What makes a truly great action movie? It's a desperate John McClane jamming some C4 beneath a monitor and experimentally kicking it down a lift shaft on a swivel chair. It's Indy telling Sallah "I don't know, I'm making this up as I go" before instinctively tearing after a Nazi truck.
It's all about a hero living on his wits, making life or death decisions on the fly and the world hinging on his actions. Crysis encapsulates this, it thrives on putting the onus on you to create your own brand of action and adventure in its stunningly beautiful locations. You and the game can haphazardly create moments of such gaming brilliance that often you pretty much have to stand up and applaud.
Sadly, the final act of Crysis encapsulates this too. Crysis is an astounding achievement, a game worth upgrading for and something for us to treasure - but it certainly isn't perfect. Still, we've had some good times...
POWER UP
Suddenly caught in flagrante slap-bang in the middle of a dirt track without my stylish Predator-esque cloak, a passing jeep with a rear-mounted machine gun begins to take advantage of my predicament.
Leaping behind a nearby sturdy palm tree, I pause to gather my thoughts - but that gunner keeps gunning. Suddenly the trunk of my sanctuary splinters, and I sit there paralysed by a bizarre mixture of fear and delight as the tree in front of me slowly and inexorably begins to tilt, then fall - leaving me staring down a delighted Korean's gun barrel with nothing but my imminent death in mind. I scream with joy.
I just have so many of these excitably expressed war stories I could regale you with. Times when equal measures of my stupidity, cunning and luck coalesced into 100 per cent proof fun. Like picking up a carelessly discarded outboard motor, turning on my super-strength and bouncing it off the head of an angry Korean soldier - only to watch it bounce over a large rock and accidentally crush his best mate as a bonus.
Or jumping into a jeep, wondering what the hell to do with the guy manning the machine gun in the seat behind me - then ploughing into a shed, colliding with the struts holding it up, causing the roof collapse and leaping out just as everything went up in a fireball.
Or sneaking up behind two patrolling soldiers while cloaked, grabbing the rear one then pelting off into the undergrowth with the sole intention of bouncing him off a rock and into the sea.
All brilliant moments of FPS fun seemingly coming out of nothing at all.
SLIGHT RETURN
What surprised me most when playing Crysis though, was just how similar it is to Far Cry (a similarity no doubt aided and abetted by the fact that a fair amount of what Crytek intended for Crysis appears to have hit the wayside).
As the game stands though, this is no bad thing: this is a rebuilt, more powerful Far Cry for the new generation of hardware. Many of its levels are even rethought variations on what went before - notably one map with a heavily fortified base perched on a rock outcrop in the middle of a valley that apes Far Cry's third level without a care in the world.
Comments
43 comments so far...
shlobadov on 13 Nov '07 said:
So FarCry 1.5 then? With the added s**tness of Xen... By the sounds of it, it didn't deserve the 92%. I did enjoy the demo though (and, as I have been pointing out, it is well worth downloading the demo just to see if you actually need to upgrade!)
lmimmfn on 13 Nov '07 said:
Not as bad as i thought( overhyped stuff is usually duff ), pity about the alien section
Jez, how many times do i have to post this, GIVE SOME DAMN INFO ON THE SPECS USED FOR THE REVIEW
mfnick on 13 Nov '07 said:
Not worth me paying the £1000 needed to get a good enough PC then eh?
In a way im gutted as i thought this might be the game that makes me add PC to my gaming platforms - something ive not really done since HL2 & CSS.
But at least ive not got to worry about shelling out that much money now
Anonymous on 13 Nov '07 said:
Not to bothered realy me pc would blow up if i put this game in it,crap cod endings wtf he must'nt have been talking about 4 finished it last nite thought the ending kicked ass just like the rest of the game.
shlobadov on 13 Nov '07 said:
In keeping with amazing physics - have you heard about a game called Warmonger: Operation Downtown Destruction? Or something like that.... Completely destructible enviroments they say, totally, not like Red Factyion. Anything can be destroyed..... And breaks into nice phsyics objects as its being broken....
ted1138 on 13 Nov '07 said:
Is this coming to console?
Dajmin on 13 Nov '07 said:
In case anyone's interested, the demo ran fine at the default settings (Medium at 1152x864 res I think) on my single-core Athlon 3800+ with 2Gb DDR2 RAM and a GeForce 7900 GS Extreme.
