Day 1 - Guerrilla Games and the Inspiration behind Killzone

Karooo · February 13, 2011

Guerrilla Games started out in 2000 as a subsidiary of Dutch multimedia conglomerate Lost Boys under the moniker Lost Boys Games. The developer was a merge between 3 separate Dutch developers including Orange Games and Digital Infinity. They focused on developing games for the Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance. The four games Lost Boys Games developed are: Tiny Toon Adventures: Dizzy's Candy Quest (2001), Rhino Rumble (2002), Black Belt Challenge (2002) and Invader (2002).

In 2003, Lost Boys Games was sold to Media Republic, a media venture owned by Lost Boys' founder Michiel Mol. In July of 2003 it was renamed to it's current: Guerrilla Games. It began development on Killzone (Sony Computer Entertainment, PS2) and Shellshock: Nam '67 (Eidos Interactive, PS2, PC & Xbox). Both games were released in 2004. Shellshock sold over 900.000 copies but received bad review scores. Killzone went to sell over a million copies worldwide causing it to receive a lot of media coverage. Thanks to the success, Guerrilla Games made an agreement with Sony Computer Entertainment for future development of the Killzone franchise exclusively for Sony platforms.

In December 2005, Sony Computer Entertainment announced the acquisition of Guerilla Games from parent company Media Republic, making it a wholly owned first party studio. Guerriila Games has since than released two more games: Killzone Liberation and Killzone 2.

Personal opinion

Guerrilla Games are one of Sony's best developers when it comes to working with the PlayStation 3. The juice they extracted from a 4 year old hardware while making Killzone 2 was a monumental achievement since Kiillzone 2 was widely regarded as one of the best looking games ever. The multiplayer of KZ2 was extremely popular with IVG members which speaks highly of their game designing skills. The studio will always remain close to my heart for giving me Killzone 2 and letting me experience a wonderful squad shooter, which no other game can dethrone so easily.

This year, they shifted to a new studio. This is what they had to say:

Early next year, Guerrilla will relocate to a new building. It’s been a long time coming, but we’ve finally outgrown the Canal House on the Herengracht. When we moved in here we had more space than we knew what to do with – two adjoined buildings, a monumental garden house, six stories of seventeenth century architecture and a reinforced basement which had doubled as a bank vault at one point. Now, every nook and cranny of the Canal House is filled with high-tech gadgetry, network cables, dev kits, monitors and action figures.

We knew the writing was on the wall when our power needs became so demanding that our neighbors started to experience brownouts. Adding an electrical transformer allowed us to at least finish Killzone 3 without bringing down the whole block, but the rising number of employees and the start of a new IP meant it was only going to be a temporary reprieve.

Anyway, we’ll miss the old Canal House – not just for its quaint atmosphere, but for its unique construction as well. Between the parallel-but-uneven stairwell columns and the mixed-height floors, it took new employees months to get a grasp of the layout. Many were the times an intern would get hopelessly lost, ending up in the wrong room or even on the wrong floor after returning from a meeting. The Canal House would’ve made a pretty good multiplayer level, but somehow we never got around to including it in a game.

As for the studio itself, Guerrilla isn’t going far: 700 meters to the east to be precise, to a lovely location overlooking Rembrandt Square. By sheer coincidence, the new building also used to be a bank – but unlike the Canal House, this one was constructed in the twentieth century. That means there will be plenty of space for high-tech gadgetry, network cables, dev kits, monitors, action figures and anything else we might choose to bring along.

Games made by Guerrilla

ShellShock: Nam '67 - multi-platform

ShellShock: Nam '67 depicts, for the first time in a video game, the true horrors of the Vietnam War. Focusing on one man's ordeals during one of the most controversial wars of modern times, Shellshock: Nam '67 dares to go where no other war game has gone. The player assumes the role of a rookie soldier on his first tour of duty, as he experiences all the fear, chaos and atrocities of the Vietnam War.

Killzone - PlayStation 2

Killzone is a first-person action game set in the near future, during a period of planetary colonization. A savage conflict has broken out between the Earth-loyal forces of the ISA and a separatist, militaristic faction known as the Helghast. Following a devastating Helghast attack on an ISA colony, the player is thrust into the role of Jan Templar, a young ISA captain who must lead a ragtag group of soldiers on a suicidal mission behind enemy lines.

