E3 07: Killzone 2 - first look

The rest of the demo was a near-constant blur of dying Helghast, screaming allies, whizzing bullets and explosions, as Sev, Rico and countless anonymous ISA troops (wearing helmets instead of bald, vulnerable heads this time, finally!) stomped through gray urban streets, alleyways, buildings and rooftops. Our favorite moment was a brief, terrifying encounter with a Helghast "Heavy Soldier," a hulking, heavily armored monster with a massive chaingun and a slow, lumbering gait.

As formidable as it was, however, Sev was able to put it down quickly by hiding behind a column and popping it a few times with his assault rifle, which caused the Heavy to turn away defensively. Naturally, it had a big fat ammo pack on its back, and after a few turn-arounds coupled with rapid-fire barrages aimed at the pack, the ammo exploded and the Heavy Soldier lay sprawled in a pool of its own blood.

Of course, fighting regular old Helghast looked like a lot of fun, too. The animations on other characters - Helghast and ISA alike - looked incredible, and at no point did the Helghast look better than when they were being riddled with bullets. Apart from the gouts of blood, the Helghast reacted to being shot in semi-realistic ragdoll fashion, flailing their limbs and falling down in unique - but strangely weighty - ways.

The level concluded with a battle against Helghast grunts on a rooftop, as Sev worked to open the foils on a massive Helghast antiaircraft gun, making it vulnerable to gunfire. The gun, interestingly enough, apparently pulled lightning from the environment as ammunition to be shot up into the air - lightning that, we're told, will be one of the many potential, unpredictable hazards you'll face on Helghan. The hazards encountered once the cannon was destroyed were more immediate, however, as some sort of shrieking, floating robot immediately flew into view and dived toward Sev, ending the demo on a cliffhanger.

So yeah, you could say our interest is piqued. Killzone 2's looking impressive, especially for a game that's still got a ways to go. Keep your eyes peeled for a new trailer later today, and expect to hear a lot more in the coming months.

Of course, fighting regular old Helghast looked like a lot of fun, too. The animations on other characters - Helghast and ISA alike - looked incredible, and at no point did the Helghast look better than when they were being riddled with bullets. Apart from the gouts of blood, the Helghast reacted to being shot in semi-realistic ragdoll fashion, flailing their limbs and falling down in unique - but strangely weighty - ways.

The level concluded with a battle against Helghast grunts on a rooftop, as Sev worked to open the foils on a massive Helghast antiaircraft gun, making it vulnerable to gunfire. The gun, interestingly enough, apparently pulled lightning from the environment as ammunition to be shot up into the air - lightning that, we're told, will be one of the many potential, unpredictable hazards you'll face on Helghan. The hazards encountered once the cannon was destroyed were more immediate, however, as some sort of shrieking, floating robot immediately flew into view and dived toward Sev, ending the demo on a cliffhanger.

So yeah, you could say our interest is piqued. Killzone 2's looking impressive, especially for a game that's still got a ways to go. Keep your eyes peeled for a new trailer later today, and expect to hear a lot more in the coming months.

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Mikel Reparaz
After graduating from college in 2000 with a BA in journalism, I worked for five years as a copy editor, page designer and videogame-review columnist at a couple of mid-sized newspapers you've never heard of. My column eventually got me a freelancing gig with GMR magazine, which folded a few months later. I was hired on full-time by GamesRadar in late 2005, and have since been paid actual money to write silly articles about lovable blobs.