In order to ward off any knee-jerk reactions attempting to vilify Crysis 2 in the same unfair way that its predecessor was , I’ll preface any further words by simply saying the following: a 3-4 year old gaming PC will (mostly likely) run this game.

How it’s possible is beyond my feeble brain’s understanding. The only explanation that seems likely is that Crytek, with its army of magicians and voodoo practitioners, has optimized the shit out of the game to such an extent that my two year-old mid-range PC can run it on maximum settings. No, it’s not because it looks worse than the original Crysis. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. From a purely technical standpoint, it’s a freak in the bed.

Dull sunlight plummets through tree branches and city rubble. Water drizzles over objects, a nearby damaged streetlight flickering through the moisture. Orange flame emanating from a car fire dances over the hood of another. The admittedly more limited environmental damage is an awesome sight to behold and imitating that feat using a different engine would likely result in a significant framerate drop — and that’s something that never occurred during my time with Crysis 2. The extent to which it’ll shatter your eyeballs cannot be emphasized enough. Put your Crysis 2 disc next to other HD showpieces like The Dark Knight and Planet Earth on Blu-Ray.

Your, erm… earballs, aren’t going to miss out on the high-end geekfest that is Crysis 2 either. The 5.1 mix is excellent, providing extremely accurate directional sound that is often overlooked in video games. Shots and explosions blast from all sides as the iconic nanosuit’s AI blurts out warnings — all the while a solid (but sadly forgettable) score fills in the background.

While the focal point of Crysis 2 is obviously the audiovisual magic show, there’s an actual game beneath all those good looks. Similar to recent titles like Splinter Cell: Conviction and Batman: Arkham Asylum, the attitude frequently encouraged by Crysis 2 is that of a hunter on the prowl. Though the level design is decidedly more focused than the original title or the spin-off, Crysis: Warhead, each larger area in the game provides several avenues by which you can advance. Using the visor function of the suit gives hints to the locations of weapon stashes, alternate routes, or tactical positions in the field of battle. It’s helpful if you’d prefer planning out an assault over the run-and-gun option, adding to that feeling of badassery when you pick off alien scum with a perfect synergized scheme.

Once those areas are traversed the game relies on corridors and tunnels that serve only to propel players forward. The level structure resembles looking from above at a chain lying flat on the ground: narrow and straight, wide and branching, then returning to the slimmer path. The problem lies within the transitions between levels, as each loading screen is preceded by either entering an enclosed space or your character, Alcatraz, getting slammed into unconsciousness by a heavy object. Story elements sometimes get lost or shuffled aside during these transitions and result in a feeling of confusion or uncertainty as to the direction of the otherwise intriguing narrative.

Checkpoints are few and far between, aided only by the fact that every time the mostly pathetic AI manages to get a lucky shot on you, the multiple routes present in each encounter allow for more exploration and trying new strategies upon revival. And then there’s the case of immersion-breaking glitches that are prominent in almost every combat sequence. Characters will stop moving entirely, the “because we need it in our game” car will flip over irreparably, or the melee button will become disabled. Then, when alien drop pods deploy from overhead aircraft and land on your head, you’ll get the unique and undocumented view of the battlefield from the underlying groundwater.

Almost every aspect of the single player game carries over into multiplayer, blemishes and all. There’s no clear storyline, aside from “Hey, here are men. Kill them,” which is as straightforward as it gets. Two factions from the campaign are represented, each equal in their nanosuit abilities — and that’s where the staggering challenge comes in. In the single player portion of Crysis 2 there’s no enemy that matches your skill set. Everyone in the multiplayer has exactly what you have and that’s quite a twist to come to terms with. You go invisible? They can too. Armor mode? Yep, that too. Super-speed long jump with an area-of-effect attack upon landing? You bet your ass.

After coming to terms with the sensory overload, the secondary mechanics of the multiplayer game are quite familiar. To a casual eye, the leveling and upgrade systems are indistinguishable from Call of Duty titles. Sure, going with the tried-and-true approach means players probably won’t stray if they enjoy the nanosuit mechanics, but it’s disappointing Crysis 2 isn’t trying to differentiate itself from the pack and seems content to just tag along.

Judging Crysis 2 from a purely technical vantage point is a simple task. There’s nothing else to compare it to. Aside from the glitching and a few jarring environmental textures, it’s flawless. The actual game part is where things get trickier. While nanosuit functionality has been improved, the level design focused, and the alien enemies now worthy opponents, the checkpoint issues and story oddities make Crysis 2 a tough sell. That’s not even to mention the (mostly) copycat multiplayer structure. It’s a solid step forward for the Crysis franchise, but a monumental step for CryEngine and Crytek.

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Things We Liked: Remarkable graphical accomplishment. Much refined nanosuit gameplay. Interesting narrative with a great final twist.

Things We Disliked: Random and prevalent glitches. Multiplayer mode is nothing new. Checkpoint irregularities and shoddy level transitions.

Target Audience: HD-ophiles. Shooter fans looking for a strategic murder romp. Those who can tolerate a good (but flawed) story.

(Crysis 2 – Developer: Crytek. Publisher: Electronic Arts. Available for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 – PC version reviewed. Unfamiliar with CFD!’s review system? Read our newly revised explanation here.)