PC Zone has issued the first review for stunning FPS follow-up (or spin-off, whatever you want to call it) Crysis Warhead, awarding it a respectable 92%.
Warhead, says PC Zone, remedies many of the issues that players had with the first game; the sometimes dodgy AI, unspectacular aliens turning up... Very high praise follows...
"With its budget price and improved multiplayer, there's more than enough here to cheer nay-sayers," says the mag,
"One of the most striking things about Warhead is the way it shakes the template Crysis snowglobe and has its constituent parts drift and settle into surprising new patterns. In Crysis encounters with enemies were heavily cordoned off from each other, in Warhead anything goes.
"It's a frenzy of intelligent and original level design, far away from the Far Cry model that Crysis aped," the review continues.
Nanosuited enemies, revamped aliens, bog-standard Koreans and a whole bunch of the monolithic Hunter tentacle beasts all turn up in an unpredictable order says PCZ, making for some "awe-inspiring" battles.
"Warhead encourages you to be constantly on the move, often in vehicles with big guns, and always with fire and broken fuel storage tanks left in your wake. However, this is not to say that you can't take your time if you want to."
But are the aliens better? "A fairer question might be 'are the aliens as oddly unexciting as last time round?' - the answer to which is a straight no. They're a lot more dynamic now, they get into scrapes with the Korean army and they jump from rock to rock with AI routines that have a lot more in common with your be-nanosuited foes.
"The game does stumbles somewhat in its mundane tale of camaraderie with a rogue pilot called Sean O'Neill," the review continues, adding that story never quite dips into a naffness that particularly harms the game.
"Warhead honestly is the finest burst of action gaming released so far this year, and if you're canny then you'll be able to pick it up for a mere £15 from online retailers. It's a five hour tour-de-force that's plugged the holes in Crysis with diamonds."
We're very keen to get our hands on it. Read the full review in PC Zone issue 199, in the shops on Thursday, September 11 (and subscriber's hands now).
that is all good but will you still need alien technology to play the game
Apparently they have been really tweaking and optimising the engine so that it will (supposedly) run a lot smoother than before, but I guess it will still be limited to your hardware.
Amazing a story about Warhead in which Crytek aren't moaning like little bitches about piracy destroying their sales. Sorry I can't see me buying this as the engine was so badly optimised last time round and there after game support was one of the worst in a long time. Good luck to those who do. I do hope it lives up to the 92%
Ive posted on nearly every crysis story bitching about it HAha so here i go again.
I think this game looks great and I really enjoyed crysis but they abandoned it to make this. Feel kinda cheated. I finally got multiplayer to work last week after 1.21 patch broke it (had to use 2 methods) but so many people are having that problem no one plays it.
Just fix crysis! I really want to play this but feel compelled to cut off my nose to spite my face and give it a miss
i wanna see some performance, recent information is EA/Crytek built a machine for $700 that runs it at 30FPS lol, it was with a bloody 260 and E7300 and no doubt was at a crap resolution, FFS to need a 260 you have to have a display of 1920x1200 and like lots of AA. No game other than Crysis needs a beast of a card to even get the game somewhat smooth and i doubt its been optimised at all
The first one was just another FPS in my humble opinion. It was good, but not worth all the fuss. I just can't get excited about the sequel, especially if I have to listen to that bloody c**kney all the way through.
After having enjoyed the dubious "pleasure" of having EA's neanderthal SecuROM plague soundly chewing out my DVD drive (resulting in a complete inability to run any of my legally purchased PC games spanning the past decade or more and up until present day,) in the form of "Crysis" this past weekend I am now firmly committed to boycotting all EA and Sony (owner of SecuROM apparently,) products and services until such a time as they desist these unacceptably intrusive and destructive ineffective methods of anti-piracy.
Do I expect they will listen to me as an individual customer? Not on your life; I shall nonetheless derive some small form of pleasure from denying these companies access to my wallet (and my computer,) in the future. Oh, and should someone happen to "acquire" software from these companies illegitimately I won't shed a tear for "the lost sale(s)". They have it coming to them and I can't say I will feel any sorrow at all. None what-so-ever in fact.
I seem to be the only person (in the world) that enjoyed the alien parts. Now im talking about the moment you exit the ice bubble. man, everything just went crazy and it felt like a huge event. I loved it and the Aircraft carrier kicked the crap out of COD 4's boat level.
Is this an add-on to the first game or a stand alone one?
