Punishing, unusual shooter thrives on tactical freedom.
When you first start playing Far Cry 2, you’ll be forgiven for thinking that it absolutely bloody hates you. Gunfire flies from nowhere, peppering you to pieces before you’ve even seen your attacker. Your fragile health bar drops to almost nothing within seconds. There are seemingly-random, one-hit deaths aplenty, and even when you do get a warning, the slow and cumbersome health recovery system means that you often won’t get the time to heal yourself before the final bullet sends you staggering to the ground in a pathetic heap.
But it would be a huge mistake to turn away. A huge and terrible mistake. It’s not Far Cry 2’s fault that its opening hour is defined by repeated stabbing of the continue option. It’s just that it’s trying to craft a richer, more satisfying – and challenging – experience for you than a lot of games do. While regenerating health, clueless enemies and a total disregard for the repercussions of death may have made a lot of recent shooters more accessible, they’ve also simplified them, stripping out some of the depth and replacing skill with perseverance. While Far Cry 2 is certainly no Ikaruga or Mega Man style endurance test, its less lenient approach is a deliberate move with the aim of teaching you how to get the best out of it. And there’s a lot to get.
It’s an intelligently designed game with the concept of thoughtful killing at its centre. The real joys of Far Cry 2 don’t come from gung-ho Rambo raids of enemy bases – although they’re certainly possible – or the sheer number of bad guys you’ve plastered by the end of a mission. They come from an immense sense of freedom and the smug satisfaction of a well-executed battle plan.
Dropped into war-torn Africa with just a pistol, a machete and a couple of contacts, the only instruction you’re given is to find the head bad guy (an amoral arms dealer called The Jackal) and kill him. You’ll talk to the local militia to get missions, using the respect earned to gather information. You’ll make friends with locals and traders, who will give you side-quests and even alternative ways to complete existing briefs. But which tasks you accept and how you carry them out will be entirely down to your own choices. Do you, for instance, tackle an assassination in a tense cease-fire zone by going in guns blazing, before making a quick escape in a waiting car and hiding out until the heat calms down? Or do you slowly stalk your prey into a lonely back alley and make a silent knife kill, walking away without a care in the world?
When asked to steal documents from an enemy base, do you snipe the perimeter guards from the bushes, soften up the rest with grenades and then make a quick smash-and-grab attack, or do you make a methodical stealth run, leaving undetected with a zero body count? No mission in Far Cry 2 ever dictates how you have to play it. You just get a location and an objective and are allowed to do whatever you want when you get there. And with new weapons and equipment unlockable at your own pace via side-missions, there are no limitations apart from your creativity.
Once you realize that those early punishments are just the game’s way of making you think a little harder about how you approach things, the brilliance of its design starts to emerge. Those random deaths weren’t random; you just hadn’t learned the subtle warning signs. The slow, manual healing system isn’t unfair; it just makes you think about falling back and using cover. Barring the occasional AI glitch, enemies react fast to any possible threat, fanning out to find and flank you before you can get close. They’ll use the jungle as camouflage, they’ll fall back defensively if they can’t find you and if they spot you out in the open, some will even jump into vehicles and try to run you over before you can get a shot off. They’re sharp, aggressive, and when they’re nearby you have to be thinking and adapting constantly. It’s an incredibly exhilarating change from the tired old “Circle-strafe for the win” routine.
And it’s not just during missions that you have to keep on your toes. The whole, vast, open-world map is littered with militia outposts, meaning that the journeys to and from your objectives are just as eventful as anything that happens when you get there. Whether you travel by car, boat, on foot, by hang-glider or a combination of all, anything can and will happen as you and your environment play an eternal, bullet-strewn game of cat and mouse. Everything feels organic and lived in, especially in the open countryside areas. There’s no hint of repeated design despite the vastness of the wilderness – a stunning achievement.
