Far Cry

Undeniably featuring one of the most beautiful artificial outdoor environments ever created, can Far Cry compete with the likes of Halo 2, Half-Life 2 and Doom 3?

If you believe the hype, we?re on the cusp of the golden age of first-person shooters, a renaissance led by Half-Life 2, Doom 3, and, for those console folks, Halo 2. Ubisoft?s ambitious Far Cry has jumped in before the bar is raised, but is it the first step of the future or the last gaffe of the past?

I Can See Clearly Now
In Far Cry, you?re Jack Carver, a charter boat captain hired by reporter Val Cortez to help investigate the shady research being conducted on a mysterious tropical island. When your boat gets destroyed and Val disappears, you?ll have no choice but to fight for your life against the scientists? evil militia and discover their dark secret in the process.

Far Cry?s hype has mostly dealt with its mind-boggling long-range visibility (claimed to be 800 meters), and there?s certainly no denying that this game allows you to see very far, very clearly, and with phenomenal detail: Every astoundingly crisp blade of grass shimmers, and the water effects are absolutely unparalleled. But although Far Cry?s jungle environments take bump-mapping to a whole new level, some garish indoor textures and odd light sourcing keep the game from being a completely immersive experience. And only very high-end gaming rigs will be able to appreciate Far Cry?s true beauty, its outdoor landscapes.

Far more frustrating, though, is the pedestrian level design, which delivers frequent ambushes that rely on memorization and replay instead of stealth and skill. You?d think the much-heralded long-distance factor would allow you to take advantage of sniper scopes, but enemies usually don?t appear until you?re within close proximity. Disappointing control decisions also mire the tropical paradise: You can?t shoot from ladders, even though you?ll frequently emerge into confrontations; the game uses checkpoints instead of a quick save option; and no there?s no gamepad support.

Cry Havoc
Thankfully, Far Cry really picks up a few levels in, when the story takes a page from Halo and introduces a second malevolent force: the scientists? ?ber-clich? bio-engineered animals. Later areas also take advantage of the dynamic sound design with ominous roaring that suggests nearby monsters. The sound effects of the overly familiar weapons stand out?shotgun blasts feel like sonic-induced force feedback. Unremarkable music, however, keeps this game firmly in ?almost great? territory.

Far Cry?s multiplayer package is a bit lacking as well as the game ships with only three game types (assault, free-for-all, and team deathmatch) and a half dozen or so maps for each. It?s distinctive for the beauty factor and the distance at which you?ll find yourself fighting, but hopefully the included level-design tools will lead to more interesting mods.

Interesting Choice of Title
Far Cry is a far cry indeed from revolutionary. It?s a solid, challenging jungle assault that perhaps foretells the future with its gorgeous interactive environment, but some lackluster game design keeps it stuck firmly in the rut of the right now.

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