Most Boring Game of the Year.
Gameplay:
So... Far Cry 2 makes you CRY from boredom for 2 main reasons. 1.) The insanely HUGE map Ubisoft created on behalf of this game. This may sound stupid, but wait to hear this. EVERY god damn mission (at least the ones that I've managed to finish) has you running all over this "insanely HUGE" map to retrieve "objects" and/or kill someone just because the boss said so⦠That's alright the first couple of hours but try doing this for 20 hours (MAN, that's a lot of time). Oh, and I forgot the "side quests". You do exactly the same thing only this time your goal is unlocking new weapons, manuals, and other stuff which I can't seem to remember. This makes a total of 40 hours of running across 50km^2 of African savanna killing people and unlocking stuff. Plus the missions for your malaria medicine which are practically the same as the others only in this case you actually MUST complete them or else you die from the malaria illness. There's an annoying thing here. There are countless outposts throughout the game-world which spawn 3-5 enemies. Simple? Yes, but as you pass through them they re-spawn after a minute or so. So if you decide to pass through the same outpost 2 minutes later, BAM another 3-5 enemies (and you're like: HOW THE HECK THEY MANAGED TO REGROUP SO FAST :D). I must tell you though, what I'm talking about is only a small portion of the game (15% main quest completition or so) so I don't know what happens next and if the game gets any better. But the fact that it makes you stop playing it from boredom is a very negative fact. 2.) Every enemy is the same, just with a different shotgun each time. And they don't seem to die. Not easily at least. Shoot the in the head and they keep going. Shoot them again and they fall on the ground. Shoot them again and THEN they die. This wouldn't be a problem if you had more ammo. I just can't find enough in the game-world to keep me going. At times I have to use my knife until I reach a place where I can obtain ammo. And this pretty much covers the bad aspects of the game. So if you like prolonged sessions of running across monotone environments and killing 2 guys on each 10km^2 then THIS is the game for you.
Graphics:
Not a big fan of SUPER graphics. If a game is perfect then this part is the least important to me (personal opinion, I know a lot of you don't agree with this). But for the sake of the review I'll say a few words. That's the best looking game since Crysis so all I can say is that the game is beautifully done, the environments as well as the weapons and vehicles are stunning and wonderful. The GREATEST thing about Far Cry 2 is the explosives. Aaah, the explosives. They are AWESOME. Period. Nothing more to say here.
Story:
Very boring story since you have one main goal and do lots of stupid stuff to achieve it. Guess what, the story is about killing a man. Seems to me that this is the only thing you do in this game. Come on, some hostage rescue, some train ambushes, a little stealth sequences and this game would shine. But anyway. You have buddies in this game that help you with additional information about your missions and give you a hand if you fall injured in combat. They pull you out and give you a second chance. They are one of the few NPC's which you actually get to talk to and not kill. And this concludes this part of the review. Once again, I haven't completed even ΒΌ of the game so I don't know much about the story, but from what I've seen I can only guess.
Good Aspect:
The only thing that still keeps the game on my hard drive is the AMAZING map editor. You can do ANYTHING with it. And it's so simple that even my 7 years old brother can use it. What I like most in the map editor is creating a domino effect with explosives and sit on a high spot and watch the show. Just amazing. So here I gave you a reason to buy this game :P
Multiplayer:
Haven't played but from what I've heard it is not that good. You can't enter a game that is already begun and that lowers your chances of finding a decent server. But then again what do I know.
Finally, I highly NOT recommend you to buy this game since there are so many more games out there much better than this one. For example (Fallout 3, Left 4 Dead, Prince of Persia, even James Bond Quantum of Solace is better than this S***). I'm referring to PC games only. But if you're a console owner there so many more titles out there [GOW 2, MGS 4(my favorite :D ), Resistance 2] and many more I can't quite remember right now. So don't waste your time with this. In the end I must say: THIS IS MINE AND ONLY MINE OPINION SO I HIGHLY ENCOURAGE YOU TO READ OTHER REVIEWS TO SEE THE GAME FROM OTHERS PERSPECTIVES. For me this was a total waste of money and time and only if you've got nothing else to do buy this game. So go play Fallout 3 and stop wasting time!!!
Gameplay: 6
Graphics: 10
Story: 5
Overall: 7 (As you see, graphics saved the game from getting a 5 :D)
PS: I'm sorry for any grammar errors and/or wrong usage of words but my English in not the best there is so be forgiving :).