The sense of being part of a constantly evolving, unpredictable adventure is hugely liberating. As gorgeously real as Far Cry 2 looks in screenshots and video, nothing can prepare you for how deeply immersive and alive it feels to play. It really is your own story, unfolding spontaneously on a second-by-second basis. Ten playable characters are available too. Your choice won’t affect gameplay, but it will affect the plot. You’ll meet the ones you don’t choose as NPCs, and each will bring their own optional missions and side-stories.
Of course, there are niggles. From time to time it’s a little too easy to get by just by sniping, and some of the game’s collectables require a bit of platforming action, which while incorporated in a subtle way, scream “This is a videogame!” a little too loudly. And when the AI does falter, it’s even more obvious for the same reason. But it’s Far Cry 2’s dense, textural universe that will stay with you long after you power down your system. With gameplay this organic and a world so rich and explorable, Far Cry 2 is a game you’ll live in. You’ll regularly play it until embarrassing o’clock in the morning, and then you’ll get up and shamelessly start all over again. And you’ll love every second.
Anybody see any comparisions of the PS3 vs the 360 on this one? Did they harness the power or are they the same!
If they are the same I have to pick up on 360 for the fact of me having more online friends on the 360 but I will bypass that if it runs smoother/looks better on the PS3.
Open-ended design, fantastic visuals, and the possibility of cool user-made levels make up for staid multiplayer and incompetent AI.
By Thierry Nguyen 10/21/2008
The easiest way to describe the hectic nature of Far Cry 2 is either as a first-person Grand Theft Auto with a crazy African backdrop, or a more polished, easier-to-play S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. As an unremarkable mercenary, you're sent to a fictionalized African nation engulfed in civil war. Somewhere in this conflict -- which takes place in 50 square kilometers of game world -- is an arms dealer known as the Jackal, and you're tasked with hunting him down.
The structure's akin to the aforementioned S.T.A.L.K.E.R. or Grand Theft Auto -- a variety of individuals provide missions to further your progression in the search for the Jackal. Completing these missions rewards you with conflict diamonds, which you can spend at the weapons dealer for firearms, upgrades, and optional equipment. In between missions, you'll cover a whole lot of African terrain -- the fictional nature of Far Cry 2's backdrop allows for desert, savanna, and even verdant jungle -- and you can either attempt to hoof it (which generally takes too long), jack a Jeep, or use specific bus routes for faster travel.
Far Cry 2's filled with stuff to do, from primary missions where you assassinate police chiefs or search for hidden caches of gold à la Three Kings to secondary tasks like delivering travel papers to locals in exchange for malaria medication, executing contract killings ordered via hacked cell towers, or carrying out favors for other mercenaries. Your merc buddies -- who rescue you on your first death, though your next failure requires reloading a saved game -- often provide sub-missions (such as stealing documents or attacking different targets) that make the associated main mission lengthier but also more rewarding, via upgrades to your safe houses and vehicles.
Because you're often given an objective without a script, Far Cry 2's firefights play out in a variety of ways. Maybe you'll use the cover of night and the tall grass to slink around and silently stab fools with a machete. Maybe you'll slam a jeep into the middle of an encampment and unload its heavy machine gun on everyone. Or maybe you'll just sit out in the tall grass and snipe from afar, or use flares and the flamethrower to light everything on fire, or -- finally -- just rush in, guns blazing. Really, this game's just a huge sandbox for gun-combat aficionados.
Far Cry 2 also reminds me of Assassin's Creed, in that Ubisoft Montreal's crafted a fantastic open-world title mired by annoyances -- both great and small. I hate it when games incorporate debilitating conditions on the player, and, well, Far Cry 2 gives you malaria. It's tolerable, yet it's also annoying: Your malarial fits aren't too frequent, but they tend to happen right at the worst times (i.e., running toward cover while reloading).
