Review: Killzone 2: Steel & Titanium Map Pack

The critically acclaimed shooter Killzone 2 exclusively for the PS3 got its first map pack earlier this month called the Steel & Titanium map pack. The map pack comes with two maps featuring the Helghast Train and the ISA Vekta Cruiser. Guerilla Games has given us this DLC at a very reasonable price of $5.99 because there are only two maps in the map pack. Since the release of Killzone 2 the online multiplayer has quickly become very popular for PS3 owners, but does this DLC add anything to the already addictive multiplayer experience?

The Steel & Titanium pack contains two maps based on single player campaign levels. Wasteland Bullet is a map based on the Helghast trooper train. It’s a high-speed freight train with low visibility and objects hanging from the tunnels just waiting to take your head off. Vekta Cruiser is taken from the ISA cruiser from the very first mission of the game. The only difference is it looks like its been under attack as some parts of the ship are blown off. The first thing you notice about both maps is they look amazing with a great amount of detail. What you will notice next is the two maps are polar opposites of each other, much like the Helghast and ISA. Wasteland Bullet gives you a sense of tension and speed due to the low visibility and the objects flying by you as you are fighting. Vekta Cruiser takes place in a high tech ship were you can clearly see the enemy, but you have to watch out for enemies hiding in multiple corridors of the ship. Both maps are structured very well to handle the different game modes but both are also very big, so don’t expect to have a good time playing a 4v4 match on these maps. After whittling away at countless hours of playtime on these maps, here is what I thought of the first DLC for Killzone 2.

Wasteland Bullet

When you get into this map the first thing you will notice are the different obstacles you have to face. Wasteland Bullet is a train that is split up into two long platforms. To get to the other side of the train you have to cross a gap. Every ten seconds there will be a set of pillars that pass through that gap and if you happen to be jumping across when the pillars appear, you’ll be watching your body split in half as you tumble underneath the train. If you think you can get away from this by fighting on the second level of the train, well then you are wrong, my friend. When those pillars come around, the lights of the tunnels will also appear at the top of the map. If you try to sit above and pick people off, you have to watch for the lights that will take your head off. Because the map seems to be centered around the obstacles, my initial impression of this map was very negative. I thought they only added those obstacles into the game as a gimmick that looked great on trailers, but just doesn’t work in the game. After playing many matches on the map I soon realized it was a strategic addition. When playing objective game modes you are forced to go to the other side of the train. So now you have to keep that in mind when attempting to arm the bomb, capture the propaganda or kill the enemies’ VIP.

This is where jumping across to the other side becomes very difficult. Snipers will sit watching that area; people will put C4 on the other side and set up bots to take you out before you jump across. This forces you to find a safer way to get across and makes you more aware of the time it takes you to get across. If time is running out you don’t have time to wait for the pillars to cross safely, you’ll just have to take a chance and jump across hoping you don’t slam into the pillar. There are four different areas to jump across to the other side of the train. Two are open spots and close to the enemy base, one is in the middle of the map where you have some cover and the last one is in the center of the map on the second floor. The map plays well with objective-based games but when playing Team Deathmatch people tended to fight only in certain areas of the map. They are doing this to try to avoid jumping over the gaps as much as possible. Most of the fighting would take place on one side of the train. Sure there would be people on the second level and people on the other side, but for the most part people would fight just on one side. This was a bit disappointing because the map was so big but everyone simply gathered on only one side of the train or the other.

Outside of the obstacles you have to face, there is a ton of action to be found on this map. Although this map is really big the environment makes it hard to fight from long range. There is very low visibility due to the dust flying around the map so sniping is difficult along with trying to shoot from long range. So this leads to a lot of close combat action. There are two buildings and a large center platform above the buildings in which people can choose to fight in. There are lots of crates along the platforms and the platforms get very narrow in certain areas, which adds to the close combat fighting. In bigger matches like a 16v16 match, it tends to get a little cluttered and people end up dying in bunches. Playing a smaller match like 10v10 or 8v8 the flow of the game is much better. I would say with this map you don’t want to go any less than an 8v8 game and no more than a 12v12 game. Even though the map is very big the structure of it forces players to fight in confined areas.

Overall the majority of the different game modes played really well on this map. Areas where you defend the bomb, hold a territory or pick up and return the propaganda are in good spots. I don’t feel any team had a distinct advantage unlike other maps. Since the map is very symmetrical you aren’t susceptible to spawn killing. The close combat action is really intense and the obstacles you have to face while fighting adds to the intensity. Wasteland Bullet is instantly a great addition to the other maps in the game.

