As I was at Sams Club today, I picked up a copy of Killzone 2, and I have to say: This game is awesome.

I never thought this game would actually be good. Seeing that the first game was nothing more than a mediocre rip-off of Halo, I didn't expect much with the sequel. Sure it looked pretty back when Sony first showed it off, but I thought it would end there. After finally playing this game, I can say that I am wrong.

The story of this game is pretty much the same like any other scifi shooter; aliens are attacking, and you have to stop them. Unlike any of these other shooters, the characters actually have personality. This would actually make the game decent for me.

As soon as I watched the opening cutscene, my jaw had dropped to the floor. It may be dissapointing that this game is not 1080p compatible, this game still looks amazing. The facial features of the characters look realistic. The environments are beautiful to look at. There may be some stuttering of the framerate when making checkpoints, but if you get over the flaws, it still looks amazing.

The sound of this game is top-notch. The orchestral work fits well with the scenery and the battles going on in the game. It always feels good to hear some orchestral music that goes along with you killing everything in sight. Along with this, the voice acting is top-notch. It actually makes this game feel like a good narrative.

Gameplay has to be hit and miss for me. The big problem is that the controls are clunky ad has awkward positioning for the buttons. Due to the Dualshock's awkward analog stick positions, the PS3 is not an ideal console to play shooters on. Games like Resistance works fine, but this game...not so much. You have 8 choices of button layouts, all of which will give you a clunky layout. One other issue is the aiming. You can change the sensitivity of it, but no matter what you choose, it's either too rough or too sensitive. This makes it painful for aiming correctly. If you can get used to the controls, the rest of the game is practically perfect. The AI is a lot better in this game than it was in the first one. You actually get a challenge with the enemies and can kill you if you're not careful. Also, your teammates are not as dumb as rocks anymore. They'll actually be quite useful as the game progresses.

Online mode is some of the best I've seen of PSN. You have up to 32 player matches with a ton of modes for you to choose. It has a ranking system which goes by the amount of kills you get in the game and not by a point system. If you are used to the controls, then online will be a blast for you. If not, I recommend practicing in the single player before starting matches.

Overall, Killzone 2 is a good game. It may have some flaws, but it's still a fun game to add to your PS3 collection.

My score: 8/10

Today on the 21st is my birthday. I am officially 15 years old. Happy day for me.

I finally got my 360 back after going through a holiday without it. Now I'll be able to play against you guys on XBox Live again. If you want to play agaisnt me, my gamertag is tomman55 so go ahead and add me.