If beauty is only skin deep, then it can be said that many recent shooters have been admirably atractive but ultimately lacking. Gamers have accused modern developers of focusing their efforts more on advanced graphics engines than on thrilling gameplay, and in some cases, they are right. Enter Far Cry, perhaps the most beautiful game ever created, and one of the most highly anticipated, due in no small fact to several high quality demos released well in advance of the game’s release. Make no mistake, Far Cry is gorgeous to look at, but to see it in all its glory, it takes a high-powered rig. Fortunately, even at lower settings, there is plenty of eye candy to be had, the most impressive of which is the incredible draw distance. The game takes place on a tropical archipelago, and the environments are amazing, both because so much detail is visible from so far, and because even at close range, environmental details such as full foliage and bright white beaches are breathtaking. Additionally, real-time lighting and amazing, realistic shadows truly bring the Far Cry world to life… and this is a living, breathing world, in every sense. Birds fly through the air and perch on trees, waves wash onto shore, and fish swim in the ocean, creating an immersive first impression and an exciting sense of alternate reality. Thrillingly, other graphical elements live up to the beautiful and dense environments, and Far Cry features top-notch character animation and models. Other details, such as gasoline fumes blurring the air, underwater bubbles as you swim, and blackouts when a rocket lands nearby, help make Far Cry one of the most graphically immersive shooters ever created. Some minor clipping and environmental “pop-ups” as you draw closer to objects are easily overlooked and practically unnoticeable as the player is drawn further in. Dismissing Far Cry as a showcase for current generation video cards would be a mistake, though, for that level of detail carries into almost every element of the game. Your character, Jack Carver, is tasked with rescuing a woman with whom he has been sailing the ocean. While at first it may seem a standard rescue from human mercenaries, Jack soon discovers that in this paradise, there is more than meets the eye, and the tale escalates with evidence of bizarre experiments gone wrong. Gameplay is enhanced by a standard physics engine, although it isn’t as complete as it could have been. While you can use some objects to your advantage, such as freeing a metal barrel to crush oncoming enemies, these moments are not common. You can move objects around, but they are generally indestructible. You will alert adversaries to your presence by bumping into objects, but you cannot manipulate them, although your undiminishing supply of rocks makes that a small quibble at best. Furthermore, not only do the expansive settings allow for multiple solutions to missions, but there are no artificial restrictions to exploration, such as invisible walls or impossibly steep hills. The huge outdoor environments and creepy indoor quarters take on a more sinister hue as Far Cry progresses, and those areas provide ample opportunity for Crytek’s showy AI to prove itself. Simply put, Far Cry’s artificial intelligence is highly advanced and reacts mostly appropriately in a variety of circumstances. Human enemies will flank you, call for help, and sound alarms, and when overpowered, will not simply call for help, but run away until reinforcements arrive. Out of doors, this makes the game’s pace complex, and requires careful action on the player’s part, as enemies react to noise. You can distract them by throwing rocks, crawl amidst the foliage, or jump into the ocean to avoid being noticed. Using stealth is almost a necessity, as a true balls-to-the-wall approach results in sure death, more often than not. Far Cry is difficult, and survival means measured action, particularly since the AI seems somewhat hypersensitive to your presence. Once mercenaries are alerted, they will come searching full force, meaning a lot of hasty retreats until they have given up, or an exciting but sometimes frustrating fight to the death. The AI does not have as many chances to show off its capabilities indoors, but even then, mercenaries will use alternate entrances into buildings, although those areas are noticeably easier than the more expansive open-air environments. Raising difficulty settings will make enemies more accurate, but does not increase difficulty by other artificial means, such as providing fewer health packs or adding more enemies. Far Cry’s save system can also cause frustration, as progress is only saved at designated checkpoints. This makes for quite a few replays, but fortunately, the checkpoints are frequent enough, and the missions so open-ended, that it does not cause undue vexation. Weapons are well-balanced. As in most shooters, the sniper rifle is a valuable commodity, but ammo is sparse, meaning the player cannot rely on picking off distant enemies at will. The M4 has both standard and single-shot modes, making it effective at long and medium ranges, and the silenced SMG facilitates stealth, as enemies cannot hear it until they are rather close to you. You also have a few different grenades available, and the flash and smoke grenades are rather handy for sneaking away when things are getting tough, particularly against the largest non-human adversaries. Vehicles are an integral part of Far Cry, although not as useful in offensive positions as in other games, as they give away your position quickly. Fortunately, this can work to your advantage, as your opponents give away their own locations in kind. Jeeps, for example, make you particular vulnerable, as they offer no protection to the driver’s upper half, although running over foes as you speed across the beach is satisfying nonetheless. Vehicles can be maneuvered from both first- and third-person views, and while the third-person view is easier to manipulate, vehicle control is not very tight. Enemy vehicles, on the other hand, provide for some of the more exciting sequences, as helicopters swoop overhead, mercenaries firing from the doorway, or dropping to the ground to hunt for you on foot. Sound is mostly excellent as well, and as detailed as the visuals. Ambient jungle sounds such as chirping birds and buzzing mosquitoes make for a riveting atmosphere, and Crytek has made good use of directional sound. You will hear soft rustling of enemies as they sneak through the foliage, conversations between mercenaries that foreshadow coming events, and the whirring of helicopter blades as it passes overhead. The music also heightens the cinematic feel of Far Cry, and increases in ferocity as the action intensifies. The voice acting is serviceable but melodramatic, and mercenaries cycle through the same one-liners often, such as “I don’t know what that was, and I don’t care” when they hear you make slight noise. Considering Far Cry’s impressive single-player campaign, the standard multiplayer is disappointing, although certainly acceptable. There are several huge maps from which to choose, and three play modes: deathmatch, team deathmatch, and assault. Vehicles present the same problems here as in the single-player game, and their control difficulties make travel on foot a more attractive option. However, they can come in handy for simply crossing the map, if you only have a handful of players, since the large maps mean you will be spending a lot of time searching for your adversaries. In cases like these, the elements that make the game’s single-player game so satisfying, such as enormous outdoor environments and run speeds that change on different terrain, are less successful in multiplayer. The weapon balancing in the main campaign does not translate well in multiplayer either, making some weapons woefully underpowered. While hardly an afterthought, Far Cry’s multiplay pales when compared to the superior experiences found in games like UT2K4 or the Battlefield series. Still, Crytek has developed a brilliant single-player game that would easily take most gamers upwards of 25 hours to complete. Considering its price point at $10 less than most pc games, it is an excellent value, and its several difficulty settings and multiple approaches to mission completion make for uncommon replay value when compared to the average single-player shooter. Far Cry is the finest single-player action experience in years, and belongs on the shelves of every serious pc gamer.
Crytek (a German video game developer founded in 1999) has always been known for incredibly realistic graphics, immensely fun gameplay and satisfying singleplayer campaigns in each one of their first-person shooters. We'... Read Full Review
FAR CRY By, Scorpio_gamer a.k.a Neerajkumar_4 Introduction:- Far cry is a pretty good FPS game ever but it’s tough due to its very intelligent A.I. The CRYengine makes a very good environment in the game... Read Full Review
