The Crysis single-player game doesn’t wrap everything up the way I’d like but there’s also the multiplayer to consider. The multiplayer includes only two game modes: Instant Action and Power Struggle. Instant Action is straight-forward death-match but Power Struggle provides a little more depth. In Power Struggle there are two teams vying for control of a Prototype Laboratory so they can build weapons of mass destruction and annihilate the other team’s base. Ownership of the Prototype Laboratory can see-saw back and forth and there are a variety of other buildings that can provide spawn points, vehicles, and aircraft. In addition to controlling the Prototype Laboratory teams must also control alien crash sites to power the laboratory. The team that gets the laboratory fully powered first gets access to the super weapons first and can lay siege to the opponent’s base with all manner of catastrophic death weapons.

The multiplayer is a nice addition but the lack of mainstays like team deathmatch or capture the flag is noticeable. Since everyone on the map is outfitted with a nanosuit it practically negates all the advantages you’d get over normal soldiers. If everyone is "super", than no one is. I would have liked to see a Predator Hunt-style multiplayer where one person plays the nanosuit soldier and everyone else has to kill them. The multiplayer isn’t a complete waste of time but it isn’t the robust suite that other shooters are offering.

Power Struggle games typically have lots of vehicles flying and rolling around.

The expectations for Crysis were very high and while it met them as a technological marvel it fell short as a narrative experience. Crysis is a great shooter, there’s no question. You won’t find a better looking game - assuming you’ve got the hardware to run it well - and it captures both the feeling of open-ended modern jungle warfare and playing the star of a summer alien invasion movie. The story has some issues and the multiplayer doesn’t deliver as well as other shooters but Crysis remains a must-have for PC gamers. Time will tell if we’re at the beginning of a great gaming trilogy or if we’re being set up for a big disappointment.

Where I’m Coming From: I wouldn’t consider myself a Crysis fanboy but I did my fair share of "ooing" and "ahhing" at screenshots and movies. I sent them out like a proud father to my console-preferring friends - usually with a snide note attached detracting their hardware of choice. Despite the obvious focus on the graphics I feared for the story and gameplay. The sections of the game we were shown and allowed to play at shows and previews started to feel very familiar but I remained excited about the possibilities. I wanted Crysis to be the next Half-Life 2 but some part of me knew that it couldn’t bear the strain. In the end I was disappointed by Crysis but only because it was reaching so high in the first place.

What I Compared It To: Far Cry certainly comes to mind when you start Crysis and the experiences of Call of Duty 4 are still fresh. I also looked back to BioShock, Half-Life 2, and even Portal as examples of narrative in the FPS genre. Halo 3 was also on my mind due to the rivalry between Crysis and Halo 3 as their respective system champions.

What I Liked: The stunning graphics; the interactive environment; the nanosuit cloak; the action-movie set pieces; the vehicle sections; the combat on the deck of the aircraft carrier.

What I Didn’t Like: Unsatisfying and incomplete ending; the hardware demands; everything inside the alien ship; no team deathmatch.

Value Meter: Buy it new. Crysis has its flaws but still stands tall as a fine example of the genre.

Final Score: 8.5 out of 10