One of my most memorable moments from graduate school in the early 90's was sitting in the computer lab after hours playing Castle Wolfenstein with my fellow grad students. You'd run your character around a corner, blow some other character's head off, and immediately hear a real person somewhere across the room curse out loud at no one in particular, because no one knew who they were shooting at, or who was shooting at them. It was primitive by today's standards, but the multiplayer aspect was unlike anything I'd ever experienced at that time, and I new the world was in for a revolution in computer gaming.

However, after playing Wolfenstein for a few weeks, I was bored enough by the repetitive nature of the first person shooter (FPS) genre to stay away from it for a decade. A few years ago I tried Quake III because of the fabulous reviews, but that took less than one day to bore me, and I fully expected to stay away from FPS's forever.

So it was with some hesitation that I purchased Far Cry in November 2005. The main reason I bought it was for the graphics. I just liked the idea of being able to roam around beautiful South Pacific islands, since I doubt I'll get to do that in real life anytime soon. If the game itself proved even remotely interesting, then so much the better.

Imagine my surprise then, when I found myself completely immersed in this game from the very beginning. The grahpics were extraordinary, the gameplay was smooth, the controls were easy to learn, and the AI offered a fair challenge, such that I really felt like I was living the story. That's what a good film should do, and that's what a good role-playing or strategy game should do. I didn't even realize I was playing a first person shooter until about midway through. And by then I didn't care. Far Cry is an amazing game!

The game is based on a sci-fi storyline in which you learn that a mad doctor with a seemingly endless supply of mindless henchmen (mercenaries) has hatched a plot that threatens humanity. It's a stale formula, yes, but the story in Far Cry is actually quite unique and riveting.

Like Kings Quest, Star Control, and the Command & Conquer series, Far Cry has established itself as a classic game that I will never forget. Enough has been said about details of the story and gameplay in other reviews. Suffice it to say that I recommend this game without hesitation--especially at the discount prices available now (I vowed long ago never to pay more than 20 bucks for a game again, even if I must wait until they are three years old!)

Be aware that there is no Save Game function, but the game saves itself using "checkpoints" at logical breaks in the storyline. This works well for the most part, but sometimes it requires you to go through the same long scenario many times before you finally reach the next checkpoint. On the bright side, you are free to do things differently each time, and you'll get different reactions from the mercenaries when you do. For example, I attacked one camp unsuccessfully about 10 times before accomplishing my goal, and I had to start quite a ways away from the camp each time. So I tried reaching the camp from different directions to spice it up, and eventually found best way to get the job done. The freedom to do things differently made it much less tedious to essentially do the same thing 10 times.

One thing that is missing is a greater abundance of nature sounds on the islands. In a lush tropical jungle like this, one would expect to hear all manner of birds, waves crashing, waterfalls pouring, wind howling, etc. There is some of that (footsteps are particularly good when walking through the foilage). But the immersion effect would have been even greater if the jungle sounds were as complete as the graphics or the sounds of machinery. The machinery sounds (vehicles, weapons, generators, etc.) are excellent.

The voices are well done when relating to the storyline (although the acting is pretty bad sometimes), but the mercenaries voices while hunting you down just repeat the same limited set of moronic warrior cliches, like "I'm gonna open up a can of whoopass on you!" Perhaps this is part of a larger joke, however, because if you look around you'll see copies of "Redneck Today" and "Fully Loaded" magazines laying around various tents.

Be sure to use the binoculars to zoom in on the mercenaries, as you'll find the detail and movement quite entertaining. For example, you can see mercs just standing around smoking cigarettes and chatting with each other through the binoculars. Using binoculars, you can also hear what they are saying, although their mouths don't really move when they are speaking.

The deus ex machina of the game is a mysterious benefactor named Harlan Doyle, who seems to know every move you make, and is able to suggest every move you should make. Perhaps it's because I played this game in 2005, but I found Doyle a hilarious character because he sounds exactly like the similar character Spottswoode in Trey Parker and Matt Stone's film, "Team America" (except that Doyle never asks you to unzip his pants!).

The islands really are rendered beautifully. So in addition to fantastic gameplay I got what I came for in the first place--an opportunity to walk through paradise without traveling to the South Pacific. But once you get into it, like the game warns, "Forget paradise, this is hell!"

I haven't attempted the multiplayer mode because I only have a modem connection, but everything else in this game works wonderfully, so I have no reason to believe multiplayer isn't just as smooth.