Sometimes it stuttered a little when the AI was recalculating cover from masses of foliage, but it was rare. My brother, who has a similar system but a better gfx card, never noticed this issue.
Just a shame the final level was such a disappointment. I was hoping the Zero-G would be cool, but the fact that the suit has thrusters built in seems a bit silly (especially when you consider at the start you're worried about hitting the ground after a parachute jump).
It's like they tacked it on to be different without actually thinking about it too much.
lmimmfn on 13 Nov '07 said:
Thats not bad at all dude, its definately more GPU dependent, i just picked up an 8800GT recently and it eats the game, unfortunately only at 1280x1024, but on high and @40FPS, if i crank it up to native 1680x1050 its ~30 which to me is unplayable( even though most console FPS are 30FPS )
Mappman on 13 Nov '07 said:
What a surprise, a game that fails to live up to it's hype still getting a ridiculously high score.
I just hope it's actually that good and didn't just get a high score because of the media machine.
That happens far too often imo.
lmimmfn on 13 Nov '07 said:
I cant speak about the alien part, but from the demo, killing enemys is absolutely fantastic and the suit provides several different ways of dealing with any of the situations. I found the demo to be extremely enjoyable and definately one of the best FPS i ever played gameplay wise( e.g. CoD can be very very linear and gets annoying sometimes ).
Also the visuals have a lot to do with it, i think if i was running this on low settings i mightn't like it as much
Anonymous on 13 Nov '07 said:
its in development already but the maps wont be as big and it wont look as good
Mogs on 13 Nov '07 said:
Can't wait to play this.
Although, gotta roll my eyes at the score. 
It no doubt puts Halo 3 to shame, but I guess EA just weren't prepared to bribe you eh?
pablouk on 13 Nov '07 said:
Depends on the PC sales.
I hope it doesn't and we get a proper only PC game.
lmimmfn on 13 Nov '07 said:
I hope it does, i hate all the exclusive rubbish, everyone deserves to be able to play any title and its unfortunate that hard core gamers cant play the gems without shelling out hundreds on another console or whatever just for a game( and i game mostly on PC
It'll come out in some shape or form on the consoles, i definately dont think they could handle it as it is now, maybe if it was on medium settings on the consoles
Mogs on 13 Nov '07 said:
I agree, exclusivity is bulls**t. The platform which is best suited to the game at hand should get preference (as is the case here), but ultimately the more platforms it can be released on the better.
gothchild on 13 Nov '07 said:
God save exclusivity. Gaming would be so much more dull if every console had every game. Exclusive games should be why consoles get sold.
As for Crysis, I hope this isn't the PCGamer review? Cus I was looking forward to that in the next issue..
9.2 sounds a little harsh though...
Mogs on 13 Nov '07 said:
//tumbleweed
lmimmfn on 13 Nov '07 said:
In the good old days of 8 and 16bit, there werent many exclusives, yet the multiplatform games would be slightly tweaked for the particular computer. Everybody got to enjoy the games, but C64 or Amstrad CPC would have the better gfx, C64 would have the better sound and what not. I prefer it that way as its all about gaming and not silly platforms
Fane447 on 13 Nov '07 said:
I have played Crysis a bit, not got to the aliens yet, but so far I think its good but not wroth over 8.5 really. Sure it looks good but as already stated in this review, I spend most of my time hiding behide a rock and just hoping that my power recharges before the Koreans throw a nade or walk around the rock. I also don't like the fact that you have to unload nearly a whole clip into Koreans just to kill them (not including headshots), they take more damage then I do and I have a dam nanosuit on.
I guess I was just expecting a more action based game, not a hide behide a rock sim
With a 8800GTS 320mb on Medium graphics, it runs fine for me but when it gets to any part thats frozen, my FPS drops like mad, just hopeing that some new drivers come out to sort that out.
Wilzy on 13 Nov '07 said:
169.09 have just come out
I doubt it'll make that much difference though, but worth a shot.
vulcanraven01 on 13 Nov '07 said:
Breifly played this game on my comp, which can handle the top end DX9 settings.
Personally im not impressed so far. It feels too much like Far Cry and its main selling point seems to be the stunning graphics, something the vast majority of people can only experience from screenshots.
Hopefully it has something to set itself apart from the other FPS otherwise Bioshock walks all over this.
