Killzone 2 multiplayer: everything you need to know

by James Ransom-Wiley { Jul 16th 2008 at 9:15PM }

Guerrilla hosted a Killzone 2 "online" (what else?) multiplayer tutorial at E3 today, detailing the ins and outs of the experience. What we saw borrowed much from recent efforts, including Call of Duty 4, Team Fortress 2, Metal Gear Online, and even Battlefield Bad Company. Player progression is at the core of Killzone's multiplayer, which supports up to 32 players and features 8 maps of varying sizes and 5 missions (game modes).

Player progression is divided into 12 military ranks and 46 ribbons and medals, which, once earned, unlock game features. The key game feature is the badge (think: character class). There are six badges, unlocked through progression (except the default Rifleman), each possessing a primary ability and secondary ability, and linked to certain weapon groups. The badges are:

Rifleman: default badge; no special abilities
Engineer: erect automated turret (primary); repair skill (secondary)
Medic: revive teammates; deploy health packs
Scout: cloaking suit; tag enemies with hidden marker (they become revealed on team radar)
Assault: heavy armor; sprint boost
Tactician: green smoke grenades (they're spawn points!); AI sentry bot (it's the COD4 helicopter but cooler)
Saboteur: enemy disguise; proximity-activated C4 charge

Badges can be combined in order to merge two abilities from two different badges, creating a new class. For example, players can create a Medic Engineer possessing revive and repair abilities. (PS3 Fanboy has more on multiplayer classes.)

Gallery: Killzone 2 Online Multiplayer

Clans are another unlockable, with the draw being "valor" points, a sort of team currency. Valor points are wagered before clan matches and tournaments, with the winning team earning the pot. Perennial losers will be able to claw back from broke by entering no-fee tournaments (facing a field of up to 256 clans) ... and, gulp, winning. Less dedicated players have the option to create more casual alliances, squads, which can be formed mid-match via a menu screen, linking up to 4 players (two squads or 8 players form a faction). Squad benefits include the ability to spawn on the heels of the designated squad leader, a private headset channel (accessible even from the grave) and shared HUD data.

Guerrilla is attempting to design a multiplayer game that "inspires" teamwork, and the missions are clearly orientated toward team-play:

Assassination
Body Count
Capture & Hold
Search & Destroy
Search & Retrieve

Missions can be made "dynamic," combined to create a match with changing objectives. Search & Retrieve morphs into Assassination; a player escaping with the coveted object becomes the target to the opposing team.

Loads of game data will be tracked -- more than 100 stats in all -- across a robust series of leaderboards, which will be integrated into Killzone.com. The site will also include a clan management feature used for tweaking your team's roster or posing challenges to opposing clans. Global servers promise those challenges can be flung overseas for intercontinental warfare.

Killzone 2 multiplayer is doing a lot right, not a lot new. (There are a few tweaks to the formula: a "spawnmap overview" includes a real-time camera capturing the current activity at any given spawn point as you decide where to redeploy.) But the key to success is in the execution. And that's months away.

What else...? Public beta confirmed (again). "Later this year."

Tags: e3-2008, guerrilla, joystiqfeatures, killzone, killzone-2, multiplayer

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Chase @ Jul 16th 2008 9:18PM

Killzone 2 and MAG make me interested in acquiring a PS3. Plus, their PSN titles look neat, too.

Chase @ Jul 16th 2008 9:19PM

Oh, and "erect automated turret." Hehehe...

spyker @ Jul 16th 2008 9:46PM

"Erecting a sentry gun"-TF2

Phranctoast @ Jul 17th 2008 5:42AM

Unreal 2 as well.

Mr.ESC @ Jul 16th 2008 9:24PM

Wow that's sounds wicked.

COD4 with TF2...Sweet.

Rod Munch @ Jul 16th 2008 9:25PM

Man this game is taking ages to come out! Great games like COD4 get made in a fraction of the time this is taking.

Dwag @ Jul 16th 2008 9:31PM

This has to be great game at least a 9.0 in my book Sony was right to delay this it would totally eat Resistance 2 alive.