It's a "stay away" game unless you enjoy malware anti-piracy software sneaking on to your PC along with the game. EA has placed itself firmly on the path of obsessive customer rights violating DRM. The great irony being that the pirated versions provide none of the hassles and the exact same game as the version you pay for which then bites you in the backside. Undoubtedly one of the worst business practices in modern times.
After having enjoyed the dubious "pleasure" of having EA's neanderthal SecuROM plague soundly chewing out my DVD drive (resulting in a complete inability to run any of my legally purchased PC games spanning the past decade or more and up until present day,) in the form of "Crysis" this past weekend I am now firmly committed to boycotting all EA and Sony (owner of SecuROM apparently,) products and services until such a time as they desist these unacceptably intrusive and destructive ineffective methods of anti-piracy.
Do I expect they will listen to me as an individual customer? Not on your life; I shall nonetheless derive some small form of pleasure from denying these companies access to my wallet (and my computer,) in the future. Oh, and should someone happen to "acquire" software from these companies illegitimately I won't shed a tear for "the lost sale(s)". They have it coming to them and I can't say I will feel any sorrow at all. None what-so-ever in fact.
When applied to video gaming, This manifests in huge boasts about computing power, frame rate, textures and colors in relation to the console equivalent. Unfortunately there's no known cure.
One area of research involves owners selected specifically with a Alien or general PC hardware modding fetish. These sufferers are exposed to PS3 versions of Unreal Tournament 3 and made to understand it's practically the same as the PC version.
Problems with this treatment include; the sufferers denial of the two versions similarity and constant expletive driven remarks about the value of their PC in relation to a 'crappy' console with no keyboard and mouse.
that is all good but will you still need alien technology to play the game
This game will never be on consoles.
Never.
i will have you know the ps3 could easyily handle this game
Evidence?
I'm gonna regret it(I don't like to be seen backing up PS3 fanboys), but Far Cry 2 on 360 and PS3 look every bit the match of the PC version, and the fact that they've optimised Warhead to run on lower spec PCs kind of points to Crysis being easily possible on console.
Crysis would definitely be possible on both the 360 and ps3, but it wouldn't have the DX10 fx and texture resolutions of the PC version, as neither console has the resources to push that sort of data around.
It depends purely on how well crytek can optimise their engine and their assets.
that is all good but will you still need alien technology to play the game
This game will never be on consoles.
Never.
i will have you know the ps3 could easyily handle this game
Evidence?
I'm gonna regret it(I don't like to be seen backing up PS3 fanboys), but Far Cry 2 on 360 and PS3 look every bit the match of the PC version, and the fact that they've optimised Warhead to run on lower spec PCs kind of points to Crysis being easily possible on console.
When applied to video gaming, This manifests in huge boasts about computing power, frame rate, textures and colors in relation to the console equivalent. Unfortunately there's no known cure.
One area of research involves owners selected specifically with a Alien or general PC hardware modding fetish. These sufferers are exposed to PS3 versions of Unreal Tournament 3 and made to understand it's practically the same as the PC version.
Problems with this treatment include; the sufferers denial of the two versions similarity and constant expletive driven remarks about the value of their PC in relation to a 'crappy' console with no keyboard and mouse.
Research is ongoing...
Unreal Tournament 3 as your example of games that are identical between platforms? That's not exactly what I would call a resource hungry game. That's like saying that the original NES is as good as a PC because they can both run Tetris.
I've got several consoles include three from the current generation but I'm not kidding myself that they are even close to matching the graphical quality of PC games. Consoles sell on convenience and price alone.
PC gamers pan consoles because they know that the general public is being sold on features that don't actually exist like 1080p resolution and supposed teaser videos that are actually pre-rendered. Consoles have always over promised and under delivered.
I'm gonna regret it(I don't like to be seen backing up PS3 fanboys), but Far Cry 2 on 360 and PS3 look every bit the match of the PC version, and the fact that they've optimised Warhead to run on lower spec PCs kind of points to Crysis being easily possible on console.
I don't think the teaser videos we've seen so far are capable of showing the differences. There is just no chance that the console versions are going to run as well as the highest PC settings. Maybe back in 2005/06, but not this late in the generation.
The PC version of Far Cry 2 will run at 1920x1200 resolution with 8xAA and 16xAF with high LOD settings and long draw distances on current top of the line hardware.
I expect the console version will run at 1280x720 resolution with 0xAA and 0XAF if other contemporary console games are any indication. I also expect they will have to sandbag the draw distances and LOD setting like they did in Far Cry: Instincts in order to get it to run.