Wilzy on 13 Nov '07 said:
I just had a quick blast on the full game and I'm sure its better performance in the full game than the demo, maybe its just me, but I seem to get some nice performance from this "system killa" E6600 2GB 8800GTS 640 Vista Ult 32, 169.04. Running around at the start of the level I got really good fps, regularily high 20's low 30's. This was at 12 x 10, all very high except shadows medium, they look good enough to me, and post processing on high, no AA, doesn't really need it that much. I'll put 169.09's on soon and see if they help some more
Everyone knew this was aHEAVY game for any PC for a long time now so it shouldnt be too much surprise when it needs a lot o powa! Too many games, Witcher, COD 4, Sup Com Forged Alaince, Need for Speed Pron, Gears of War, Portal, HL2, Mario Galaxy, Assasins Creed, Bioshock, World in Conflict, Mass Effect, Ace Combat 6 
I'd say the best Q4 I can ever remember!!!!!
lmimmfn on 14 Nov '07 said:
Play it on XP if you can, Vista is on avg 15% slower, which matters bigtime in a game like this
Youre right on the amount of bigname/potentially great games that are coming out/have come out recently. Its nuts, i think ill hold off on a few until theyre on cheapo though, cant play them all at the same time lol
Fane447 on 14 Nov '07 said:
Well, I updated to the newest drivers and got to an all frozen area, and its unplayable :S Its 10-15 FPS on meduim with a 8800GTS 320mb. The frozen areas look WORSE then the normal ones and yet have such a high performance hit on my system, its crazy.
Anonymous on 15 Nov '07 said:
Absolutely brilliant write-up, Will. After reading ZONE mag for years and only browsing the site on occasion, I registered simply to comment on this.
Everything I experienced, felt, and ultimately enjoyed in the demo is reflected here. If I ever wanted to express to people what Crysis is, in a moment of inarticulateness, I would point them here.
The replayability is simply amazing, I must have played through the demo at least fifteen times in the run up to the full game. On the plus side, I am now at home with the, at first, fairly overwhelming gameplay mechanics that the nanosuit introduces. But on the down side, I don't think I can bare to play through the whole first stage another time :D.
To the cynics in the comments, no this is not another Far Cry, and Bioshock does not walk all over it. While Bioshock is a great artistic, stylistic and thematic achievement, it is not the FPS masterpiece that many are so keen to claim it is. I found the core gameplay to be largely clunky and unsatisfying, many of the major features completely redundant (you know the wrench is the best weapon), and thought that the game fell down in nearly all of the areas I was looking most forward to it pushing boundaries and busting cliches in e.g. emergent AI, non-linear narrative/level design.
Wheras Crysis was on my radar solely for the amazing visuals in the run up to the demo, and I was HIGHLY surprised to find an excellent game underneath.
And yes, the system requirements are pretty spicy, but we could have guessed that from the beginning. At full whack the game is like nothing else, absolutely breathtaking. But as promised by Crytek, the engine scales well for older hardware (and there is a vastly extensive guide at tweakguides.com for those looking for that extra FPS). The game does start to look pretty shoddy as you back off the details, but it is simply not true that the Crysis gameplay experience is solely for GeForce 8 series owners.
The game is SLICK. I'd say it's worth upgrading for if you have the £.
Fane447 on 15 Nov '07 said:
Just finished it, the end boss fights are a pain and just ended the game on a real bad note for me, I was playing though hoping that the aliens would bring the action I was craving, and now I just want to start the game again to play against the Koreans.
Overall, it was a good, fun game. I personally think UT3 looks better graphics wise (although not as realistic) and if you run Crysis, make sure its on DX9 or you will lose loads of FPS and get no real graphics boost.
Aircool_212 on 15 Nov '07 said:
Hey, you're not the same guy who kissed the arse of Tom Francis for his CoD4 review are you (although it was a good review)?
Anyway, I was going to buy the current PCZ issue tomorrow for this review. Cheers for putting it online as you've just saved me £6.99. I guess I'll wait to see what UT3 is like before thinking about crysis now as well.
Meanwhile, back to the reskinned Speedball II on the 360....haven't had so much fun for ages
johnnyrocket on 16 Nov '07 said:
From what ive heard here my computer should have no problems with this game, if i could afford it
Aircool_212 on 16 Nov '07 said:
Unless you've got a minimum of a dual core CPU, 2Gb RAM (3Gb Vista) and an 8800 GFX card you'll be playing on low detail, which, to be honest, looks a lot worse than the original Far Cry...
Donald73 on 17 Nov '07 said:
You honestly belive this game fails to live up to the hype????If so,you must have played another game than me..
