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Killzone 3 dev diary is gameplay-filled, genuinely upsetting
There's a massive amount of gameplay in the Killzone 3 dev diary posted below, so fans of the series should definitely scope it out. However, fans of not seeing dudes get their faces, necks, eyes and chests absolutely ruined by knives might want to go look for slightly friendlier videos.
Killzone 3 trailer shows off some stellar voice talent
Killzone 3 isn't just built upon a solid foundation of lookin' pretty -- it's also backed up by an impressive voice cast, including The Departed and Sexy Beast actor Ray Winstone, and Malcolm McDowell, who's been in everything. Check out these guys doing some mocap work in the video after the jump.
Killzone 3 single-player demo packed into PSN update on Feb. 15
By the time the Killzone 3 single-player demo pops up on the PlayStation Store, many millions of Helghan and Human alike will have fallen in the game's open multiplayer beta. According to the US PlayStation blog, a slice from the middle of the game's single-player campaign ("Icy Incursion") will arrive in demo form on February 15; PlayStation Plus members nab it one week earlier on February 8. Meanwhile, Europeans will get the demo on Feb. 9 and 16, respectively. You'll be ready for the yellow-eyed hordes by then, right? Also of note: the demo will arrive in 3D and 2D-only iterations as separate downloads, both equipped with Move functionality but only allowing for split-screen co-op in the 2D version. We're going to take it one step further by grabbing an all-syrup Killzone 3 Slurpee from 7-Eleven, downloading the 3D demo, and playing it while losing our minds.
Killzone 3 to include 'total' PlayStation Home integration
If you happen to wander into PlayStation Home's Central Plaza after this Thursday, January 27, you may not find it as antiseptic and serene as you remember. As part of a Killzone 3 promotion, Sony is going to transform Home's main meeting area into "the last ISA stronghold," wrecked by a Helghast attack. Players can fight back in three "levels" of Home minigames, earning points that can be used to unlock content in the real game's multiplayer mode. Sony is also adding the somewhat impractical functionality of a Killzone 3 pre-order from Amazon ... from within Home. For the first time, you'll be able to reserve a game from within Sony's virtual world, securing an exclusive jet-pack "costume" for your avatar (are you really asking -- not a chance it actually works!); in addition to Amazon's standard pre-orders bonuses, including more multiplayer points and the "Retro Map Pack" (two maps from Killzone 2 playable in the new game). So, you're supposed to go to the fake Killzone to buy the real one -- is that right?
Killzone 3 open beta starts February 2nd or 3rd (depending on what zone of killing you're in)
Killzone 3 is bringing its particular brand of first-person shooting (the "killing in a zone" brand, we presume?) to retailers in North America and Europe on February 22 and 23, respectively. Unfortunately for those of you who reside in the zone of killing known as Europe, the upcoming "beta" gives North American players the same one-day lead, according to the regional arms of the PlayStation Blog family. For 12 days beginning February 2 in North America, all PlayStation 3 owners will be able to download the "open beta" (read: demo) and treat themselves to stereoscopic 3D, Move support, and access to just one map, titled "Frozen Dam." Inside that one map, you'll at least be able to try out all three online multiplayer modes – 16-player "Guerrilla Warfare," 24-player "Warzone," and 16-player "Operations" – in addition to the bot-based, offline mode cleverly titled "Botzone." Because it's Killzone ... with bots. But look on the bright, less-killy side, Europe: When North America's open beta access cuts off on February 14, you'll still have one more full day of jetpack-enabled fun. While you wait, take a look at the latest multiplayer video after the break, showing off killstreaks in the game.
Killzone 3 includes admission into SOCOM 4 multiplayer beta
Yo, readers: Sony heard you like shooting, so it put a shooter in your shooter so you can shoot while you're shooting. More specifically, the publisher has announced that both regular and Helghast Edition copies of Killzone 3 will include vouchers which give early access to the SOCOM 4 multiplayer beta. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like the beta will arrive at the same time as Killzone 3's launch -- Zipper Interactive's Chris Roper explained on PlayStation Blog, "To find out when the SOCOM 4 multiplayer beta begins, be sure to check back at SOCOM.com once you pick up your copy of Killzone 3, hitting shelves on February 22nd." Perfect; so we'll have some time to get really used to Killzone 3's control scheme before switching over to SOCOM 4's presumably wildly different control scheme. We anticipate that we'll be eating quite a few of our own accidentally-thrown frag grenades.
