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Crysis 1 brought an incredible evolution to the clumsy design principles presented in Far Cry, offering a blend of stealth and action with a dynamism reminiscent of the old immersive sims, albeit in a redundant, insubstantial, and empty open world (like a bare bones version of the subsequent Far Cry worlds), strangely dry and introspective given its vastness and visual exuberance.
All of this was enveloped by a psychotic and unreachable technical and technological excellence for its time.
Despite the hype (including within the game itself), Crysis 1 was far from being a bombastic and open action movie experience due to how quickly the suit's energy drains and your character's low resistance at any difficulty above normal. The game's enormous empty and purposeless space only worsened the experience, and the game only clicked for me when I started playing it like a hunter, embodying the Predator, with an entire jungle to hide in, ambushing unsuspecting soldiers in a precise and relentless manner.
Crysis 2 improved everything that worked in 1, enhanced the action, trimmed the fat, and transformed the experience into something more focused and linear, with impeccable pacing, well-designed arenas and levels that encompassed all the dynamism of the game's mechanics in a much more interesting and digestible way.
The fun was easier to reach. The excitement, the visual spectacle, more compelling than ever.
The game was transformed into a melodramatic Michael Bay-style action blockbuster full of epic gunfights and explosions, tempered by a solid core of stealth and dynamic difficulty systems.
Who can forget the first lines spoken in the game: “Welcome to the future, son. Welcome to the War.”
So cheesy. I love it.
And the music? They even managed to get Hans Zimmer to participate!
Crysis 3 is basically more of the same. A slight refinement of the systems, slightly more open levels, "customization" through builds, a bow with various types of arrows (That can impale enemies on walls), and a more post-apocalyptic setting with abundant and overgrown vegetation, rivaling what was presented by The Last of Us in the same year.
The biggest novelty here is perhaps the ability to shoot without breaking invisibility, further reinforcing the fantasy of being a Predator. The return to "forests" and more open (yet purposeful) spaces makes the game experience bring elements from both previous games in an excellent and very satisfying combination.
Technically, I am still impressed with how they managed to make the game run impeccably on the PS3 and X360 at the time, without sacrificing almost any perceptible visual element. The game is still extremely beautiful by modern standards and refined in the smallest details, from animations, facial expressions, physics, particle effects, and so on. The look and feel of the game is still incredible.
The sound is amazing too. Bad Company 2 amazing.
The pacing is as good as in 2, despite the game being slightly shorter. And the story is exactly what you'd expect: An overpriced, cathartic explosion of banality, complete with all the set pieces, oneliners and apocalyptic devastation you want.
They even tried to enrich the context with some texts, audios and a mundane drama about a superhero who lost his powers and is frustrated because he can no longer break down a wall with his hands, but everything falls with the subtlety and elegance of a jackhammer five in the morning.
It's loud, epic, immensely stupid and exactly what you want for the end of a trilogy.
This must be the result of applying an astronomical budget in a small scale game. You have a tight, polished experience, running smoothly and with due attention in all areas.
I don’t know if the multiplayer still works, but it was a lot of fun. Ten years ago…
Moreover, the last thing I can say is that I shed three nanodrops when I realized that all three games in the remastered version don’t require EA’s DRM. Yes, you just install and play… Imagine that. What a miracle.
Definitely recommended. My favorite is still 2, followed very closely by 3. But all three games are great and short. Three solid, stylysh, slightly different experiences that are still very worth it.