Crysis Maximum Edition
The Crysis Maximum Edition Nanosuit allows for some very interesting augments for a first person shooter
Can you believe that the first Crysis game was released in 2007, nearly 4 years ago? I bought that game at launch, and its expansion, Crysis: Warhead, not long after its release in 2008 but never actually played through either of the games. I finally got around to beating both Crysis and its expansion, Crysis: Warhead, in the last week so I can prepare to dive into Crysis 2. For those that don’t know, Crysis retails for $29.99, its expansion, Crysis: Warhead, retails for $19.99, and the collection that consists of both the original game and its expansion is called the Crysis: Maximum Edition and retails for $39.99. I’ll review both games collectively since at this point you might as well get the Maximum Edition if you want to experience everything from the first Crysis. Sadly, Crysis and its expansion are PC only.
Crysis Maximum Edition
My favorite aspect of the Crysis franchise is the Nanosuit. Unlike traditional FPS games where you’re a typical soldier that shoots his way through a campaign, in Crysis you’re more of a “super soldier” that wears a bodysuit that allows for various enhancements. Only one enhancement can be activated at a time: you can turn on Cloak for stealth, Speed to run super fast, Armour to increase defense and regenerated your shield quicker, and finally, Strength, which allows you to jump higher, kill enemies in one punch, or throw objects super far (and knock enemies out). In short, the suit makes you feel like you’re playing a shooter but as a super hero. The difficulty is balanced through the depletion of the suit’s overall energy whenever a special power is engaged but the suit’s energy refills when not in use. It’s still tons of fun to run quickly up to an enemy, turn on Strength, and just knock them out in one punch. It really does not get old.
Crysis Maximum Edition
The storyline and premise for the main game is pretty interesting too. The entire game basically takes place in North Korea, and it’s a pretty open map for you to navigate through jungles while taking out North Korean soldiers in the first half of the game. But what makes the game more interesting is the traces of alien technology you begin discovering, and how the North Koreans are trying to harness the technology. In the second half of the game, the aliens bust loose and it really leads up to same crazy battles and an epic ending that I don’t want to spoil.
Crysis Maximum Edition
Both Crysis and Crysis: Warhead have their own multiplayer; Crysis’s multiplayer is integrated into the game itself while Crysis: Warhead ships with its multiplayer on a separate disc called Crysis: Wars. I briefly tried out the multiplayer in Crysis and found it to be pretty interesting – 32 player matches with huge maps and lots of objectives. It almost felt like a real-time strategy game but played from a FPS perspective with both sides trying to capture different buildings in order to unlock technology and vehicles to use. I didn’t bother with installing Crysis: Wars however; I figured it was more of the same as to what I experienced in Crysis and I am more in a hurry at this point to jump into Crysis 2 multiplayer. But even in this day and age, people are still playing the original Crysis multiplayer so it’s definitely worth checking out if you enjoy a bit more strategy in your online shooters.
Crysis Maximum Edition
The Lows
Even today on what I consider a decent PC (I run Starcraft II 1280×1024 on high settings with no problems), Crysis, a 4 year old game, can only give me a steady framerate in the 20′s at 1024×768 on the lowest settings. Crazy! If you don’t have a decent PC with a relatively modern graphics card, you will probably not be able to experience Crysis.
Crysis: Warhead, the standalone expansion, is perhaps the weakest aspect of the collection. Crysis: Warhead clocks in at at about four hours – about half (or less than half) the length of the main game. In the Crysis game, you played the role of Nomad, and made your way across the island and watched the storyline unfold. Crysis: Warhead puts you in the shoes of Nomad’s squadmate, Psycho, another Nanosuit equipped supersoldier that comes and goes to help out Nomad in the main game. In Crysis: Warhead, you experience a shortened version of the main game across 7 levels, with a couple missions up front taking on the Koreans, and then some of the latter missions taking on the aliens once they bust forth. If not for its meaty multiplayer component, Crysis: Warhead’s price tag is too high for how short the campaign is. It’s worth checking out if you definitely need more Crysis, but because it doesn’t really add anything to the story, it is far from necessary to play.
Crysis Maximum Edition
Crysis: Warhead provides a shortened Crysis campaign from a different perspective
Final Thoughts
The original Crysis game was quite the marvel when it was released back in 2007, and even by today’s standards, it still holds up very well. The unique gameplay features introduced by the Nanosuit still are unmatched today, and the open levels of North Korea provide for a nice backdrop to an enjoyable campaign. The first Crysis, if your PC can run it, is still worth playing through today if you’ve still yet to experience it.
The Crysis: Warhead expansion falls flat compared to the main game; it doesn’t really quite introduce much in terms of storyline, gameplay elements, and overall does not feel necessary at all. However, having said that, it’s still enjoyable if you want more Crysis; it just ends a lot quicker than the main game. Crysis: Maximum Edition as a whole well recommended, but if you had the choice to pick up just Crysis at less than half the price of the Maximum Edition, I’d recommend skipping out on Warhead.
Crysis Maximum Edition PC Game Video Trailer
[youtube]http://youtu.be/-eKE_t7CcD4[/youtube]
Crysis Maximum Edition PC Game System Requirements
OS – Windows XP or Windows Vista /Processor – Single core 2.8 GHz or faster (XP) or 3.2 GHz or faster* (Vista) / Memory – 1.0 GB RAM (XP) or 1.5 GB RAM (Vista) / Video Card –256 MB** / Hard Drive – 12GB / Sound Card – DirectX 9.0c compatible
Install Help Crysis Maximum Edition
Burn or Mount ISO Image using Power iso
