Far Cry 2
In a way, this is sort of a first-person Grand Theft Auto set in Africa. You have an open world to explore, it's none linear, you have safe houses whereby you can advance time from day to night, weather changes, main storyline missions, side missions, assassination missions, collectables scattered around the world, a wide range of weapons, vehicles you can use to drive around from one destination to the other and contacts/buddies who can help you with certain missions.
When i first started playing this i thought it was great. Sadly, the more i played, the more my good opinions dropped and my negative opinions increased. After a while, the game became a chore to play through and i couldn't wait to get it finished so i could sell it on ebay. This is a game i have no desire to replay again in the future.
Positives:
+ Gorgeous graphics
+ A non linear, open world game
+ Some good gameplay elements - weapon/vehicle upgrades etc.
+ Quite a bit to do - main missions, side missions, collectables etc. (took me over 45 hours playtime in total)
Negatives:
- My biggest gripe: enemies have a REALLY annoying habit of chasing after you in vehicles and shooting at you just by driving/walking past them. You can't get from point A to point B in peace without being attacked. You have to keep getting out of your vehicle, shooting them dead, repairing your vehicle and then continuing. Really irritating and tedious. This issue is similar in Assassin's Creed. At least in Grand Theft Auto the police don't bother you unless you do something foolish. In Far Cry 2, your character would only have to sneeze nearby and the soldiers are suddenly all over you.
- The story is poor. At least i found it poor. What story there was didn't interest me in the slightest and therefore i didn't pay attention.
- No interesting/likeable characters
- Poor voice acting. To me it sounded like the voice actors were just reading from their scripts. It also sounded like they were doing it quickly as well. They didn't put any feeling into it and their acting came off as very flat and with no emotion.
- Missions are VERY repetitive. They just seem to consist of the same tasks over and over again - head to point A, kill him or take this item, then come back to me at point B. At least in GTA IV the missions feel more varied and fun to do imo. They never feel dull to me. In this game... urgh.
- Frame rate issues and screen tearing are present. Especially when the action increases.
- Game has a few bugs/glitches. It crashed on me about 2-3 times and one bug caused confusion and stress involving an achievement. 2 other achievements unlocked before i even accomplished the tasks required.
- Just like F.E.A.R., you can't even skip the credits at the end.
- Ending felt unsatisfying
- Vehicles sometimes have an annoying habit of getting stuck. Just be careful when driving over protruding rocks or when driving between objects like trees etc.
- What the hell is the point of giving the player the option to try and heal buddies who are 'down' at the end of a mission? If you take their advice/path, after you've received a mission briefing, you'll always have to get to them in time and provide backup. 9 times out of 10, the buggers will always get wounded. What the hell makes them think, that they alone, can take on a load of soldiers? lol. If one injection doesn't heal them, which it never does, the next two definitely won't. You're left with no choice but to either give them an overdose, put them out of their misery or try again if you want all your buddies to stay alive.
- How many times does it take to drop an enemy? Seriously? Even on easy they never drop when they should. Even if you get them to drop to the ground, after filling them with lead up close, they'll sometimes squirm around on the ground groaning in pain.
- Rockets sometimes have a mind of their own once fired.
- Tedious having to travel from one destination the next and then back again.
- It's frustrating trying to drive at night. Even with the headlights on, i still had difficulty seeing where i was going. I had to keep advancing time to make it daylight.
- Although an interesting concept in theory i still wasn't happy it was added into the game - weapons will only last for a certain amount of time before they rust, blockup and then break. It's annoying when in combat and your bloody weapon sticks.
- Multiplayer is pfft.
Considering all my negatives outweigh the positives, the game is still alright/okay. Just not one i'll be replaying. Ever.
Note: I gave Alone in the Dark 2.5/5 whereas this one only 2/5. I think Far Cry 2 is better out of the two. But only slightly. So my rating for Alone in the Dark has been dropped to 2/5 as well.
Overall: 2/5
