14 DAY TRIAL // Guerrilla Games, as the developer, and Sony, as the publisher, have announced that their first person shooter Killzone 3 now has a launch date set for February 22, 2011, with the title arriving exclusively on the PlayStation 3 home console.
Before now the game was simply set to arrive at an unspecified date during February of next year and the announcement allows fans of the series and of PS3 exclusives to plan their gaming time for 2011 accordingly.
The date has been so far only confirmed for the North American market.
Killzone 3 is looking impressive already, despite the fact that the team probably has another three good months during which aspects of the experience can be polished.
Earlier in the year during the E3 trade show Killzone 3 received a slew of awards, including the ones for Best Shooter, Best 3D graphics and Best PS3 video game.
The game was also pretty impressive at the Gamescom show, where Sony showed it off using both its upcoming three dimensional technology and the Move motion control scheme.
The story of Killzone 3 begins just after the ending of the second title in the series, with Sev and Rico trapped behind the lines of Helghast just as their Emperor is confirmed as dead and as a fleet makes short work of the ISA ships that support the infantry.
The developers at Guerrilla Games are no longer interested in the city environments that dominated the first two games but plan to focus on delivering more variety.
The most prominently featured level until now has been a harsh Arctic like one, with blizzards obscuring view and allowing enemies plenty of places to hide.
But there are also levels set in areas that have barely survived nuclear attacks and jungles that will make it hard to advance.
One of the main innovations coming to the gameplay is the addition of a jet pack which opens up new tactical possibilities.