Killzone 3 Move preview: Point and shoot
Two months from now, Sony will launch its latest salvo in the first-party, first-person shooter wars, Killzone 3. While we've already taken a look at the game's single-player (in 3D) and multiplayer modes, we've previously only see a brief video demonstration of another one of its bullet-point features: PlayStation Move support. I spent a good part of the past week playing the latest pre-release version of Killzone 3, examining the ups and downs of using Move (with the companion navigation controller) in place of the standard DualShock 3 controller. After making the initial, somewhat awkward adjustment to literally pointing-and-shooting Helghast troopers, I can say that my experience has ultimately been a positive one. %Gallery-111607%
Rumor: Killzone 3 to include split-screen
According to an image from NicaGamerz of an alleged Killzone 3 preview build, the third Helghast murder simulator will allow for split-screen co-op -- a function that previous entries lacked. Sony of Europe gave VG247 an official "no comment" on the possibility, but also didn't deny the rumor. However, earlier this year at E3, president of SCE worldwide studios Shuhei Yoshida spoke to us about Killzone 3's 3D functionality, saying, "We were going to give players two screens anyway, for some mode ... for some gameplay anyway." Split-screen, perhaps? Given that Killzone 3 is a 3D title and its video is already being rendered twice for the 3D effect, the possibility of split-screen is a bit of a given. As for whether the split-screen will allow friends to take the game online together is unknown, but it seems players will at least be able to shoot up yellow-eyed baddies on a couch together. Let's put it this way: we're giving today's news the "rumor" tag, but calling the possibility "very likely."
Killzone 3 Helghast Edition headed to Europe
Guerrilla Games has announced that the elaborate Helghast Edition of Killzone 3 will also be available in Europe, along with a Collector's Edition, which is one rung down on the shiny, electroplated ladder of special game editions. The Collector's Edition, encapsulated in Steelbook packaging, will offer a PlayStation Network download voucher for the Killzone 3 soundtrack, a dynamic XMB theme, and the Retro Map Pack (comprising two maps from Killzone 2). The Helghast Edition comes with all of the above, plus a hardcover art book, a "Cloaking Marksman" action figure and several perk-granting pre-order bonus packs (also available if you pre-order the Collector's Edition). Oh, yes, and it comes with a helmet. You might not think it a macabre memento on your mantelpiece, but you haven't heard the full story. (Come closer.) Inside the helmet ... is the preserved head of the cloaked marksman, still surprised by his sudden encounter with a decapitator-turned-decorator. Killzone 3 will launch in February next year.
Killzone 3 beta invites sent out to more PS Plus members
Killzone 3's beta is looking for more soldiers to test out the game. Sure, that involves dying repeatedly, but it's all for the greater good of more balanced gameplay. PlayStation Plus members in North America and Europe should check their PSN accounts, as 5,000 more recruits have been invited onto the battlefield. If you're wondering what's going on in the beta, check out our preview. Killzone 3 will launch in North America on February 22, 2011. %Gallery-106624% %Gallery-106415%
Killzone 3 has considerably less input lag than its predecessor
Digital Foundry has taken its mathematical approach to examining the deep inner workings of games to whole new heights with is recent lag analysis of the Killzone 3 multiplayer beta. Using a special controller (designed by modder extraordinaire Ben Heck), the DF team measured the exact amount of time that passed between pressing R1 and the in-game gun actually firing a bullet: 116ms. According to the blog, that's about 33ms shorter than the lag present in Killzone 2, which apparently makes a world of difference in twitchy shooters of this ilk. Check out a video of the group's study, as well as a few other odds and ends about the technical side of the beta, over on Eurogamer.
Killzone 3 beta preview: Exo mechs, jet packs and Helghast, oh my!
Here's the thing about the Killzone 3 beta: It's best played with friends. But due to the limited number of players in the beta, the likelihood of forming a squad with your best gamer pals is pretty close to never going to happen. Ultimately, the beta experience suffers because of this -- the mutliplayer modes are based around playing as a cohesive squad, much like in Bad Company 2. Without friends, I've been forced to suffer the unpleasant randomness that is the general population of PSN players. Most of these folks are horrible teammates. %Gallery-106415%
Killzone 3 'Helghast Edition' includes tiny helmet
The Killzone 3 site unveiled the game's $130 "Helghast Edition," which only makes Killzone's perceived status as Sony's Halo equivalent more pronounced. For example, Halo 3's "Legendary Edition" included a miniature Spartan helmet, and Killzone 3's Helghast Edition includes -- surprise -- a miniature Helghast helmet. The helmet "opens to reveal art book, Super Voucher and Killzone 3 game." That "Super Voucher" grants access to a soundtrack, a dynamic theme, a Retro Map Pack of two Killzone 2 maps, and full weapon and ability access and double XP for the first 24 hours of multiplayer. In addition to all that, there's an even smaller Helghast in the package -- a 6.5-inch "Cloaking Helghast" figure. Notably absent from the package: "Helghast goggles," the "Blood and Thunder" pack, or a gift card, as revealed on the Killzone 3 site last week. Either that stuff is reserved for a European special edition, or it was merely placeholder text.