Vekta Cruiser

This map is directly from the cruiser seen in the first part of the single player campaign. It is based on the ISA cruiser and it, too, is a very large map. There are two levels in the map and in the center is a big circular walkway both on the top and bottom. There is a large cylinder in the middle so you can’t see anything on the other side of the walkway. There are two long hallways on both sides of the center and they both lead to the enemy base on the top or bottom levels. The difference between the Helghast map and this ISA map is the fact that you can actually snipe on this map. Though it can be tough, you can actually see a very long distance so you can sit back and wait for people to come out of doorways to snipe them. Since there is great visibility and very few objects in your way, this map isn’t all about close combat like Wasteland Bullet. Having said that, there are instances where you feel like the big map is actually really small. When you are playing the arm the bomb mode you are constantly defending the entrances to the arm area so a lot of fighting happens in smaller corridors. This is the same when you are playing other objective game modes like territories. Unlike Wasteland Bullet, the option is there for both long range and close combat so you can play the map based on your gameplay style.

Another difference between the Wasteland and this map is in Vekta Cruiser it does seem that one side has an advantage over the other, especially in the arm the bomb mode. Both bases are located at the ends of the ship and both arm spots are right outside the base. For the Helghast side you can simply run out of your base and the arm spot is right there. On the ISA side you have to go through a separate area in front of the base before you get to the arm spot and then you have to get over a barrier in front of the spot as well. As opposed to the Helghast side where there is nothing to jump over. Although the ISA has a disadvantage getting to the arm spot, they will have the advantage when defending the bomb. There are more places where you can sit back and pick people off while they try to arm the bomb and easily cover all entrances to the arm spot, but I would still rather be on the Helghast side for this game mode. The Helghast side does have one disadvantage and that’s being more susceptible to spawn killing. In both bases there is a big area where you can sit in the enemy base and just camp without being killed by the AI turrets. The ISA base turrets are closer to the entrance so its harder to camp but the Helghast’s turrets are just far enough away for you to get in there and avoid them. Both sides are really easy to camp because you can only leave the base through four doors, but it’s definitely easier to camp if you are on the ISA side.

That is really the only problem with this map. If you don’t get people spawn killing, this is easily the better of the two maps. The map layout allows for a better flow to the game. There are more open areas to fight in and it’s easier to get around the map, which allows combat to be more fluid because you can fight in close combat and from long range. The map also looks a lot nicer. The high tech environment is full of cool, fun hiding spots and with lots of destructible glass to shatter. There’s nothing like shooting someone in the head through the glass, seeing their head leaking out blood while the glass shatters before you. Team Deathmatch on this map is much better than on Wasteland. The fighting won’t take place in one area of the map so it’s much more enjoyable and not as cluttered, assuming no spawn killing is going down.

Overall I really like this map a lot. There are a ton of places to hide and wait for people to go through doorways. The objective games play very well on this map, better than most standard maps in the game. Aside from the small issues of the ISA base and spawn killing, the map plays out very fluid. There is constant action and very few instances were you feel like there are too many people on the map. Unlike the other map you can play it with 32 players but like the other map, it plays best as a 12v12 match and a minimum of 6v6.

With the low price tag I think this first DLC is an easy buy. Both maps seem to be very well developed with objective games in mind but also play well for Team Deathmatch. If the low price tag doesn’t get you, there are 10 added trophies (5 for each map) that come with the DLC. These two maps aren’t perfect, but it is easily two of the better maps in the game. As an added incentive to purchase the DLC, Guerrilla Games has released a patch to increase the multiplayer level cap as well, something the Killzone community has been asking for since the release of the game. For anyone who plays Killzone 2 regularly it’s a no-brainer — and for those who play it casually I still think you will enjoy the two new environments enough to lay out the six measley dollars.

Doin It RIGHT:

- Environments look amazing.
- Tons of action.
- Both maps vary in gameplay style.
- No real advantage for either team on Wasteland Bullet.
- 10 additional trophies.
- Great price for a DLC map pack.

Doin It RONG:

- Vekta Cruiser: Hellghast has the advantage during bomb games.
- Vekta Cruiser can turn into a spawn kill match.
- Just the two maps, no new content.
- Maps are a bit too large, would have liked one big map and one small map.
- Can’t use airbots.