Hi everyone! Guerrilla art director Jan-Bart van Beek here, with an interesting bit of news for the hardcore Killzone fans among you.

I was recently asked to contribute to a new volume in Ballistic Publishing’s line of digital artist master class books, titled d’artiste: Character Modeling 3. The request surprised me a little at first, because I’m not a character artist myself; I’m a director of character artists. As my job title implies, I direct other artists in the creation of assets for the Killzone franchise, making sure their output is consistent with the gritty, ‘hard sci-fi’ look for which our games are known.

However, I soon realized this would be a good opportunity to share my unique vantage point overlooking the entire character creation pipeline at Guerrilla. The resulting chapter has become a rather comprehensive overview of the character creation process used for Killzone 2. Taking Rico Velasquez and the Helghast Sniper as examples, the book walks the reader through every step of their development – starting with the rough initial ideas, and ending with their finalized in-game models. Along the way, various tools and techniques used at Guerrilla are explained in detail.

In addition to the chapter on Killzone 2, d’artiste: Character Modeling 3 also covers the works of Giovanni Nakpil and Cesar Dacol Jr., both renowned character modelers for major Hollywood productions such as Pirates of the Caribbean and 300. Their contributions to the book are nothing short of breathtaking, and I was extremely honored to see my name featured on the cover alongside theirs.

In short, if you’re a budding character artist or just a hardcore Killzone fan who’d like to know how characters are created at Guerrilla, d’artiste: Character Modeling 3 is a book worth tracking down. It’s the sort of resource I wish I’d had when I just started my career in the games industry. You can preview the entire book on the Ballistic Publishing website, or purchase it from their store in both limited and slipcased editions.

Publishing Information
ISBN #: Limited Edition: 978-1-921002-66-3 / Slip cased: 978-1-921002-67-0
Pages: 208 pages (Slipcased) / 208 pages (Limited Edition)
Authors: Cesar Dacol Jr, Jan-Bart van Beek, Giovanni Nakpil
Publishers: Daniel Wade, Mark Snoswell

Rate: (Average: 4.40 out of 5)

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Hi everyone! My name is Mario Lavin, and I’m the sound director at Guerrilla. I’m here today with some exciting news for all you game soundtrack aficionados out there. You asked, we listened – and now it’s your turn to listen, because the official Killzone 2 soundtrack by Joris de Man has been released on iTunes!

Performed by the Nimrod Session Orchestra and recorded at the world-famous Abbey Road Studios in London, England, these thunderous tracks are guaranteed to give even the toughest Helghast trooper goose bumps. The full album includes a throbbing remix of Fight the A.T.A.C. by yours truly (created under my pseudonym, Singularity23) and a digital booklet containing concept art by the Guerrilla visual design department.
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Rate: (Average: 4.24 out of 5)

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On September 2nd the PlayStation 3 Platinum range received a handful of new titles. These popular games require no introduction and may well be of interest to any recent purchasers of the new PS3 model.

All these games have reached sales of over 400,000 and so to celebrate we are offering consumers a chance to add these unmissable titles to their collection for an unbeatable price – £19.99 / €29.99.

So check out the list below, including their shiny new Platinum box art.

MotorStorm Pacific Rift

Resistance 2

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Rate: (Average: 4.65 out of 5)

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Napalm & Cordite, the new downloadable content pack for Killzone 2, contains two exciting new multiplayer maps: Suljeva Cliffside, which takes place on the rocky outskirts of the Suljeva mining village; and Arctower Landing, which revisits the Arctower defense posts of Blood Meridian. On top of that, the DLC pack allows you to wield a pair of weapons which were previously accessible only through the single player campaign!

Napalm: The VC1 Flamethrower
Found in the Suljeva Cliffside map, the VC1 Flamethrower projects an ignited stream of flammable liquid at high pressure. Consisting of low-octane gasoline and an unidentified component indigenous to Helghan, this form of Napalm is extremely effective for clearing out enemy trenches and bunkers.

