Crysis 2 Review

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Developer Crytek

Publisher EA

Platform PS3/Xbox360/PC

Release Date April 2011

It has been a long time coming and saw many up’s and down’s throughout its development, but all credit must go to the Crytek team as they have managed to create a visually stunning master piece. In doing so they had to create a massive, crumbling urban jungle in which to rage havoc in. Unlike its predecessor Crysis 2 is lacking the free roaming capabilities that Crysis 1 had, and although the game is much more linear there are still plenty of different routes to explore, so no need to worry about being funnelled down certain paths to the next battle or cut scene. With many of the missions having two or three different attacking options, it gives the campaign some extra replay value, a feature sorely missing from modern shooters.

The game isn’t just a graphical showpiece for Crytek’s Cry-engine 3, it is actually a very good, solid and at times a quite inventive shooter. The complex controls system used to control all your movements, all the suits capabilities and your weapons are nicely mapped out around the controller making it easy to move, fight and to change weapons and attachments smoothly in the heat of battle. You even have to change your gun attachments and unlock new features for your suit from within the game, no pausing or cumbersome menus to mess about with. The controls are complex but the game introduces them all in a steady manner so you learn as your go along.

As mentioned earlier it’s quite inventive one such feature is that each battle has a number of different options open to the player, these are located using your new found technology and can be mapped out in your display. It will show you tactical points where you can snipe or flank the enemy from or a ledge or railing to climb up on to to gain a height advantage. As well as the location of ammo and weapons dumps for re supplying. This is one of my favourite parts of the game, taking time to plan out an attack perhaps choosing to use the sewers to sneak around under the enemy, or take to the roof tops to gain a height advantage to get the drop on your assailants. Now of course the best laid plans don’t always come to fruition, but it does make the game a lot more interesting compared to your usual pre mapped route in FPS’s.

In case you are new to the franchise and are wondering about the suit I keep mentioning, this is the main feature of the game, a character in itself almost. You play a marine named Alcatraz, who without wanting to ruin the story for you ends up with this suit. It is nano-technology that binds to and works with the body. It is an Ecto-skeleton that gives you extra strength, speed and a few extra tasty tricks up your sleeve such as cloaking to avoid being spotted or max armor to deflect bullets and protect you from high falls.

Rather than having the suit turn you into some kind of super hero that can’t be stopped, it just gives you a slight edge for a short time, as it require a power supply and while it will recharge when not in use, using its special abilities drains the power quite quickly. Even sprinting and jumping uses some power cells. When the suit is low on power you are left vulnerable, you can’t cloak, you can’t use the extra armor, you can’t even sprint away from trouble!

This is a really good feature as you can’t just go head strong into battle thinking you are unstoppable, power drains quickly and if for example you are cloaked, shooting your gun will waste all the power and you will be left instantly visible and vulnerable, so it does require some thinking and pre planning.

The story I was actually quite impressed with, having not played the first game but I had heard reports about its story not being the greatest I had similar expectations for this outing. But again I was proven wrong and Crytek have created a really good, solid Hollywood blockbuster of a story for the campaign and while I’m sure I missed some valuable information I don’t think it impacted on my enjoyment of the story.

The multiplayer started slowly but is getting better, many may have played the recent beta demos and had a taste of what’s on show, but the final product is much better again. Some issues are arising with balance but as with every game these issues will appear. Fingers crossed the team don’t give up now and update the online as it has real potential.

Overall : Crysis 2 does deliver what Crytek promised. The visuals will blow you away, there are some The incredible graphics mixed with a good solid story, a nice controller set up is all topped off with a practically flawless gameplay experience makong this a game that sets the bar for all others to follow.

SCORE “A” Outstanding

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