Having been rather intrigued by the Crysis 2 Multiplayer pitch I decided to have a quick go at the demo. Crytek are clearly aiming at a different-but-same experience here. There are nods to elements taken from various multi-player FPSs, but more than enough new stuff to intrigue the FPS buff. As one might expect the suit plays a central role in the whole game and choosing between stealth or armour mode at any given time changes drastically who you experience and effect the game.
What has impressed me so far is the game’s balance in every aspect. I am not sure how much variety there is going to be in the actual game but right now the limits on upgrades and weapons one can have is sober - in a very good way. Every little change to your load-out makes a distinct difference without over or underpowering any aspect of the game.
The game is paced really well through the use of energy. One can sprint, leap and camouflage themselves at dizzying speeds, but these bursts of speed are curtailed by an energy meter that depletes very quickly. This makes speed as important an asset as armour or invisibility in the game and trying to combine one of the last two with even the most basic sprint and jump is going to see your energy bar flash red quickly.
If I have one gripe about the game it’s more of a personal pfff than an objective critique: the maps are quite small. Especially the skyline map starts feeling old very quickly. There are internal areas but in straight out death match mode these are scarcely used, leaving about a third of the map under-utilized. I LOVE multi-player FPSs beyond any other genre, but the repetitiveness of rounds played on tiny maps is making it harder to justify the 12th, 15th and 20th round in a sitting…
Will definitely be looking more closely at this one when the full version comes out.
Gordon Calleja
