Far Cry: Instincts

Posted: 10/21/05

Although there was some skepticism, Ubisoft and Crytek surprised everyone by bringing a brand new version of Far Cry to the XBox, and taking full advantage of the hardware and XBox Live. An expanded story, a unique map editor, and lots of action-packed single and multiplayer make Far Cry: Instincts one of the most anticipated and celebrated first-person shooters released this year.

The story starts off with Jack Carver on a routine boat trip to the Jacutan Islands. His paradise is quickly turned into a living hell when his client Valerie disappears and his boat is attacked by a helicopter. Washed ashore, Jack finds himself alone in the jungle and surrounded by mercenaries.

After taking out some bad guys and sneaking around Jack is captured and forced to take part in a experiment that turns him into a killing machine. Outgunned and outnumbered, the only thing he can do is trust his instincts. This setup is similiar to the story behind the PC version, but making Jack an unwilling test subject, and granting him feral abilities brings plenty of new and exciting elements to the story and the gameplay.

On this tropical island the trees and bushes are your only means of camoflauge, making stealth the key to survival. By building traps and perfoming stealth kills you can pick up a fire arm and binoculars on the first map. Traps are a fun way to take down enemies but luring them in can get frustrating. This makes setting them up amusing, but unneccesary when you have a large arsenal of weapons to choose from. Traps come in handy in multiplayer mode, but you need to be careful or you might end up setting off one your own.

The game starts you off with a butterfly knife, but the weapon choices range from the compact pistol to the explosive rocket launcher. Weapon designs are realistic and as exciting to shoot as they are to listen to. And to double the damage you can carry multiple weapons by tapping up on the directional pad to switch them out.

The single and multiplayer maps are huge. To access some of the areas there's a variety of vehicles you can jump into but you'll need time to get use to the controls. At times it's akward to steer the vehicle in first-person and shoot your gun at the same time. It's easier to drive enemies over or stop and switch to the mounted gun. There are several vehicles for both land and sea, but only a glider for the air which is disappointing when you see the bad guys flying around in helicopters.

The real fun starts when you get your feral powers. You have feral vision, that enables you to see in the dark. Feral smell, which you can use to track an enemies scent. You can also run faster which speeds up the combat and makes traveling through each area a lot quicker. These powers are entertaining, but you'll have to master them as the difficulty level rises.

As the game progresses you face squads of mercenaries and monsters with feral powers. The AI in the game is impressive at times, especially when they dodge your attacks and use group tactics. However the difficulty level could be set a little higher, and sometimes enemies can make stupid mistakes.

Most of the game's replay value lies in its online capabilites. You now have the ability to easily create and share maps through XBox Live, bringing a high level of customization to Instincts' multiplayer. There's Chaos, Team Chaos, Steal the Sample which is similar to capture the flag, and the unique Predator mode, where you play as either a feral predator, or part of a team trying to take it down.

Visually, Far Cry: Instincts does everything it can to make this XBox version look as good as the stunning PC original. While it's still impressive, it doesn't deliver the same free-roaming gameplay as its predecessor. Each area is linear, and although you can still hunt and travel across large distances, gamers new to the series are missing out on what made the first game so groundbreaking.

But still, the game is gorgeous. The colors are vibrant and the open tropical areas have eye-catching detail. The environments are constantly changing as you leave paradise and make your way through thick jungles, military bases, and dark caves.

The weather and lighting effects are fun to play with as your feral powers help you hunt in dark areas. The physics are a little over the top sometimes, but it's always a laugh to see a soldier tossed into the air by a swift blast from your rocket launcher.

But the most impressive thing about Far Cry: Instincts is the easy to pick up Map Editor. It's amazing how fast you can put one together and share it online.

Ubi Soft knew that Far Cry would be a different game on the XBox, so they made Far Cry: Instincts a competely fresh experience. It's a fast-paced fps that people who played the original will definitely enjoy. And with lots of multiplayer modes and a unique tropical setting, anyone playing older shooters on XBox Live can't afford to miss it.


Far Cry: Instincts

Release Date:
Action, Shooter, First-Person
Editors' Choice

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