I think it really deserves it's 92% score,but of course we can't all like the same games/things..
This game kicks the ass of games like Gears of Wars not only out of the ballpark,but out of the state..
And the fact that for once the pc gets a exclusive game before all the other rubbish consoles,makes it even more enjoyable
mintydog on 18 Nov '07 said:
Gears of Wars
lol Wars.
Anyway I played the crysis demo, I quite liked it. I like throwing the Koreans through the buildings after sneaking up on them in Predator mode.
I even had one great bit where a Korean hid behind a tree to hide from the gun mount on the hum vee that I was tearing into him with, well I shot the tree, it splintered and fell off and right into his face, hilarious.
I hope its not too much ike Fary Cry though, That got quite dull later on and I didnt even complete it. I don't like the sound of it having a crap xen section though.
Kheld on 18 Nov '07 said:
I agree with Kane447
Ive spent most of my time hiding or dieing on normal difficulty. The Nanosuit is quite frankly, a bit crap.
And Koreans must be eating Kevlar impregnanted rice.
I particuarly hate the Helicopters - the ones that can spot you, cloaked, under a f**king forest & who follow you around wherever you go.
Dont mention the crappy Tank sections either, where Korean AFV's hand it to Americas finest quite easily...
All in all its not been as fun as I seem to remember Farcry was.
It is graphically amazing on a 8800GTX - just a shame its so frustrating
humorguy on 19 Nov '07 said:
Far cry 2 is gonna walk all over this. Open world gaming versus levels (however huge) are the way to go!
mintydog on 19 Nov '07 said:
Americans Finest? if the Koreans didnt kill them they probabaly would have wiped themselves out with friendly fire.
Bickaxe on 20 Nov '07 said:
It's been a while since I had a system capable of playing one of the latest games. Well, now I have and my girlfriend left it next to the teapot (she knows me so well) before she went away for a course.
So off I went to play it until it crashed.
However, what I did play of it I really enjoyed. It has a simple control system, some great graphics and it's very open. I'll be back to it soon (cup of tea first...and possibly a biscuit or 2).
It did make me laugh when my leader told me to keep a low profile..... cue stage left large explosion and me running a few soldiers down in an assault jeep thing.... oops!
Great fun, and worth the 89% PCZone gave it, but not more than that.
Anonymous on 23 Nov '07 said:
well guys i can't say this game really sucks but there are some stuff that really make it seems so.
welcome to the official expansion pack for Farcry, even u will have the same binoculars!!!! they could change it a little bit at least!!! the game has excellent graphics but the colors could be more realistic and not so bright!!, the zero G level is meanless and has gone far from the realisim of the story, they could make it another way, not in a world without gravity with a lot of hi tech stuff homing meanning less arround you, r those aliens or ghosts in that ship!!! the ending is as u all know stupid ending. but overall the nice scene and moments in the wood would cover the stupidity in somecases and he errors... overall its a good game, can be used to benchmark ur pc, i give it 80/100
Mogs on 25 Nov '07 said:
Shut up you bellend. As good as Bioshock was in terms of atmosphere, story, and character development, Crysis eats it for breakfast in terms of 'wow' factor, gameplay & enjoyability.
SleepySheep28 on 28 Nov '07 said:
Agreed
SleepySheep28 on 28 Nov '07 said:
I really do hope it does, because yes i would rather play it on PC, but like many other people out there i cant afford £1000 or so...
humorguy on 3 Dec '07 said:
The reason we need PC exclusives is to keep PC gaming alive as a format! If anybody thinks just console conversions 1, 2 or even 3 years after originally released will keep PC gaming alive as a viable gaming format, then you are living in another dimension!
foyster on 24 Aug '08 said:
core 2 quad Q9450 2.66 GHz
4 gig memory
9800 GTX+ 512 MB
that is the spec of my system, which passes the recomended requirement for crysis. BUT, i still haven't been able to play it without having to restart my computer several times. i get this BLUE,GREEN,WHITE patches suddenly and see a big white FEATHER for real. it's strange and i see a lot of other things. what is the problem do you reckon? pls,help!
Zedfragg on 24 Aug '08 said:
Your a mug..."A proper only PC game"?
Firstly that makes about as much sense as "Downstairs I get drink now go".
It's selfish opinions like that which annoy me...F*** PC only games if it gives everyone the ability to experience something then you should be game...Moron.