Has anyone seen the Gamespot live demo even though it wasn't a demo but they answer a lot of questions and its just plain cool.

This doesn't look better than Far Cry 2 but it pretty much takes the cake until actual hardcore PS3 exclusives are revealed you know what I mean GT5,God of War 3 and FFVXIII.

browntown @ Jul 16th 2008 10:17PM

I think it looks great, it has a great atmoshphere, and it has alot of effects, maybe more than many other games, explosions are really nice, gun fire, and the lighting is amazing.

LJ @ Jul 17th 2008 11:24AM

sorry dude.. FFXII not exclusive anymore, are you living under a rock?

That was the second internet explosion.. in less that 2 months... first Diablo 3 then this.

xFenixKnightx @ Jul 16th 2008 9:32PM

Ohhhhh, daddy like!

j.howlett @ Jul 16th 2008 9:34PM

got to wait till february is it? well i still have alot of games to finish. and start

Zoot Suit Jedi @ Jul 16th 2008 9:37PM

I've got your "erect automated turret" right here.

Heyooo!

Dwag @ Jul 16th 2008 9:43PM

Now I just realized that Killzone 2 is really borrowing a lot from its peers from gameplay mechanics to multiplayer online thats alot of borrowing Guerilla hope ya'll don't end up being the title that was hyped but ended up being a compilation of everything thats come and gone.

Anyways I'm in for the Beta testing if gives out codes on its website then i'm all in. I'm gonna begin signing up right now.

DangerMouse @ Jul 16th 2008 9:54PM

The single player looks awful. I've had a look at more videos this time around, and i still think it's boring. Maybe it's the art direction, everything looks so generic. I predict it'll be a huge letdown, not Haze huge, but pretty big.

Dwag @ Jul 16th 2008 10:05PM

@DangerMouse
You must mean Resistance 2 that is just plain generic around the board I'm not gonna be oh resistance 1.5 like how some ppl were with Halo 3 but still its pretty generic.

@Topic:Well I believe it won't live up to hype cause it copied way too much things from other shooters and games I mean its like they've watch every sucessful game and plan to copy one of its cool unique techniques. I'm just saying no need to flame but i'm just saying Killzone 2 is basically copying a lot of the good/unique features from other games and just implementing it in there own way but its still basically copying or in developers talk we were "inspired by" or 'are borrowing a few techniques and adding our own twist'.

SonofaGunner @ Jul 16th 2008 10:13PM

You two need to get more creative. Those are the weakest reasons to hate on the game.

SonofaGunner @ Jul 16th 2008 10:16PM

Sorry, I didn't mean you Dwag.

browntown @ Jul 16th 2008 10:19PM

I think the art direction is great, its not realistic, its sorta cartoony, like concept art. And what people don't seem to understand is that this game has a cover system so u can play it tactically.
@dawg.....wat the hell are u goign on about....u probaly don't even own a ps3, R2 looks great, huge boss battles, its gonna be awesome. Just go cry since u can't play this game when it launches.

Tez (PSN: Tezasaurus) @ Jul 16th 2008 9:54PM

Sounds great! I hope they can deliver.

MN Guy @ Jul 16th 2008 10:09PM

This looks very good to me. It seems they are borrowing a lot of successful features from recently popular shooters and attempting to mash them into one. If they execute it well, it could, dare I say it, be a great game.

Graphics are definately good and it looks fun. We won't know it until some real people get their hands on it though. This is my #1 most anticipated PS3 game. Absolutely this blows that pants off of Resistance 2 imo without me even having to play it.

My only concern is the class stuff. I'm not big on classes when they totally dictate gameplay like they do in a TF game. I like the more subtle differences as in COD4, for example. Silence, long range, close range, explosives, perks...that is fine and dandy.

browntown @ Jul 16th 2008 10:13PM

Sounds great, and its funny to see fanboys doign some damage controll. Multiplayer seems cool, and wats up with saying that it does nothing new, lots of games do nothing new in the multiplayer arena, but they never get called out on it, halo 3 was just like halo 2 in multiplayer. I think the multiplayer sounds great, especially to peopel who have not played the many fps's.
Squads are awesome, can't wait to play this.

