A couple of weeks ago I downloaded Killzone: Mercenary as it was the free game for PS+ but never got around to playing it mainly due to all the decent PS4 games that have been released lately. Finally got round to giving it a go last night and I have to say it was like trying a new food and finding it surprisingly tasty, and I was even more impressed by just how graphically clean and smooth it was considering the handheld that it's played on.
It's surprising easy to pick up and play which considering it's a first person shooter on a handheld I found myself killing enemies with ease once I got my head round the controls. The Hellgast are cleaver enemies too, many times I found myself shooting at walls and floors as they ducked in and out of cover, spraying bullets in my general direction hoping that perhaps maybe one would hit it's target.
The level designs are rather simple, there are some wide open spaces but in general the game takes you down one path and one path only but I suppose it is to be expected from something as simple as the Vita, but I found it not to have any detrimental effect on the enjoyment of the game so most of the time you don't even notice.
I also like the fact that you earn "money" whilst playing depending on how many enemies you kill, the way you kill them and taking out any other destroyable objects on your way. This can then be spent on new guns, amour and special drones that you can buy from many of the arms dealer crates you find throughout levels. It also allows you to change your load outs in game which I found a pleasure rather than having to always choose which guns you want to enjoy at the title screen only, bit of a shame other games haven't adopted this as it can change the way you want to play the game.
Then there are the graphics, don't get me wrong they sure ain't going to win many awards but I was very pleased with just how good they are, almost on par with early PS3 games and even with multiple enemies on screen I experienced no lag or pop ups which got me thinking "This is how good the Vita COULD have been had Sony paid it enough attention".
The Vita needed more games like this, games that took it's technical ability and stretched it as far as it could go, games that you could take with you where ever and enjoy them just as much as if it was your home console! Sadly this is not the case anymore, developers don't want to put the time and effort into something which isn't selling by the millions and Sony are to blame for the majority of it because they don't even believe in the product themselves!
The Vita could have been so much more and Killzone: Mercenary provides proof of that statement, I guess it shall always been known as one of those games that shows just what the Vita can achieve given time and effort!
It's surprising easy to pick up and play which considering it's a first person shooter on a handheld I found myself killing enemies with ease once I got my head round the controls. The Hellgast are cleaver enemies too, many times I found myself shooting at walls and floors as they ducked in and out of cover, spraying bullets in my general direction hoping that perhaps maybe one would hit it's target.
The level designs are rather simple, there are some wide open spaces but in general the game takes you down one path and one path only but I suppose it is to be expected from something as simple as the Vita, but I found it not to have any detrimental effect on the enjoyment of the game so most of the time you don't even notice.
I also like the fact that you earn "money" whilst playing depending on how many enemies you kill, the way you kill them and taking out any other destroyable objects on your way. This can then be spent on new guns, amour and special drones that you can buy from many of the arms dealer crates you find throughout levels. It also allows you to change your load outs in game which I found a pleasure rather than having to always choose which guns you want to enjoy at the title screen only, bit of a shame other games haven't adopted this as it can change the way you want to play the game.
Then there are the graphics, don't get me wrong they sure ain't going to win many awards but I was very pleased with just how good they are, almost on par with early PS3 games and even with multiple enemies on screen I experienced no lag or pop ups which got me thinking "This is how good the Vita COULD have been had Sony paid it enough attention".
The Vita needed more games like this, games that took it's technical ability and stretched it as far as it could go, games that you could take with you where ever and enjoy them just as much as if it was your home console! Sadly this is not the case anymore, developers don't want to put the time and effort into something which isn't selling by the millions and Sony are to blame for the majority of it because they don't even believe in the product themselves!
The Vita could have been so much more and Killzone: Mercenary provides proof of that statement, I guess it shall always been known as one of those games that shows just what the Vita can achieve given time and effort!
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