Worse than the malaria, though: the enemies. In short, they're dumb, tough, and pack way too much firepower. The A.I. wavers from somewhat competent (occasionally seeking cover or running flanking maneuvers) to generally dumb (running and gunning in a straight line). Not only are their heads dense, but so are their bodies. I can understand a heavily armored space marine or robot or alien shrugging off some fire, but how does a shirtless guy take a direct .50-caliber burst to the solar plexus and still live? Even the newest Rambo movie knows you can't walk away from such a wound. Finally, bad guys aren't affected by weapon degradation. I understand that guns get funky and sometimes jam, and I understand that the player should try to use clean hardware whenever he can. But why is it that the enemies never get a gun jam or blowback, yet the moment I pick up and fire that exact same weapon, it jams on me? Thankfully, the open-ended design and fantastic visuals make up for such annoying opponents.
That last part's key. No matter Far Cry 2's faults, two fundamental aspects save the experience: It plays well, and it looks good. As much as I find malaria annoying, I also find the tactical freedom satisfying. Sure, the lip-sync's a bit off, and the fire details aren't as stunning as they should be -- yet the eye-candy objective's more than filled by sunrise filtering through the jungle trees or an intense fire eating its way through an outpost in the dead of night. I hate how baddies shrug off bullets, but I love the crazy (and graphic) injury animations. Even if I find the multiplayer too staid, I find the possibility of cool user-made levels (via the easy map editor) tantalizing. Like any good Grand Theft Auto, Far Cry 2's overall package makes up for any individual flaws -- enough for it to be on a short list of best FPS games this year -- and so it's fitting to summarize it as...well, GTA: Mogadishu.
With LBP delayed I went down and preordered this at Gamestop for the bonus content today (still let me do it!). That Gameradar review convinced me basically... challenging sounds good as long as it's not just because the game is 'stupid'.
I don't think I'd put too much weight in that 1up review... it's the same reviewer that said Dead Space sucked completely. I think he just likes 'easy' games or something and reviews poorly when a game actually has challenge (especially obvious when you read his reviews... he likes ezmode).
Hope it turns out well. Gonna be a VERY expensive month in gaming.
A Near-Perfect Union of Sandbox Play and First Person Tactics by Jason Lauritzen
It's a delicate undertaking trying to achieve a sensible equilibrium between the pursuit of pure aesthetics and artificial intelligence. Many games get lost along the way, forfeiting one for the other. That's why Far Cry 2 is such a resounding achievement: it not only marries beauty and brains, but throws in a significant amount of player choice into that delicate mix.
His voice is a little hard to hear over the puttering of the engine and the clatter of the tires meeting the dilapidated wooden bridge, but your guide has an agenda to cover. As the jeep cuts through the countryside giving you a proper view of the scenery, he tells you about the two warring factions – The United Front for Liberation and Labor and the Alliance for Popular Resistance (and their partner in habit), an arms dealer known as the Jackal. The middleman always comes out best: by supplying both warring sides with weapons, the Jackal is able to control the purse strings of the conflict for maximum profit. That's why it's your job to stop him.
The closer you get to your hotel the more you realize something isn't right: sweat isn't uncommon in this kind of heat, but you're pouring buckets and feeling nauseas as you clench the seat in front of you. Top that off with some blurry vision and all you want is sleep. The guide says it's malaria and not to worry – it happens to everyone, but you're going to need medical help soon. You pass out and wake up in your hotel room. There’s only one problem: it's on fire! Instead of the townsfolk rolling out a welcome mat, they've decided you're not wanted. One case of malaria, a local shootout, and a thoroughly toasted flophouse – that's the first ten minutes of the game.
Far Cry 2 uses the introductory train rides in both installments of Half-Life as a thesis and gives it an action-coated spin. The comparison with Half-Life provides a reference, but a full analogy to Half-Life would be incorrect. The opening section of Far Cry 2 is an on-the-leash setup in a two-fold manner: like Half-Life, it's setting the stage (in terms of plot and environment), but it also wants to play around with diametrical conventions. The developers are saying, “There's a time for the chaperon led experience and we demonstrated that. From here on out, we let you take on anything in any way you choose.”
