Ports have been pretty popular on the PlayStation Portable up to this point. One game that certainly didn’t go in that direction though is Killzone: Liberation, a follow up to the highly anticipated, but mixed reviewed, PlayStation 2 title. Liberation is still a science fiction warfare game, but instead of being first-person it jumps to third by giving players an overview look at the action and overall it works for the game. 

In this Killzone, players take over two months after the events of the PlayStation 2 version. The Helghast and General Metrac are on the attack and it is up to you, Templar, to assist the ISA troops to find hostages and stop the forces. The story is fine, but that’s not what’s going to make you jump at this title.

The gameplay is very impressive for a PlayStation Portable title. I really like the top down view of the battle; it really works in the game and allows you to see what’s going on around you. It was a terrific design decision by the developers. Staying with the gameplay, you start out with a machine gun. As you delve deeper into the experience, you’ll pick up a variety of weapons like grenades, C4, sniper rifles, shotguns and more. Just from the preview UMD, there was a nice variety of weapons to choose from and they all worked very well. These are not the only things you can pick up in the line of fire; you’ll also be able to add health packs and syringes to heal wounds for yourself and teammates.

The missions that I played were very well done and diverse. Some weren’t the longest and that may be a slight downside, but they were enjoyable nonetheless. From just the demo you have a variety of mission types including rescue, elimination and infiltration.

As for the controls, they are pretty tight in Killzone: Liberation. The analog nub is used to move Templar while square fires your guns, triangle reloads, O throws grenades and X does other combat abilities. Meanwhile, the trigger buttons are used to strafe and crouch. Lastly, the D-pad is used to give commands to your teammates and it works well. These decisions by the developers certainly make the overall controls comfortable and pretty easy to adjust to. 

Finally, the graphics are very good particularly for a overview styled game. There is some very good depth just in the demo on the battlefield. The enemies and characters are all very well done. The sound effects are equally impressive and certainly help the entire presentation of the game. 

The new direction Killzone is going on the PlayStation Portable works for the title. The game features beautiful graphics, multiplayer options and terrific sound. Just from our experience, the controls are pretty tight in the game too, making Killzone: Liberation finally the successful shooter everyone has been waiting for. It has a wonderful arcade feel. We're still unsure about the multiplayer action, but otherwise, we can safely say that Killzone: Liberation should be one of the best PSP games to come out this year.]]> Sun, 22 Oct 2006 17:08:02 -0500 The Gaming Horizon Archive http://www.gamebump.com/go/killzone_announced_for_the_psp http://www.gamebump.com/go/killzone_announced_for_the_psp http://www.gamebump.com/go/killzone_announced_for_the_psp#

“We were keen to ensure Killzone: Liberation was totally unique and offered PSP owners a different Killzone experience. So, Killzone: Liberation has been developed from scratch – creating what we think is an intense portable gaming experience.” Stated Hermen Hulst, Guerilla Managing Director. “Although Killzone: Liberation is totally new it stays true to what made the first Killzone such a great success - the characters, weapons, style and a continuation of the same great plot.”

Check out the first screenshots below.