Who the hell is he looking at?
If you know me at all, you know I'm not a PC gamer, so I've missed out on quite a few of the platform's major titles. Especially anything that can't run on this piece of crap laptop that doesn't even have a graphics card and uses a goddamn chip-set. So, when I heard that Crysis was coming to consoles, I was rather excited. I'd played a tiny bit of Crysis 2 on PS3 back in June, and found it decent fun, but at the time I had a more pressing game to attend to, involving an electric man, so I returned it and awaited a price drop. What should plop into my lap during the lull between Gears 3 and Batman? Crysis 1 for the low price of $20!
Now, I know this game probably doesn't look as nice on the 360's hardware as it does on the PC. Especially when you account for the graphical mods available on PC. But it still looks fantastic, with nice little touches such as your gun frosting over in the snow, light filtering through a thick canopy of trees onto your cloaked body, and the best rendered turtle that you can throw at people you'll ever see. I'd put this port on par graphically with the gorgeous Killzone 3 from earlier this year. All the more impressive when you consider the age of Crysis, and the fact that this probably looks worse than this did at launch on PC. But graphics alone don't make a game...
Auto-erotic asphyxiation is a lot more intense with a nanosuit that enables super strength.
The story in Crysis is a basic one. You are Nomad, a shockingly NOT silent protagonist. Sadly. Archaeologists on an island unearthed a "world changing" discovery, and Koreans are the bad dudes you have to shoot. You and your team of wisecracking allies, with the standard no-nonsense leader, are sent in and shit goes horribly wrong. Because if it didn't...that just wouldn't make for an exciting or long game, would it?
Now, the console port of Crysis basically uses the nanosuit from Crysis 2, without the upgrade system or nanovision. You've got 4 "modes", and they are triggered automatically as you need them. Sprint to engage Speed mode, hold the melee/throw/jump button to engage Strength mode, Right Bumper to Cloak, Left Bumper to Armor up. All of these powers drain from the same energy meter, and none of them can be used simultaneously, with the exception of Strength, which can be used during any of the other modes. The energy meter recharges very quickly to encourage you to use your nanosuit. And you'll need it. Even on Normal, your enemies are relentless and smart. Investigating your last known position, detecting you if get too close when cloaked, and spotting you from long range if you aren't lying prone hidden in the bushes and shadows. That's right. Crysis is a game where foliage is more than a decoration. Stealth is satisfying and usable either for evasion of enemies or the usual predatory tactics. In fact, a vast majority of the firefights are totally avoidable, as I'm learning on my Delta difficulty run, but then you'd miss out on the fun!
Firefights in Crysis are intense and open. Massive levels allow for nearly any play-style to work, and constantly moving enemies gives combat a dynamic flow, ensuring few firefights play out the same way twice. Neither you nor enemies can take much damage, so making the most of your environment is key. Enemies drop in short bursts of fire, and they drop you in almost the same, making the game more about precision than anything else. The Armor Mode can save you in a pinch, but you'll generally lack the energy to use it for long, seeing as every hit taken drains it rapidly. So, don't expect to tank around like a badass, absorbing bullets like this is Ikaruga. The on-the-fly gun customization system means you'll be ready for nearly any situation or play-style. Got pinned up on the second story by enemy fire with only an SMG? Attach a sniper scope to your SMG and switch it to single shot mode to take advantage of your location! Enemies start charging the building? Swap it for a reflex sight and add a laser targeting system. That said, a lot of the attachments have very limited usage, such as the tranquilizer dart and the grenade launcher. The flashlight takes the gold prize in "useless as hell attachments", though. Since night vision is freely available. The problem with a lot of the more diverse tactics is the controls. In the heat of battle, it can be hard to take the time to press Left on the D-Pad twice to get to the grenade launcher while Nomad fumbles with his gun animation to switch firing modes. And grenades have to be selected with right on the D-Pad. Don't even get me started on Flashbangs or Smoke Grenades...which are buried deeper in the menus. You carry two primary weapons, with a back up dual pistols you'll never really use except as a novelty. Still, these control issues rarely present an issue, even on Delta difficulty. If you REALLY need a grenade, you can cloak and get it ready. The ability to hide in bushes and cloak at will makes disengagement of enemies in a tight spot ludicrously easy. The problem with Crysis occurs about 3/4s into the game, when you really lose the ability to use stealth as a tactic, and are forced into open combat against melee happy enemies that take 2-3 shotgun blasts to the face to kill. Still, the shooting is satisfying, and the rest of the game more than makes up for this linear, but by no means BAD, last act.
Did I mention that I like the setting?
Pardon my lack of flow here, but I'd like to mention a few scattered things that I couldn't really focus on in the above sections. Crysis features some truly excellent sound effects. The sound design for this game is on par with the work of DICE, and the music is a delight, too. The tank mission is one of the best I've ever played, with fluid controls and enemies with rockets using cover and height to ensure the little guys are more than just fodder. The difficulty level changes more than just damage, too. On higher difficulties your binoculars won't highlight objectives, you lose your cross-hair, and enemies stop speaking English and switch to Korean, meaning enemy tactics are harder to read. The way stealth kills don't NEED to be headshots makes stealth killing two enemies close to each other a viable tactic, in comparison to other stealth systems that would encourage picking them off as they separate. I also love the way you can customize the cross-hair between a wide variety of shapes, and how they all account for recoil and movement. You can also change the suit voice to a female, or toggle it off.
Crysis is a wonderful game, even years later, and is well worth the asking price of $20 or whatever it is on your 360/PS3 store. PC gamers who haven't checked it out yet should probably do so. The length is solid, at 8-10 hours, especially if you tackle the side objectives. This game should be remember for more than just "BUT CAN IT RUN CRYSIS?".
