When its good, its great. When its bad, its awful.
The first thing I noticed when I began the game, is that the engine is a million times better than the CrySis engine. While it may not look as good as crysis, it looks amazing, and unlike the CrySis engine, it actually has programming to back up the flashy graphics. The game can run on almost any computer, making the engine very versatile and much better than CrySis' tendency to be a slideshow in 'low quality' on a machine less than a year old. My own computer is 4 years old, CrySis barely runs on low 640x480 at 5 fps. FarCry 2 runs in 1680 x 1050 on the 'Very High' setting at a buttery smooth 45 fps on average. Apparently there is some imagery cut off in widescreen, but I haven't noticed that problem yet.
The game itself is an open-world Mercenary sim. While it has a 'story' the story isn't really very thoughtful or interesting. The world itself is interesting, but there are times where you will learn to hate the world despite its impressive nature. The game is something like 50 sq miles in size, which is NOT a good decision considering that the game is an action FPS title. A map this size is forgiveable in a game such as Oblivion or an MMO title, but that is because there is much more populating the world. While there are many locales to visit and it is realistic, it can slow down the pace trying to get from one point to another. When you consider the desolate landscapes, a fast travel option (The buses don't count) like in Fallout 3 or Oblivion would've been nice, as well as taking off a good 35 square miles. It can be boring sometimes, and as the game is not an RPG or adventure game, there isn't much to explore and there's not much incentive to explore. The only incentive are cleverly hidden gems, much akin to GTA 3's hidden packages, except you get extra money. It can be fun to search for these items, but not when you are in the heat of battle or trying to get to your next battle. It can become boring and frustrating when you have to go all the way to the center of the map after taking on a mission that takes you to another area away. It is fun to scout merc camps and fight in them, but even they seem far and few between despite there being something like 6 or 7 in each separate map area. Simply put, the game needs to be a bit smaller. A free roaming FPS game shouldn't be so big and empty, as it slows down the action.
The action itself is visceral, and great... when it works. . The AI seems to be completely binary. When you are fighting ones, you are fighting intelligent foes that bring a fierce battle along with them. When you are fighting zeros, you will be bored stiff. There was one time that I walked in front of an enemy machine gun, and the enemy was scouting. I jumped up and down in front of the machine gun whilst firing random bullets past the enemy. He heard the bullets, but still kept his thumb up his ass and couldn't see me. Another time that I tried this, I got mowed down and had to be saved by a friend.
Overall, FarCry 2 is a bit of a disappointment. It IS a good game at heart. When it is good, it is great. However, when it is bad, its awful. It can be intense, fun, and wild and at the same time, your next journey into the game will be slow, boring, and painful. I recommend you play it, it is worth playing, but you may want to wait for a price drop first.