I'll still buy the console version simply on the basis that I like sitting on my couch with a beer and using a gamepad. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with consoles. I'm just saying that there really isn't a comparison nor should there be when comparing a $300 console with a $2000 PC.
On to crysis...
If we are talking High or Very High spec, Crysis barely runs on GPUs that have twice the power of the PS3 and Xbox 360. I have an 8800GTX and I can just barely run the game at an acceptable framerate at Very High.
I'm sure some hardware nerd can substantiate that for me mathematically, but I've seen benchmarks of the previous gen GPUs that the Xbox 360 and PS3 use as compared to the Nvidia G80 and G92 GPUs and it comes out being nearly twice the performance.
They might be able to get Crysis to run on a console, but I'd be pretty suprised if they got it to run any better than Medium settings.
Crysis would definitely be possible on both the 360 and ps3, but it wouldn't have the DX10 fx and texture resolutions of the PC version, as neither console has the resources to push that sort of data around.
Consoles don't need to. They plug into televisions Most PC monitors have a higher resolution than even HD TVs and people sit a lot closer to PC monitors.
I am now firmly committed to boycotting all EA and Sony (owner of SecuROM apparently,) products and services until such a time as they desist these unacceptably intrusive and destructive ineffective methods of anti-piracy.
Then you might want to also boycott all products and services from the likes of Intel, Microsoft, IBM, Toshiba, Panasonic, Disney, and Warner Bros., for forcing AACS and HDCP upon us. That BS is far worse than SecuROM and similar programs.
Most PC monitors have a higher resolution than even HD TVs
Only if you're talking about 720p (1280x720). Only a relatively small number of monitors are capable of resolutions higher than 1080p (1920x1080); typically only monitors larger than 19".
I'm gonna regret it(I don't like to be seen backing up PS3 fanboys), but Far Cry 2 on 360 and PS3 look every bit the match of the PC version, and the fact that they've optimised Warhead to run on lower spec PCs kind of points to Crysis being easily possible on console.
I don't think the teaser videos we've seen so far are capable of showing the differences. There is just no chance that the console versions are going to run as well as the highest PC settings. Maybe back in 2005/06, but not this late in the generation.
The PC version of Far Cry 2 will run at 1920x1200 resolution with 8xAA and 16xAF with high LOD settings and long draw distances on current top of the line hardware.
I expect the console version will run at 1280x720 resolution with 0xAA and 0XAF if other contemporary console games are any indication. I also expect they will have to sandbag the draw distances and LOD setting like they did in Far Cry: Instincts in order to get it to run.
I'll still buy the console version simply on the basis that I like sitting on my couch with a beer and using a gamepad. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with consoles. I'm just saying that there really isn't a comparison nor should there be when comparing a $300 console with a $2000 PC.
On to crysis...
If we are talking High or Very High spec, Crysis barely runs on GPUs that have twice the power of the PS3 and Xbox 360. I have an 8800GTX and I can just barely run the game at an acceptable framerate at Very High.
I'm sure some hardware nerd can substantiate that for me mathematically, but I've seen benchmarks of the previous gen GPUs that the Xbox 360 and PS3 use as compared to the Nvidia G80 and G92 GPUs and it comes out being nearly twice the performance.
They might be able to get Crysis to run on a console, but I'd be pretty suprised if they got it to run any better than Medium settings.
Yeah, most PCs can't play Crysis, and of those that do most run it at medium to high settings and in DX9, which, with a healthy frame rate, would be on a par with what you could expect from a 360 or PS3. So sure, PC games have the potential to blow all the consoles out of the water, but unless your a computer genius or have £2,000 to splash out on a new PC every other year, your usually better off with a console.
And it'd be fairer to compare a £200-£300 console to a £500-£700 PC.
crysis on ps3......the ps3 is an underpowered £300 waste of money...no way on planet it could run crysis. also £300 would probally buy you a crysis worthy machine anyway...consoles vs PC......PC wins
that is all good but will you still need alien technology to play the game
This game will never be on consoles.
Never.
i will have you know the ps3 could easyily handle this game
Evidence?
I'm gonna regret it(I don't like to be seen backing up PS3 fanboys), but Far Cry 2 on 360 and PS3 look every bit the match of the PC version, and the fact that they've optimised Warhead to run on lower spec PCs kind of points to Crysis being easily possible on console.
I dont think the Console versions support 16x AF, 32x AA and they dont support 2560 x 1600.