Choice tagged to variety – that's always been the power of the Far Cry series. Players of the first game had fun discussing how they tackled a mission in their own manner. It wasn't uncommon to hear a person claim, “Oh, well I crawled through the brush, taking out one guard at-a-time,” only to hear another say, “That's not exciting. You've got to strap an explosive charge to a vehicle and ram it into the nearest guardhouse.” In Far Cry 2, varied choice returns in an even more developed form.
You start with missions you can accept from either faction. There's always a straightforward objective, whether it be more supply oriented – such as destroying a weapons cache – or more jugular, like an assassination. Let's use the first category and an example mission to show how choice is deeper. One of your first missions has you destroying a faction's latest shipment of weapons. You can run in, guns blazing, but that requires a lot of firepower and will be a drawn out affair. Another option is to venture to a safe house (which functions as a save point) and set your alarm for late at night. Now, when you go in, many of the guards will be lethargic, giving you a leg-up on the situation. Then there's the always-present third option: you can use your new friendship with a mercenary buddy to good effect. He can create a distraction, luring half the troops out the base, and in turn making your assault a more manageable proposition.
Keeping tabs on all those options (and many more) isn't a problem thanks to your capable inventory. The map, which features multiple levels of zoom and GPS, make it easy to keep tabs on objectives, where you are, and where you need to be going. You can also do your own form of tagging. By scouting out positions early with the monocular, you can mark important points of reference on your map, like health stations, vehicles, ammo piles, and mounted weapons. Don't assume the wilderness breaks the telecommunications barrier. Your in-game phone allows you to get proper updates in the middle of missions. Even though missions are spread apart, your transportation options aren't limited to your own two feet. You can commandeer vehicles and, even if they get shot up, there's always the option to hop out and repair them. There's also a bus system that teleports you across vast sections of the map.
As you're wandering the 31 miles of in-game wild, you won't be able to ignore the scenery on display. Not only is the draw distance fantastic – you can literally see for many in-game miles – but normal barriers to immersion presented in many other games simply aren't there. When you push through a dense patch of jungle, it feels that way. Instead of sliding through the bush (as if it has no mass), your character pushes aside branches and flattens smaller plants and, realistically, they swing back to their original positions. Effects like the sun obscuring your vision, the fast-forwarding of time when you rest, and fire that spreads across patches of dry grass, complement the realistic environment on display.
Take note though: beauty is not only skin deep. Bridges that look like they will crumble, will crumble – given the right push. You can drive a jeep through their flimsy rails and careen into a shallow riverbed. Buildings constructed out of shoddy two-by-fours and scrap metal can be blown apart, sending the rudimentary building materials in many directions. Even your body is apt for gross display, destruction, and a somewhat rough form of resurrection. If your health meter dips to one bar, you're in dangerous territory – that remaining bar will drain, rendering you a corpse.
However, you can perform some nasty frontier medicine. The animations are chosen at random and look gruesome every time. Pulling a bullet out of your thigh with pliers or digging a slug out of your arm with a knife is hellish but also a functional design choice. By not opting for a regenerating health system, Far Cry 2 forces you to think before you go into a fight. You can't just hide behind a rock and wait for your health to heal – constitution is a truly limited resource.
You will take damage and have to endure those patch-up animations frequently due to the rock solid A.I. that Far Cry 2 employs. Enemies take cover in traditional ways – like hiding behind rocks and walls – and they use an ample amount of stealth. They'll often creep through shallow grass to sneak up on you. You might think you've encountered one soldier, only to find three more sprout out of the ground. They work together in other ways too. One may shout, “I'm out! Reloading!” and his teammate will unload fire on your position so his partner can change out a clip. In a nod to the realism, sometimes things get comical. You may set off an explosion near a jeep, which sends it sliding down a hill into a river bed. The gunner may bail out early, while the driver nervously slams on the gas, hoping against the laws of physics that he can stop his inevitable descent.