Rumor: Killzone 3 collector's edition features Helghast goggles
According to an apparently now-pulled page (via PlayStation LifeStyle) over on the European version of the official Killzone 3 site, Sony intends to offer the game in three different flavors: standard, limited and collector's editions. As you can see in the screenshot above, snagged by PlayStation LifeStyle, it appears there will be bonus content offered -- specifically, the "Blood and Thunder" map pack, a gift card for an unspecified retailer, and a pair of Helghast goggles. It's not too shocking, considering people gobble up working RC spy cars and statues, not to mention the pioneer in goggles-plus-game bundle, the Modern Warfare 2 "Prestige Edition." But with Killzone 3 incorporating 3D tech, we wonder if these proposed Helghast goggles will work with that? Probably not, but we're still trying to confirm the exact nature of these bundles and if they actually exist. Right now, Google is helping us lean towards this actually being a thing (check out the first result).
Sony giving away Killzone 3 beta keys on Twitter
If you're jonesing for entry keys into the Killzone 3 beta, but don't feel like ponying up for the PlayStation Plus membership required to be eligible for early access, Sony's offering social networking mavens another, thriftier opportunity. If you're all up on that Twitter, you can be eligible for one of 150 beta codes by Tweeting "@killzonedotcom Please include me in the Killzone 3 beta! My PSN ID is [your PSN ID] #killzone3 #scea http://ow.ly/2Vfcf." (If you live in Europe, replace #scea with #scee. Jurisdictions, and all that jazz.) The codes will be distributed by October 22, but if you don't manage to snag one from Sony, we'll have some a bit later this week. Keep an eye on our Twitter feed, and also our Facebook page, and you should also probably listen to our podcast, and, now that we think about it, you should probably just follow us around on the street.
Killzone 3 public beta starts October 25 in the US
Guerrilla Games' Killzone The Tres is set to unleash a public beta on October 25, the PlayStation Blog promises. Of course, there's a catch: in order to get in on it, you'll need to be a PlayStation Plus subscriber before the beta rolls out, and download a custom Killzone 3 XMB theme, which'll release on October 19. The first 10,000 to download the theme will get access -- 5,000 from the US, 5,000 from Europe. You'll also want to keep an eye on your email inbox, because Sony plans to mail out codes on October 25 to the lucky 10,000 who snagged the XMB theme first. To help tide you over, Sony's got a new trailer, which you can check out past the break.
Killzone 3's Move functionality demoed on video
Though we thought up a few applications for the PlayStation Move controller at first glance, we hadn't really considered its capacity for inflicting unthinkable violence upon the Helghast. Fortunately, PlayStation.Blog was recently able to fill in the blanks in our imagination, demoing Killzone 3's Move functionality in the video posted after the jump. Not only does the demo do a good job of showing how the series' gameplay mechanics have translated over to the motion controller, it also includes a few interesting details about multiplayer -- for instance, there will be separate matchmaking playlists for people using the DualShock 3 and people using the Move. But what about the people like us, who plan on playing the game using a Dance Dance Revolution pad? Where's our playlist?
Killzone 3 screenshots feature hoodies, pummeling
Before you and the many thousands of other yous gets a chance to go hands-on with Killzone 3 this weekend at PAX Prime, Famitsu has a smattering of new images to hungrily dig through for new information. One thing solidly confirmed by these shots? Dusters. Hooded dusters, no less! And hey, if you ask us, there's a severe underuse of dusters in the world of video games. Unfortunately for the gentleman above, he seems to have been socked in the face several moments before the image was taken, so his duster is fluttering through the air along with his torso. Hopefully you'll fare better this weekend at PAX!
Get hands-on with Killzone 3 multiplayer at PAX
Killzone 3's multiplayer is set for its first public hands-on engagement this week at PAX. There will be 16 multiplayer stations set up at the show for players to compete in 8v8 matches. Sony will also have four pods set up for single-player, with an additional three featuring the game in 3D -- there's nothing quite like a reload animation in 3D. If you don't care about standing around in line to touch some plague-infested controller (Purell is your friend), the company will have limited supplies of Killzone swag bags at the booth. Also, there's mention of some "collectible art cards" at the booth that will have instructions on how to "win" a code for entry into the Killzone 3 beta.%Gallery-93774%
Guerrilla Games working on new PS3-exclusive IP, not related to Killzone
During his just-concluded GDC Europe keynote presentation, Guerrilla Games Managing Director Herman Hulst confirmed that the company has started work on a new IP not related to the Killzone franchise. No further details were given about the new project, but Hulst said the company was looking to broaden their abilities to create not just Killzone but "any game we want to make." Hulst said he hopes the new project would bring back the "level of scope and ambition" they had when they were a startup company. To that end, Hulst said they're building a brand new studio and scaling up their team by hiring new talent. Speaking to Joystiq after the presentation, Hulst added that the project -- in "very early days in terms of conceptualizing what we're doing" -- is intended to be exclusive to PlayStation 3.
