Far Cry Instincts

"Easy on the eyes. Plays well, too"

Ubisoft has come out with so many good games, and this one follows suit. From the Splinter Cell series, to Brothers in Arms, and even Ghost Recon, this game is as stellar as its predecessors.

Story:7/10
The story is pretty bare. Basically you're a travelling American, Jack Carver, and you had rented out a fishing boat. One calm and serene day, you're out in your boat near a tropical island with a female companion, when you are 'approached' by a futile helicopter that--without rhyme or reason-- starts shooting at your defenseless boat! Anyway the lady takes off on a water scooter and you swim to the island. There, you have to fight your way to survival and kill mercs that stand in your way. You find out that Crowe, the main enemy, has taken your friend and is holding her hostage. It's up to you to find her and rescue her and blah, blah, blah... same old, some old. The main difference is the feral abilities, which basically turns Jack into a beast when he receives adrenaline. Feral abilities range from strong melee attacks to far distance jumping. You don't start out with Feral abilities in the beginning, but have to work for them instead.

Graphics: 10/10
Even if you don't have this game or haven't played it yet, you probably know that it delivers some of the best--if not the best--graphics out there. Plus, the setting and location only make it better. The tropical island looks fabulous, especially the vistas in the background as you're running up the foliage-thick mountain paths. The hills and valleys and snaking rivers... oh my! You're eyes will be in heaven, and that's just the beginning.

Sound: 9/10
When you're laying down in a bush about to creep up on a merc to slice him up, the ambient noise kicks in. you can hear things like the shuffling of shoes on the dirt, the crickets chirping, the birds squawking, etc., nothing goes unnoticed. The voices aren't bad to say the least. They fit the bill whether it be from Jack or a merc or your female companion, nothing sounds out of place and it flows well. It actually sounds like they're in real time and not reading from a script.

Gameplay: 8/10
The controls aren't great, but they get the job done. You can either crawl (go prone), squat, or run/walk as you go through foliage and make your way up the paths. The shooting mechanics are basic as well, with R (and L if applicable) being the main shoot button (you can also stab with the B button). As implied above, you can dual wield with different weapons. The AI isn't the best however, and you may find that sneaking around, and stealth altogether, can be virtually impossible. The enemies almost always see/hear you no matter what the circumstance, and the 'throw rock' feature is basically useless, since they don't always go where the rock is (although it's fun luring them into tree traps you've set). Driving is different and it takes some time to get used to, but once you do, you'll find that it's not all that bad and doesn't really make the game unplayable in any way.

Multiplayer: 10/10
You gotta love it. This just may give Halo 2 a run for its money. In this game, you have the hailed Map Editor. This is a very nice addition and on top of that, you can share your created maps over Xbox Live! Now, obviously, this IS Xbox Live compatible, and it's a good thing. This, unlike Halo 2, only has 4 game types, but that's not necessarily a bad thing at all. The gametypes include Chaos (deathmatch), Team Chaos (team deathmatch), Predator (will explain), and Steal The Sample/STS (Capture The Flag-type set-up). Now Predator is the main focus this year (along with Map Editor). Predator consists of a bunch of Mercenaries trying to reach and revive a generator. Guarding the generator is the Predator(s). For every 4 mercs there is 1 predator. Predators are superhuman beings and have feral abilities that are found in the Single Player Campaign, whilst the mercs are just average humans with guns =).

Rent or Buy?
It varies. If you have Xbox Live, please add this one to your collection, it's worth the $50. If you don't and you aren't interested in the Map Editor or just don't have any friends that play video games, then rent it for the single player. Either way, it's still great game.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 10/14/05