had a gripping storyline in the campaign mode, but what more do you expect from a console FPS? Killzone 2’s story felt consistent though, even though most people probably didn’t care because they just wanted to shoot the helgan’s. There was actually a point there though, there was a mission and there was a reason you was there on the battlefield. You came to know the main character Sev’s comrades, and you felt happy every time you were united with them during the fight. So overall there were enough story aspects there to keep you going, and that was enough.
Modern Warfare 2 is not set on any real world war that has happened. Which gave Infinity Ward a chance to be very creative with the games campaign mode. They did really well at it, but there just wasn’t enough for people to actually care for it. All people care about is shooting all of the opposing troops, and eventually getting to kill the ring leaders. We can’t forget though that Modern Warfare 2 contained one of the most controversial levels seen in a video game for a while. “No Russian” was a very interesting level, and the fact that you had the gun in your hand, with the decision to shoot or not, made it epic. It felt like a real choice, given the position that the in game character was actually in. The game did contain some memorable action sequences also, more so than Killzone 2. It did well to put you in different situations, and there were times where you really had to fight for survival. Modern Warfare 2 did it’s job in capturing the realities of war, and nothing more.
Now that I have explored some of the main aspects that make up these two First Person Shooter titles, I will now display some Pro’s and Cons of each game.
—
Killzone 2
Pro’s
- Amazing Graphics
- Realistic physics
- Great AI
- Enjoyable Online
Cons
- Learning curve for controls (mostly because of people being used to Call of Duty’s style of play)
- No storyline co-op
- Not enough 2 player modes
Modern Warfare 2
Pros
- Great looking presentation
- Amazing action sequences
- Long term addictions to the online
- Spec Ops two player modes
Cons
- Nothing too gripping story wise
- No campaign co-op
- Some poor map layouts (They are too camper friendly)
—
Which Game Is The Console First Person Shooter of 2009
