Hello, everyone and welcome to another edition of the LoCo Gaming Update. This week I’ll be reviewing the console version of Crysis.

Review: Crysis (console ver.)

Release Date: Out Now

Developer: Crytek

Publisher: EA Games

Platform: PS3 (Reviewed)/

Xbox 360

Format: Digital Downloadable Title

ESRB rating: M

Price: 1600 MS Points ($19.99)

Disclaimer: EA Games did not contact me in time for permission to use screenshots for this review.

Before I purchased this version of Crysis I only tried a bit of the PC version on my uncle’s PC (my computer wasn’t powerful enough to play it.)

The story for Crysis starts with the player assuming the role of a soldier in a super-suit code named “Nomad”. Nomad and his fellow buddies have to infiltrate an island in North Korea to find some missing scientists, but a little later in the story it becomes very clear that there is more to this mission than a simple search-and-rescue.

The basic gameplay of Crysis is the same as with most iron sights shooters; you hold one button to “snap” to a target and press another to fire. However, there are two very big things that make this game different from most other shooters of its type, super-suit abilities (which is governed by a blue power bar on your HUD) and non-linear level design. Your suit’s abilities include maximum strength, for when you need to punch harder, jump higher, and throw things (or enemies) further; maximum stealth, which makes you almost completely invisible to the enemy (note that taking aggressive action, such as shooting and throwing, will immediately de-cloak you); and maximum armor, to provide you extra protection from enemy fire. While not quite a sandbox title, the levels are very big and very open ended. From silently picking off enemies while hiding in bushes to going in guns blazing, Crysis’s gameplay is also fairly open-ended.

The enemy A.I. also fares well, most of the time. Enemies will become suspicious by gunfire, snipers will spot you from a distance if you’re not careful, and if there is an empty turret they will use it to take you down. Unfortunately, the A.I. will sometimes bug out. In one scenario, I walked up in front of an enemy that was facing me that was on a turret and he didn’t do anything at all.

Graphically, Crysis looks amazing (especially in 1080p). Levels look super detailed, the lighting cast the shadows well, and even the guns you pick up have an excellent attention to detail.

It should be mentioned that the A.I. isn’t the only thing buggy about this game. The background music will frequently go in and out, objects (like a roof of a building) will disappear and reappear for no reason, and at times the frame rate will start to chug. In fact the frame rate issues become particularly noticeable when using your cloaking ability and during one scenario when I had to take down two tanks with a rocket launcher.

Despite the problems noted above, this is definitely a shooter I would recommend to fans of the genre. Just don’t expect the multiplayer or the Crysis: Warhead add-on to be included

4.0/5.0 (Pretty GOOD)

+ Cool Suit Abilities

+ Mostly Good A.I.

+ Gorgeous Graphics

– A Few A.I. Bugs

– A Lot of Technical Bugs

– Doesn’t Include the Crysis:

Warhead add-on