Dwag @ Jul 16th 2008 10:28PM

"Sounds great, and its funny to see fanboys doign some damage controll"

I have to see a fanboy here but yeah you're right Killzone 2 equalm greatness.

unboring @ Jul 16th 2008 10:46PM

yeah game looks great, Its great that this game has 32 person online, with this game at 32 person online, warhawk at 32 person online, resistence FoM at 40 person online and resistence 2 at 60 person online, now MAG at 256 person online and socom at 32 person online!!! kindof crazyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy. Does xbox have any games online games that are 32 person or more? I thought halo 3 was like 16 max>??? I think the dedicated servers used in the psn is a phenomenal valuable part of the network, especialy because it is free.

more on topic, the green smoke grenades that create spawn points are increddibleeeeee and the class system looks great. I love automatic turates andddddddd I love invisability cloaks. Too sweet, this is a day one buy for me. Resistence 2 and this game are amazing fps's for ps3. They are epic genre defining games, can't wait to see how they turn out.

Dwag @ Jul 17th 2008 12:33AM

More ppl doesn't mean more fun mainly because of quitters and the fact the most ppl online with mics are dicks. Oh and Frontlines was 50 players nothing really special just like Resistance.

Did anyone read the Gamespot thing and how they hyped Killzone 2 up now if it doesn't live up to its expectations blame GS and 1Up and less of IGN cause they didn't call it unique and crap which is a lie if you've read the joystiq post and watched the live demo.

aka Prof Chaos @ Jul 17th 2008 9:12AM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfect_Dark_Zero#Xbox_Live

unboring @ Jul 19th 2008 2:45AM

so was that it or what? i know its possible for live to do this, but how come only sony is pursueing lots of 32, 40, 60 and 256 player online shooters, the its not fun argument is silly, if its done well then its a blast, its a matter of creating large levels with good squad based gameplay.

maybe MS will start to pursue this more? i thought huxley was in the works or something. anyways, like great thanks for showing me perfect dark zero, but like is that it?

Dwag @ Jul 16th 2008 10:43PM

@Browntown
Own a PS3,360,Wii,PSP and DS and PS2 and GBA SP and GC. So stop sucking R2 it ain't that good its generic boss battles in FPSs been done since Half-life and Doom nothing special about them in R2 other then there harder to kill wow real "awesome".

DarkNessBear @ Jul 17th 2008 3:15AM

So... what's bad about Half Life and Doom?

wired2thewall @ Jul 17th 2008 9:55AM

They were too hard for him to finish - even with "iddqd"

GoonieGooGoo @ Jul 17th 2008 1:32AM

I agree.....just because you can put more people online....doesn't mean you have to.

It's all about balance. I found I didn't enjoy RESISTANCE games that much because with soooo many people playing at times a kill was relatively irrelevant as there were so many targets.

COD4 and HALO3 have that perfect balance where you aren't dying every second, and you can't just kill somebody every second because they are spawning in front of you.

unboring @ Jul 17th 2008 2:43AM

im just asking what 360 games have upwards of 32 players?just a general question because i didnt know. so is frontlines the only game?

If you scale the level and scope appropriatley then large battles work great, look at warhawk , 32 player matches are great with 0 lag in huge levels.

Insomniac has already talked about how in 60 person matches the smaller 8 person squads will be directed (maybe like domination /headquarters) to "flashpoints" so that there are always "objectives" and your squad is always move, thus orchestrating the chaos into phased events.

whats so hard about that to understand? besides, just because you can play in a 60 person match doesnt mean you have to, if its not your thing go play a 32 person match or 16, or 8 or 4, like whatever you want. Its about options and the ability to scale.

also is the 8 player seperate co-op story to many people?

and MAG 256 player online may be incredible, its being made by socom developers, looks pretty awesome to me, and is also squad based.

sooooooooooo basically, the 360 doesnt do online over 18 players or what, i think i listed above like 10 current and future ps3 titles that do.

in game xmb, plus home, plus dedicated servers , plus video download servers, plus large scale online with no lag. trophies and "gamertag"

the PSN is really giving XBL a run for its money, and they dont even ask for any money!