Killzone Liberation - PlayStation Portable

Two months after the events of Killzone, most of southern Vekta is still under Helghast control. The rules of war are cast aside when the Helghast General, Metrac, employs increasingly brutal measures to seize the initiative and strengthen his position. Reprising the role of Templar, the player is sent on a covert operation to save hostages captured by Metrac, while ISA troops continue the fight for liberty.

Killzone: Liberation received wide critical acclaim as well as several awards, including IGN's Best PSP Offline Multiplayer Game of 2006.

Killzone 2 - PlayStation 3

Two years after the Helghast assault on Vekta, the ISA is taking the fight to the enemy's home world of Helghan. The ISA goal is direct: capture the Helghast leader, Emperor Visari, and bring the Helghast war machine to a halt. Assuming the role of Sev, a battle-hardened veteran and a member of the Special Forces unit Alpha Team, the player must lead a group of highly trained soldiers on a mission to take out the Helghast threat.

Killzone 2 released to wide critical and popular acclaim, receiving numerous Editor’s Choice awards including those for IGN, GameSpy, GamePro and PlayStation: The Official Magazine.

Killzone 3 - PlayStation 3

Helghast forces have mounted a devastating counter-attack, prompting the ISA evacuation of planet Helghan. As new Helghast battalions appear, armed with more powerful weapons, ISA forces find themselves outmanned, outgunned and surrounded.

Features

Co-founders, Guerrilla Games

Studio pics (click to enlarge)

Making of Killzone

Making of Killzone 2

Making of Killzone 3

Developer Interviews

Killzone 2

Killzone 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQeHIOB3vYc

Inspiration behind Killzone ( by Rishi Alwani aka Milo/JC Denton )

To some,the Killzone franchise might seem like a highly original concept. And while it does have an exquisitely detailed universe and back story, a fair share of it has been inspired by already existing games, movies, political movements and random bits of pop culture. Here’s a look at some of things that make Killzone 3 the hulking beast of a game that it is.

Kerberos Saga: One of the most obvious sources floating around the internet, this epic sci-fi and alternate history franchise has been around since the 1980s. It envisions a future where Germany won World War. The full-body armour, known as “protect-gear” worn by soldiers in the anime movies (Jin-Roh to be precise) serves as a major source of inspiration for the Helghast soldier’s appearance through the franchise.

Halo: Sure it doesn’t share the bright colour palette of the well realised universe that Bunge created but let’s face it, if Microsoft didn’t score a massive hit with the Halo franchise; there wouldn’t be a Killzone game. So much so that the first Killzone was one of the first titles to be dubbed “Halo-killer” until suits, journos and fanboys realised that both can exist in the same universe without having their minds blown away.

Nazi Germany and other such politicking: In an interview with GamePro, Hermen Hulst, Managing Director at Guerilla Games said,” We've grown up with the images of the Second World War and the Cold War -- what happened in Communist Russia and Nazi Germany is permanently burned into our consciousness." A bit of a history lesson this. Post-World War I Germany harboured all their resentment into launching into World War II. The speeches that Visari gives, his ideals- political and otherwise mirror Hitler’s views and leadership in ways more than one. Even the posters and ads for the games have a lot in common with 1930s and 1940s fascism and communist propaganda.

Amsterdam: Apart from being the party capital of Europe, it serves as the HQ for Guerilla Games in the form of a 17th century building overlooking a canal. Given the industrial look and feel of Helghan, it’s been inspired by their own vintage locale in a way where manholes and electricity boxes in-game bear a resemblance to their real-life Dutch counterparts.

Pokemon: Can’t you see the similarities? Rico is Pikachu because he’s a total jerk, Sev is Ash who is trying his best to be the ultimate PokeMaster. Narville is from Team Rocket and the Helghast are all one form of Pokemon or another. What, you DON’T share my vision? Well *beep* you. Here’s my proof, Pikachu piloting a KZ mech:

Big thanks to Dan for all the epic Images :hug: