Also on: PS3, PC

Finally a shooter that doesn’t confine you to a claustrophobic area of game play or teases you with a view of a world that you could see but never reach or play. Finally a war shooter that puts you in the future, but doesn’t rely on unrealistic weaponry that may have come from a sci-fi flick. Finally a shooter that doesn’t feel as if it is trying to be just another Call of Duty. And finally, a shooter that has some freaking length for once and that you aren’t disappointed you beat if you took a half day off from work. This miraculous shooter is a sequel to a PC game, and while it is also available on that platform, it finally makes its way onto the home consoles and still looks damn good. The game is Crysis 2 and it is legit.

You are going to hear a lot of chatter about the game’s visuals. There will be tons of debate, comparisons to other games, and even the naysayers nitpicking here and there, but the bottom line is…damn Crysis 2 is really pretty. The lighting, particles, polygon count, enormous environments, attention to detail, varied enemy models, variety of weaponry and the damage they do, are just the tips of the iceberg on what makes Crysis 2 the talk of the walk. The sheer size of the game is something to awe at as no two environments really look the same, and when you have a ton of free roaming ground to lay out your destruction or flee from a wave of baddies, you really appreciate all the when you do have time to just look around. I’d be lying if I were to say that there were no frame rate hiccups, screen tearing, poly mishaps, and many other visual issues that many graphic whores look to attack rather than appreciate the overall picture. Such problems are there, but even so this is still one of the best looking shooters to date. The real “wow” factor comes in the game’s physics engine that reminds me a lot of Half Life’s Havoc engine when rubble, debris, matter, and obstacles bare weight and really bring the world around you to life…or death as the case may be in this post apocalyptic tale of woe. It’s all about the suit and what you are willing to do to ensure that the enemy doesn’t get a hold of this rebel built tech that could alter the face of military action and in the wrong hands could begin a new breed of dictatorship and tyranny.

Controls are spot on and have many variations in terms of the multiple abilities that the Nanosuit has to offer. Beyond the typical shooter controls, there are tons of strategic factors you must address before you go charging into a barrage of gunfire and blood thirsty soldiers and enemies. This is what separates Crysis 2 from your wanna be war shooter. I honestly haven’t played a game this complex since Rainbow Six or Ghost Recon, and the experience may be radically different for each gamer. The story itself is very intriguing and I refuse to divulge any specifics as with the many changes it goes through, I don’t want to spoil the journey for anyone. And what a journey it is clocking in between 12 and 15 hours…and that is for veteran shooters, tack on more time for deaths and such for those not quite adept to this hardcore of a shooter. In short, we finally get a single player game that is roughly longer than the last 3 COD games combined. Sure the A.I. isn’t perfect, and can be even quite dumb or too difficult and accurate on certain difficulty degrees, but the game never feels cheap whether that means easy or hard to you. Multiplayer is a blast, especially with the inclusion of the Nanosuit abilities that will allow you to cloak, jump high, kick hard, and track enemies and much more. Sure, right now the maps are lacking in number and it isn’t perfect, but with added DLC and content, this is a nice break away from the hack fest that you’ll find online nowadays.

I can’t speak highly enough of what makes Crysis 2 so good other than just recommending you to play it for yourself. With incredible visuals, cool Nanosuit abilities, a well told and compelling story, wide open areas for combat, good A.I. that will test you but not cheat you and a wide variety of enemies that range from marines to alien beings, the game experience will last for a while. Factor in a very enjoyable and playable multiplayer that provides all the fun of the single player campaign with the challenge of human beings vs. A.I., what more could a FPS shooter fan ask for?

For this fan, I call dibs on this being the best shooter to come out this year, and while that isn’t saying a whole heck of a lot considering the current crop, I foresee it holding its own down the line and into the end of 2011. At the end, it will result in a few rewards praising it for what is has done well…which to this reviewer is just about everything you could hope for. Chalk this up to the sleeper surprise of the year so far, and this comes from a person who didn’t think much of the first game other than it looked good. Crysis 2 not only out does the original in visuals, but provides for an amazing game behind the lush graphics to boot. If I had to sum this game up in one word…that word would be “WOW!”

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