Sony infects the web with Killzone 2

By Robert Purchese Published 23 February, 2009

Browser plug-in aims to build excitement.

Sony has made a clever Killzone 2 plug-in that takes over browsers, fills them with Helghast and turns mouse-pointers into crosshairs.

The pocket-sized program can be nabbed from the Killzone 2 website, and, once installed, can launch from any URL. There's an opt-out option, plus players can form squads with up to three friends, either inviting them to battles or joining theirs.

Points and multipliers are awarded for shooting heads and hidden explosives, and the more people playing the more points there will be on offer. Cleverly, missed bullets tear apart the background website. Both Firefox and Internet Explorer are supported.

We wouldn't normally tell you about any of this, honest, but Killzone 2 launches this Friday and arrives with a big fat Eurogamer seal of approval.

Head over to our Killzone 2 review to find out why.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (34) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • DFawkes #1 3 years ago

    Nice piece of interactive marketing there. I like this kind of stuff.

  • Retroid #2 3 years ago

    Oh dear.

  • drxym #3 3 years ago

    This is horribly irresponsible marketing if you ask me. Encouraging people to install frivolous plugins is just plain wrong. Even if the thing isn't spyware and doesn't have any scripting exploits, it's still one extra piece of bloat that could crash a browser. They should have just released some mini games on their site.

  • KayJay #4 3 years ago

    I am sorry. Are you a wanker drxym.

    Dont register or download the plugin then.
    Edited by 1 at 23/02/09 @ 20:26

  • aliki #5 3 years ago

    Fun.

  • bdgr #6 3 years ago

    sounds.... really annoying actually! It's like having annoying pop-ups when you go on a website, except that you're responsible for putting them there cos you installed the plug-in!

  • Fab4 #7 3 years ago

    Looks like the concept of 'personal choice' is lost on a few of you.

  • THATinkjar #8 3 years ago

    Have Sony found a new way to install their rootkits?

  • makeamazing #9 3 years ago

    Wow muppet city, some people will complain about anything.... its just a fun piece of software, if you dont want to install it, then dont....

  • texx #10 3 years ago

    why don't the tight fuckers just spend some money on some TV adverts

  • superjag86 #11 3 years ago

    Hmm - I tried downloading it and it got rid of all my bookmarks in Firefox! It's a good thing I use Chrome as my main browser

  • LeChuckie #12 3 years ago

    I've installed it immediately. This Killzone game is great.

  • KayJay #13 3 years ago

    Get yourselve over to SkySports texx. PS3 is being pushed all the time there.

  • KayJay #14 3 years ago

    superjag86

    Foxmarks is your friend... :-)

  • drxym #15 3 years ago

    The point that some of you seem incapable of grasping is there are lots of "fun piece of software" plugins which do all sorts of malicious things in the background such as spy on browsing habits, or worse. Or unbeknownst even to the authors contain exploits or bugs that can comproise browser stability or may be be leveraged by malicious sites. Comet Cursor would be one popular example but there are countless others. There are plenty of ways to promote a game which do not involve encouraging a user to compromise their browser security.

    Now for what its worth, I have reviewed the .xpi file for Firefox and it seems fairly innocuous, involving a handful of XML http requests but the binary control for IE will execute natively and is therefore considerably more risky from stability and security. If you have to play, at least do it from Firefox where the add-on can be removed fairly easily.

    As for kj66246, grow the hell up.
    Edited by 2 at 23/02/09 @ 21:36

  • TheBoyChris #16 3 years ago

    dyxym - I assume you've downloaded the said plugin then and checked to see if it's safe or not? Otherwise innocent until proven guilty, etc, etc...

  • drxym #17 3 years ago

    Actually I have on Firefox. I have absolutely no way of telling what it does in IE. Even if it is an innocuous control, it is still an incredibly bad idea to install random add-ons to play some game.
    Edited by 1 at 23/02/09 @ 21:38

  • aphexstwin #18 3 years ago

    drxym. i'll put it in caps to make it easier to read.

    IF YOU DONT TRUST IT, DONT DOWNLOAD IT.

    fuck, if you dont like it, uninstall the cunt and stop yer bitchin.

  • Dave52 #19 3 years ago

    If only it was Halo plugin eh drxym...?

  • VibratingDonkey #20 3 years ago

    So how do you get it to work? I've filled in my login info correctly and am pressing the "SIGN IN" button. Nothing happens. "PLEASE CHECK YOUR DETAILS" it says. Logged into the actual site without any problems. Firefox 3.0.6.

  • rudedudejude #21 3 years ago

    It comes with a free Rootkit!

