Killzone: Mercenary Review (Vita)

Killzone: Mercenary is a First-Person Shooter game, developed by Guerilla Cambridge and published by SCEA. Is it the First Person Shooting game every Vita fans have been waiting for? Read our review and find out!

At the start of the game, the story tells you that you are caught up in a war between the ISA (Interplanetary Strategic Alliance) and the Helghast. It is your duty to fulfill your objectives as a mercenary without choosing sides. Everything happens really fast so you better check on your main objective and surroundings since it might be a part of your mission.

During the first few 'sub-missions', you won't have any idea what's going on, you are pretty much on your own. There's a small tutorial, but it doesn't really tell you specifically what to do.

The story is typical for a First Person Shooting game. It doesn't delve much into detail about what is your real goal or what is there to fight for.

Killzone: Mercenary features different Multiplayer (MP) modes. Because the objectives vary, and depending on the weapons available to you, your play style might differ from time to time. Some parts of the multiplayer mode are 'glitchy', especially during times when you just die all of a sudden. Probably because you were bombed or something else;  unfortunate things happen. Perhaps with every First Person Shooting game, these things are always bound to happen.

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Multiplayer is extremely gorgeous and fun since you can kill in lots of different ways and use a lot of different weapons

I'm not really the type of person to play for the graphics but this game sets it and fits right in for the Vita. The Killzone engine makes the best and right use of the Vita functions. The graphics itself is hugely enough for the game to earn the right for GOTY (Game Of The Year) for the Vita this year.

There are certain points in the game where you can clearly see that the engine doesn't suit well with the game progression. Like in Multiplayer for example where you can see objects that are not in their proper places. FPS games does not require graphics to be very sophisticated considering all you are doing is shooting and killing, but at least put objects on the right mark.

The controls are well laid out and very responsive. The only thing I don't like is when you do a melee attack, you need to click the triangle button. I prefer to use the touchscreen, but I guess the triangle button is better-suited when you use it for interrogation.

Killzone: Mercenary has something to be proud about when it comes to sound. The sound quality is better by using a headphone; you can hear everything around you clear enough and it delivers a strong impact.

The Verdict

The game features some really good missions and engaging multiplayer. The missions are diversified based on what kind of weapon and objectives you have. However, If you aren't much into FPS games, it might not be as fun because you might get annoyed by the constant shooting and repetitive missions.

Killzone: Mercenary is a must-have game for the Vita, especially if you are just starting with the series and want something fresh. I recommend the game at least to new FPS gamers or players new to the series. It's really up for the "Killzone" name, and the multiplayer is sure to take a lot of your time.

If you do not have this game, make sure that you buy it now because you are missing out!

Rating for Killzone: Mercenary

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Graphics:
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Game Info:	Platform: PlayStation Vita Developer: Guerilla Cambridge Publisher: SCEA Release Date: 09/10/2013 Price: $35.99 (Buy It) Rating: M Mature No. of players: 1 Internet Multiplayer: Yes Local Multiplayer: Yes Size: 3 GB

The Good

• Amazing gameplay
• Stunning graphics
• Graphics fit the story really well
• Multiplayer is extremely gorgeous and fun since you can kill in lots of different ways and use a lot of different weapons
• Game isn't that hard even on Veteran's difficulty and the map is really large for a handheld FPS game
• Fast pace and a really competitive multiplayer for the Vita

The Bad

• Some minor bugs and glitches (Not surprising for any FPS game)
• Story mode can be finished within 3 - 4 hours of Recruit difficulty and you might not even die until on the last mission (which isn't that good if you are a hardcore FPS gamer)
• Multiplayer can get really annoying, since sometimes you will die out-of-nowhere or you lagged on the most craziest shooting sprees
• Guns in the game are very generic and it could have been much better if we can customize it but I guess it is by far the best FPS game for the Vita

About the author

Jansen Banlaygas is a 21-year-old Computer Engineering student. He likes playing Frisbee, video games, and reading books. He loves to talk about games (especially if it's about the Final Fantasy series), and could talk all day long just talking about games. He also I like to read manga and anime and never gets bored talking about it.