And im pretty sure the PC vesions will have the better FrameRate (console games usally run at 30 FPS Locked).
that is all good but will you still need alien technology to play the game
This game will never be on consoles.
Never.
i will have you know the ps3 could easyily handle this game
Evidence?
I'm gonna regret it(I don't like to be seen backing up PS3 fanboys), but Far Cry 2 on 360 and PS3 look every bit the match of the PC version, and the fact that they've optimised Warhead to run on lower spec PCs kind of points to Crysis being easily possible on console.
I dont think the Console versions support 16x AF, 32x AA and they dont support 2560 x 1600.
And im pretty sure the PC vesions will have the better FrameRate (console games usally run at 30 FPS Locked).
PC wins, Always...
Well if you can get that kind of performance out of a £300 PC then good for you.
that is all good but will you still need alien technology to play the game
This game will never be on consoles.
Never.
i will have you know the ps3 could easyily handle this game
Evidence?
I'm gonna regret it(I don't like to be seen backing up PS3 fanboys), but Far Cry 2 on 360 and PS3 look every bit the match of the PC version, and the fact that they've optimised Warhead to run on lower spec PCs kind of points to Crysis being easily possible on console.
I dont think the Console versions support 16x AF, 32x AA and they dont support 2560 x 1600.
And im pretty sure the PC vesions will have the better FrameRate (console games usally run at 30 FPS Locked).
PC wins, Always...
Well if you can get that kind of performance out of a £300 PC then good for you.
very easily done on a £300 PC, and the games are cheaper
I am now firmly committed to boycotting all EA and Sony (owner of SecuROM apparently,) products and services until such a time as they desist these unacceptably intrusive and destructive ineffective methods of anti-piracy.
Then you might want to also boycott all products and services from the likes of Intel, Microsoft, IBM, Toshiba, Panasonic, Disney, and Warner Bros., for forcing AACS and HDCP upon us. That BS is far worse than SecuROM and similar programs.
A valid point; from various tidbits I've come across over the past year to a year and a half some of Microsoft's overtures delivered in the form of Vista concern me. It's yet another reason why I have refused to switch to Vista. When Windows 7 is released it may contain similar nasty little surprises but that is a bridge I'll cross (or avoid,) when the time comes.
I used to be heavily in favour of the establishment where it concerned piracy. I still think IP owners have the right to try and protect their property and hardwork, yet I fiercely dispute the methods some use to try and do so (which to date seem generally ineffective in the face of committed hackers/pirates). Indeed, I've reached the point where I feel marginalized and trodden upon that a part of me has begun cheering for some (not all,) hackers as guerilla fighters striking back at an overbearing, oppressive conglomerate of multi-national companies that appear quite happy to swat aside the "common man".
Amazing a story about Warhead in which Crytek aren't moaning like little bitches about piracy destroying their sales. Sorry I can't see me buying this as the engine was so badly optimised last time round and there after game support was one of the worst in a long time. Good luck to those who do. I do hope it lives up to the 92%
Crysis is great, Warhead apparently also. But the biggest issue is the copy protection.
It is truly disgraceful the way they handle that. An utter slap in the face of gamers.
Hear, hear! I personally think rumors of the PC's demise are greatly exaggerated. That said, it is precisely the kind of bone-headed DRM schemes as seen in various EA products that helps drive PC users from the PC gaming market. Initially upon having my hardware damaged on a 1 1/2 month old PC by a legal copy of "Crysis" my reaction was that the next time I buy a PC it may just be for work, internet surfing, and the occassional "light" gaming session and a purchase of a console system....Oh, and in case some EA affiliated person should happen by this: Should the day ever come where I purchase a console system I don't care if I'm stuck playing "Tetris" or "My Little Pony" games I will *not* buy EA titles for a console either! If it takes EA becoming insolvent then so be it even if it means a starving gaming market for a few years.
Crysis is great, Warhead apparently also. But the biggest issue is the copy protection.
It is truly disgraceful the way they handle that. An utter slap in the face of gamers.
Hear, hear! I personally think rumors of the PC's demise are greatly exaggerated. That said, it is precisely the kind of bone-headed DRM schemes as seen in various EA products that helps drive PC users from the PC gaming market. Initially upon having my hardware damaged on a 1 1/2 month old PC by a legal copy of "Crysis" my reaction was that the next time I buy a PC it may just be for work, internet surfing, and the occassional "light" gaming session and a purchase of a console system....Oh, and in case some EA affiliated person should happen by this: Should the day ever come where I purchase a console system I don't care if I'm stuck playing "Tetris" or "My Little Pony" games I will *not* buy EA titles for a console either! If it takes EA becoming insolvent then so be it even if it means a starving gaming market for a few years.
