Farcry 2

It's hard to think that it's been only two years since the release of Farcry 2, the game was so hyped, I remember the adverts and the constant tv previews. I was looking forward to the game but for some reason it just slipped by without a purchase. Two years on and I'v finaly managed to get myself a copy.

The game takes place in Africa and has miles and miles of jungle and open tundra, Ubisoft did an excellent job creating the engine for this game, now I've never played Crisis but apparently back in 2008 this was as close as one could get with a console. The graphics are pretty good, it all just seems to blend together and at times the player can truly find themselves immersed in the african bush trying not to get eatin by lions and the like... This however is where it all starts to go wrong, yes the game looks good but this "facad" only lasts a few minutes, the player is not able to interact with the environment to a level I would call enjoyable. Surely in the bush one would have to watch out for lions and other animals but it just doesn't seem to be the problem it should.

The game gives the player the impression that there is an entire world out there to discover however this could not be further from the truth, as "sandbox" as the game apperas the player seems to spend more time in shootouts with the annoing AI, where are all the villages? I was shocked to find that every outpost seemed to be packed full of enemies and once allerted to your presence there is no getting away! Seriously these guys will ALWAYS track you down. For the first few encounters this can be fun but thanks to the realistic gun "degredation" the player can sometimes be left fighting an entire gang with a broken gun and nowhere to run. Some outposts can provide the player with a bit of fun, using the environment to your advantage makes for a completly unique and realistic experience but alas for all of it's realism Ubisoft for some inane reason decided to allow for the respawning of enemies, this is by far the most annoying aspect of this game, there is honestly nothing worse than traveling from A to B, clearing each outpost of enemies, spending ages "using the envirnmonet to your advantage" to find one has to do the exact same on the way back.

Truly such a shame that so many little problems can lead to such a mess of a game, sadly it seems that all the time and effort spent by Ubisoft has gone to waste. The story is half decent and to be honest was the only thing that kept me going, alas the constant relapsing between realism and non-realism are just too much for a person such as myself, I found the game far too repetative and just not as fun as one would have hoped for.

Sound wise, again the game does a decent job but for all it's worth is just let down by the "realism" of the game, as I type this review I feel that in a way I was cheated into buing Farcry 2 and am ashamed to have made the purchase so long after it's release, I attribute this mistake to the number of good reviews this game recieved and I wonder how this fast took place... If like myself you found Assasins Creed boring and repetative then I would give Farcry 2 a skip. Your money would be far better off spent elsewhere.

Gameplay 5

Graphics 8

Sound 8

Total 70