All this mercenary risk doesn't come at little reward. Shunning standard forms of currency, the citizens of the in-game economy only take diamonds. You are awarded these once you accept contracts (there are also bonus cases of diamonds scattered around the world), and you can use them to purchase upgrades for your vast inventory. By visiting a weapons store, you can unlock new weapons, upgrade their accuracy and reliability, and increase their ammunition capacity. It's a smart system: it introduces an RPG-like element - something normally not seen in first person shooters.
Developing such a robust world is a feat in itself, and giving players the keys to design their version of it is a gracious offer. Far Cry 2's map editor puts a lot of options at your fingertips. You can play around with templates for settings like a desert oasis or mountain valley, or just start from a barren plot of dirt. After that becomes your playground – throw down roads, setup fortresses, raise or lower ground – there's not a lot you can't do. A nice feature is the performance indicator bar. When it's green, it means that the map, as laid out, will run smoothly. Once it hits orange, you need to start optimizing, and if you hit red, be prepared for some shuddering. Any map can be saved and then shared with the Far Cry 2 community.
Taking a page from Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, all the multiplayer modes – Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Diamond, and Uprising – allow you use a particular class of character. Each class has its own strengths. For example, Guerrillas can carry IEDs and Saboteurs pack a dart rifle and silenced handgun. Once you start gaining XP the standard load outs – like the Commando's G3-KA4 and Star .45 – they get upgraded with more lethal negotiators, like an AK-47 and M-79 Grenade Launcher. This upgradeable class system breathes much need variety into the otherwise standard multiplayer modes. Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch are self-explanatory, and first-person shooter staples like Capture the Diamond just replaces the conventional flag with a canister of diamonds. Uprising offers a little bit of a twist. You cap points on the map, but instead of just holding them, the team that captures all the points first and then tries to assassinate the leader of the other team.
It's a common assumption that the big kid in the sandbox is Grand Theft Auto and that shooters aren't welcome to play. Far Cry 2 kicks up the sand and shows what a great development team is capable of – delivering an engaging world that puts choice of play at the forefront. Direction is sometimes a developer's worst enemy, tempting them always to restrict the player. By adopting a laissez faire attitude to player discretion, Ubisoft has crafted a brilliant follow-up.
Free, intense, fierce ... An innovative action adventure that will mark the destiny of future FPS.
A grandes males grandes remedios. A great evils great remedies. Tras perder la golosa distribución de los videojuegos de CryTek, Ubisoft se aseguró los derechos de la saga FarCry. After losing the voracious distribution of video games from Crytek, Ubisoft has ensured the rights of the saga FarCry. La compañía francesa reinventa la saga de acción tropical modificándola por entero, y encuadrándola en un nuevo escenario. The French company reinvents the saga of action by modifying tropical whole, and enclosed in a new arena. El resultado está a la formidable altura del original. The result is a formidable height of the original...
you can go and read the rest if you want....LOL!!!
If you click the link, Google will translate it for you!!!
Word has it that 360 will be at 30 fps while PS3 is at 25 fps though PS3 textures are marginally better. Gamespot felt the PS3 was smoother in it's rendering slightly over the 360.
Thats a toss up to me. I watched game play video on both and both look equally impressive. If the PS3 is slightly smoother, I might take that over 5 fps.
Word has it that 360 will be at 30 fps while PS3 is at 25 fps though PS3 textures are marginally better. Gamespot felt the PS3 was smoother in it's rendering slightly over the 360.
Thats a toss up to me. I watched game play video on both and both look equally impressive. If the PS3 is slightly smoother, I might take that over 5 fps.
keep in mind..this is not COD$..its more of a tactical shooter..frames per second doesn't mean as much.
Thats what I was thinking! If the PS3 is rendering better than the 360, 5 fps is not going to make a difference. Only thing though is I got like 2 friends on the PSN, but i might not care!
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Far Cry 2 Review Thread
....................Classic!
Well, i guess they took heed to all those saying "games are too easy these days".
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