Cordite: The Boltgun 4400
Also known as “The Handyman”, the semi-automatic Boltgun 4400 can be picked up in the Arctower Landing map. It uses Cordite to propel metal bolts at an extremely high velocity, often pinning its targets to walls and other objects. In addition, each round contains a time-delayed explosive charge – so if impalement doesn’t finish the target off, the ensuing explosion will.

Napalm & Cordite – an explosive cocktail
Both of these weapons radically alter the Killzone 2 multiplayer dynamic, delivering an experience that’s as fresh as it is intense. If you’re a veteran Killzone 2 online player looking to mix it up, or if you simply liked wielding these weapons in the single player campaign, Napalm & Cordite is your ticket. Look for it in the PlayStation Store from July 23!

For more information visit Killzone.com

Rate: (Average: 4.37 out of 5)

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With the release of the second Killzone 2 downloadable content pack “Flash & Thunder” on PlayStationStore today, we have been able to uncover Helghast documentation on their movements in the newest maps: Southern Hills and Beachhead. These two maps might be familiar to veterans of the first Killzone on PS2, but they have been completely reworked and re-imagined to suit the PlayStation 3 experience. With that in mind, here’s a report from the frontlines on how to survive the Southern Hills and nuclear attack!

Helghast Field Manual 15: Surviving the Southern Hills
The treacherous ISA forces have resorted to using nuclear devices in their futile efforts to invade our beloved home-planet of Helghan. This cowardly act will not go unpunished and the Helghast High Command training corps has prepared a field manual to ensure its loyal soldiers do not die in vain. Read the below carefully as it could be the difference between your survival of a nuclear attack and turning into a burning corpse.

• When you hear the siren, drop whatever you are doing. Just run like heck. A live soldier is a lot more useful to the Helghan Empire than a scorched, smoking one. You’ll only have a couple of seconds to get to cover, so don’t waste any time.
• Science be damned! Just Duck & Cover! If you see the nuke going off the in the distance, simply ensure that you have a roof above your head. You don’t even have to close the windows or anything. Anyone caught outside will be turned into a something resembling jerky.
• If you spawn in your base and hear the sirens going off, just stay where you are and the let the folks outside deal with the problems. You’ll be much quicker off the mark once the dust settles.
• Sentry Bots and Sentry Turrets are not immune to the devastating power of the nuke. Don’t leave them sitting outside, or they will turn into burning chunks like anything else. Place Sentry turrets inside to ensure their safety and they will cut off the enemies path to shelter.
• If you are inside, watch the doorways for enemies ducking inside to safety. Or even better, mow them down with an emplaced machine gun before they get anywhere near. That’ll teach ‘em to run like dogs!
• Out in the open? Any base can be a safe spot from the impending nuclear annihilation. If you find yourself far from home, just go duck into the enemies’ base. Your chances of survival will be higher than out in the open.
• The Bots in Killzone 2 do have a sense of self-preservation and when that siren sounds, they will try to save themselves as much as any living player. Follow them for the closest safe-spot, but make sure no sneaky ISA scum are hiding in there in the first place.
• Repaired ammo boxes and Emplaced MG’s will not be destroyed by the blast, so you won’t have to repair them again.
• Assassination targets! If the siren goes off, get to cover. I repeat, run like hell. Nothing worse than successfully defending the target and having it turned into smithereens before your very eyes and not being able to do anything about it.
• If all else fails, climb up the ladder to the roof of the central base to get a good view of the explosion in the east. It might cause you a fiery death, but damn it the explosion is too sexy not to look at in all of its splendor.

Keep these tips in mind when the ISA Cruisers launch their gutless assault on our beloved planet and you might just survive another day.

All hail Visari!

Master Sergeant Downie
5th Helghast Training Corps

Pyrrhus Rise

For a Q&A on the Flash & Thunder DLC pack, visit www.killzone.com.

Rate: (Average: 4.55 out of 5)

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