Well i bought Crysis and installed it on an origial copy of vista and i had no problems at all with it?
Crysis is great, Warhead apparently also. But the biggest issue is the copy protection.
It is truly disgraceful the way they handle that. An utter slap in the face of gamers.
Hear, hear! I personally think rumors of the PC's demise are greatly exaggerated. That said, it is precisely the kind of bone-headed DRM schemes as seen in various EA products that helps drive PC users from the PC gaming market. Initially upon having my hardware damaged on a 1 1/2 month old PC by a legal copy of "Crysis" my reaction was that the next time I buy a PC it may just be for work, internet surfing, and the occassional "light" gaming session and a purchase of a console system....Oh, and in case some EA affiliated person should happen by this: Should the day ever come where I purchase a console system I don't care if I'm stuck playing "Tetris" or "My Little Pony" games I will *not* buy EA titles for a console either! If it takes EA becoming insolvent then so be it even if it means a starving gaming market for a few years.
Well i bought Crysis and installed it on an origial copy of vista and i had no problems at all with it?
I'm happy for you (no sarcasm intended). To my chagrin I can't say the same. Granted, theoretically it is plausible that it might be a combination of other factors that caused my current PC troubles, yet given that everything else was running smoothly right up until the point I installed "Crysis" the most immedaitely logical explanation would see the cause placed squarely at the feet of "Crysis".
I'm so sick and tired of EA's heavy-handed "one-size-fits-all" approach which has caused numerous problems for a number of "Mass Effect" customers and has been repeated with "Spore" and "Crysis:Warhead" apparently. The "Dragon Age" trailer I've seen looks fantastic in my opinion yet also there I will take a pass on that game if it follows the current DRM madness. Keep at it EA - you've stumbled upon a golden formula if your intent is to drive me away from your products. Idiots.
that is all good but will you still need alien technology to play the game
This game will never be on consoles.
Never.
i will have you know the ps3 could easyily handle this game
Evidence?
I'm gonna regret it(I don't like to be seen backing up PS3 fanboys), but Far Cry 2 on 360 and PS3 look every bit the match of the PC version, and the fact that they've optimised Warhead to run on lower spec PCs kind of points to Crysis being easily possible on console.
I dont think the Console versions support 16x AF, 32x AA and they dont support 2560 x 1600.
And im pretty sure the PC vesions will have the better FrameRate (console games usally run at 30 FPS Locked).
PC wins, Always...
Well if you can get that kind of performance out of a £300 PC then good for you.
very easily done on a £300 PC, and the games are cheaper
Your saying you can run Crysis at 2560 x 1600 with 16x AF, 32x AA on a PC that cost £300?
Always brings tears to my eyes to see a great game released for a dying platform.
I also think that the "plugging the holes with diamonds" analogy is pretty spot on and exemplifies the fact that a sinking ship will sink no matter how much money you throw at it.
That is to say, if there are holes in the formula to start with then it will sink like a stone whether you try and plug it with araldyte or diamonds.
I wonder if the Koreans are as bulletproof as they were in Crysis.
There I was, this big-nano-suited-special-forces-guy who could take less hits than a Korean grunt in a shirt...I wanted to swap clothes as when not in stealth mode, my suit made me stick out like a horny dogs dick...
ps3 ...crysis...haahah....ty for tht brief laugh...seriously the ps3 is not powerful enough to run this game. you fork out £400 for one and ironically tht would probally buy u a pc tht would run crysis.
the thing to remember about consoles is the games usually run in 800x600 resolution or something low like tht. they always tone down graphics compared to the pc versions which always look a lot better and consoles never have means to run any AA filters to remove jagged edges. ty v much unreal engine (best example) multi port game, pc's version have no AA support. it sucks just cus an xbox or ps3 cant do it dont mean pc's cant!
o and 1 more thought....as long as companies like valve and crytek stay faithful and making games that will be remembered forever then i wouldnt give a toss if the 100 auful game a week that were ported to pc stopped entirely ...consoles can keep their trashy half bottomd money making crap. i quote. game like too human and two world just are money makers. pc dosent have as bigger list of games on demand but the ones we do have kick ass.
and whoever badmouthed stalker i hope ur xbox red lights...
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Great, now I can be rid of the first one. 
Your saying you can run Crysis at 2560 x 1600 with 16x AF, 32x AA on a PC that cost £300? 