    Woop! Get em while they're hot!

  • urban #22 3 years ago

    'twas funny tbh

  • penhalion #23 3 years ago

    WTF?!?! This just described a bloody web virus!

  • nikobe #24 3 years ago

    Don't know where all this hate towards dyxym is coming from. Yes the user has a choice as all users do but those same users download random ring tones and "fun" apps off the net full of viruses, that's also their choice. Now were not saying this has viruses or has holes in it to allow any kind of malicious hacking but things like this sometimes do.

    As others have said a safe Flash based site with cross-hairs, video and whatever they want would be far better. Saying that if you have downloaded this and enjoying it then that's cool.

  • ps3owner #25 3 years ago

    I think I took a wrong turn earlier on, now I am stuck in paranoia town...

  • penhalion #26 3 years ago

    @ps3owner

    You may want to read the description of the app sony made. It effectively randomly hijacks your url request to launch itself and take control of your browser. The only difference between this and a standard web virus is that it has an opt out option. The thing is what does opt out do exactly? Does it just disabe the shootout mini-game? Why would you encourage people to opt out of the mini-game instead of uninstalling the whole app. What else does it do exactly, that requires it to remain active in one of two seperate states?

    People aren't paranoid, they are legitimately asking what the hell Sony were thinking when they created this thing.

  • drxym #27 3 years ago

    nikobe, the hate is coming because I suspect some people perceive any criticism of anything Playstation or Killzone related as a personal attack. Stupid and childish I know, but sadly quite true.

    As it happens I own a PS3 and have Killzone 2 on preorder but that doesn't mean that I should stay silent when I see a marketing gimmick which encourages people to compromise the security of their browser for something as frivolous as a mini-game. Keep that crap on the Killzone site where it belongs.

    This particular game runs off a timer and could spring up when you're logged into a bank site or anything else, and injects JavaScript and a SWF object into the page. I shouldn't have to explain the danger in this. I am quite sure that if the KZ game site were hacked, or if it was simply sloppy about checking parameters that there would be an abundance of exploits attackers could experiment with.

  • kangarootoo #28 3 years ago

    @penhalion

    "The only difference between this and a standard web virus is that it has an opt out option"

    But that isn't the only difference. The other, far more crucial difference, is that IT HAS AN OPT IN option! How are people not getting that? If you don't opt in, you don't get it.

    Its not even sneaking in behind some other bit of software, it is the only thing you install. You decide to install it, or you don't. Calling it a web virus is just deception.

    Jesus wept.

  • kangarootoo #29 3 years ago

    @drxym

    "nikobe, the hate is coming because I suspect some people perceive any criticism of anything Playstation or Killzone related as a personal attack. Stupid and childish I know, but sadly quite true."

    Rubbish. I'm no fanboy, but I still call out misinformation where I see it. Calling this a web virus when it is not is simply misinformation and lies. There are absolutely shades of grey, and I don't dispute that this thing could create security holes, but not liking something should not act as a bridge to lying about it.

    The only people who get this will be those who choose to get it. THAT makes it different to all the other things yopu are comparing it to, and you know it.

  • drxym #30 3 years ago

    kangarootoo, I never called this thing a web virus so I don't know what you are talking about or why you are calling me a liar.

  • Fab4 #31 3 years ago

    If you install certain varieties of Windows OS on your PC, you are potentially compromising your system for 'frivolity'. Perhaps we should make everyone use LFS...compiling everything from scratch. That way we know what we are putting on our computers and how it works. While its compiling we can make tin-foil hats.

  • kangarootoo #32 3 years ago

    @drxym

    Sorry man, I'm mixing posts here. My post was incorporating penhallion's "The only difference between this and a standard web virus is that it has an opt out option". I know you didn't say that.

    Your posts have been well informed and you clearly know your stuff. I just get twitchy whenever people suggest that they are being "forced" to do stuff when they aren't. Though I realise that there is a bit of a grey area in giving consumers free choice to take on board things they don't fully understand.

    And I'm having a hectic morning, and whenever I don't have much time to read up and compose a post, I tend to end up being a little arsey. Apologies.

  • Mortey #33 3 years ago

    drxym is right, any toolbar is bad if it is not from a completly trustworthy place and has been completly tested.

    As a few people have already mentioned after the rootkit I wouldn't count Sony as completly trustworthy on this!!

    And yes I have a PS3......not quite sure why yet though!!!

  • el_pollo_diablo #34 3 years ago

    The top of this page says

    "Sony infects the web with Killzone 2 Comments"

    Chortle!