One last thing: The game requires that CD #1 is in the drive before you can play. I've said it before and I'll say it again: software publishers should never punish their own paying customers, especially when new games retail at 50 bucks. They should locate pirates and punish them in the legal system instead, and if they don't want to go through that much effort, piracy isn't that important to them in the first place. STOP PUNISHING PAYING CUSTOMERS!
One of my most memorable moments from graduate school in the early 90's was sitting in the computer lab after hours playing Castle Wolfenstein with my fellow grad students. You'd run your character around a corner, blow some other character's head off, and immediately hear a real person somewhere across the room curse out loud at no one in particular, because no one knew who they were shooting at, or who was shooting at them. It was primitive by today's standards, but the multiplayer aspect was unlike anything I'd ever experienced at that time, and I new the world was in for a revolution in computer gaming. However, after playing Wolfenstein for a few weeks, I was bored enough by the repetitive nature of the first person shooter (FPS) genre to stay away from it for a decade. A few years ago I tried Quake III because of the fabulous reviews, but that took less than one day to bore me, and I fully expected to stay away from FPS's forever. So it was with some hesitation that I purchased Far Cry in November 2005. The main reason I bought it was for the graphics. I just liked the idea of being able to roam around beautiful South Pacific islands, since I doubt I'll get to do that in real life anytime soon. If the game itself proved even remotely interesting, then so much the better. Imagine my surprise then, when I found myself completely immersed in this game from the very beginning. The grahpics were extraordinary, the gameplay was smooth, the controls were easy to learn, and the AI offered a fair challenge, such that I really felt like I was living the story. That's what a good film should do, and that's what a good role-playing or strategy game should do. I didn't even realize I was playing a first person shooter until about midway through. And by then I didn't care. Far Cry is an amazing game! The game is based on a sci-fi storyline in which you learn that a mad doctor with a seemingly endless supply of mindless henchmen (mercenaries) has hatched a plot that threatens humanity. It's a stale formula, yes, but the story in Far Cry is actually quite unique and riveting. Like Kings Quest, Star Control, and the Command & Conquer series, Far Cry has established itself as a classic game that I will never forget. Enough has been said about details of the story and gameplay in other reviews. Suffice it to say that I recommend this game without hesitation--especially at the discount prices available now (I vowed long ago never to pay more than 20 bucks for a game again, even if I must wait until they are three years old! )

Be aware that there is no Save Game function, but the game saves itself using "checkpoints" at logical breaks in the storyline. This works well for the most part, but sometimes it requires you to go through the same long scenario many times before you finally reach the next checkpoint. On the bright side, you are free to do things differently each time, and you'll get different reactions from the mercenaries when you do. For example, I attacked one camp unsuccessfully about 10 times before accomplishing my goal, and I had to start quite a ways away from the camp each time. So I tried reaching the camp from different directions to spice it up, and eventually found best way to get the job done. The freedom to do things differently made it much less tedious to essentially do the same thing 10 times. One thing that is missing is a greater abundance of nature sounds on the islands. In a lush tropical jungle like this, one would expect to hear all manner of birds, waves crashing, waterfalls pouring, wind howling, etc. There is some of that (footsteps are particularly good when walking through the foilage). But the immersion effect would have been even greater if the jungle sounds were as complete as the graphics or the sounds of machinery. The machinery sounds (vehicles, weapons, generators, etc. ) are excellent. The voices are well done when relating to the storyline (although the acting is pretty bad sometimes), but the mercenaries voices while hunting you down just repeat the same limited set of moronic warrior cliches, like "I'm gonna open up a can of whoopass on you! " Perhaps this is part of a larger joke, however, because if you look around you'll see copies of "Redneck Today" and "Fully Loaded" magazines laying around various tents. Be sure to use the binoculars to zoom in on the mercenaries, as you'll find the detail and movement quite entertaining. For example, you can see mercs just standing around smoking cigarettes and chatting with each other through the binoculars. Using binoculars, you can also hear what they are saying, although their mouths don't really move when they are speaking. The deus ex machina of the game is a mysterious benefactor named Harlan Doyle, who seems to know every move you make, and is able to suggest every move you should make. Perhaps it's because I played this game in 2005, but I found Doyle a hilarious character because he sounds exactly like the similar character Spottswoode in Trey Parker and Matt Stone's film, "Team America" (except that Doyle never asks you to unzip his pants! ). The islands really are rendered beautifully. So in addition to fantastic gameplay I got what I came for in the first place--an opportunity to walk through paradise without traveling to the South Pacific. But once you get into it, like the game warns, "Forget paradise, this is hell! "

I haven't attempted the multiplayer mode because I only have a modem connection, but everything else in this game works wonderfully, so I have no reason to believe multiplayer isn't just as smooth. One last thing: The game requires that CD #1 is in the drive before you can play. I've said it before and I'll say it again: software publishers should never punish their own paying customers, especially when new games retail at 50 bucks. They should locate pirates and punish them in the legal system instead, and if they don't want to go through that much effort, piracy isn't that important to them in the first place. STOP PUNISHING PAYING CUSTOMERS!