Walkthrough Wednesday: Crysis 2

Crysis 2 has been dominating a good chunk of our free time as we work our way through the remarkably detailed campaign. Few things are more fun than killing aliens in a post-invasion NYC, right?

Well, this week’s Walkthrough Wednesday will make the process even easier, as we’ve compiled some of the best guides to this game to help you on your way towards success.

Single-Player Campaign

While Crysis 2 isn’t exactly a true sandbox game like the Grand Theft Auto titles, it features a fairly immersive environment and it’s entirely possible to get a little lost trying to navigate your way through certain sections of the city. GameFront has put together a very impressive walkthrough which features a mix of text and video. It isn’t totally complete yet, but they’ve been updating it frequently, and it may be the most thorough walkthrough for this game that you’ll find.

Video Games Blogger have also been working on a nice series of video walkthroughs that should be a helpful resource to quickly check if you’re ever stuck on a certain section of the game. Crysis 2 is the kind of game which encourages players to adopt different strategies for different situations, so it is smart to check as many walkthroughs as possible to see the various approaches people have taken.

UPDATE: Thanks to commenter Mike Nelson for pointing out that the videos were not created by Video Games Blogger, but rather have actually been embedded from TheMediaCows Yotube page.

Multiplayer Guides

So far, we’re not sure how we feel about the multiplayer aspect of Crysis 2. Sure, it’s cool that you can attack enemies while cloaked–we can’t think of another game that offers that feature–but they can do the same to you, and it’s frustrating to wander through a map with no idea if there’s an invisible enemy right next to you.

However, we recommend that everyone try the multiplayer mode out and see how they like it anyway. Segment Next has put together a nice class guide that will help you decide whether you want to be a sniper, gunner, etc.

Of course one of the struggles that we all face when we’re new to a game’s multiplayer mode is getting acquainted with the various maps that you’ll encounter when playing. Gaming 4 Eva has a series of videos that gives you a nice overview of each major map; if you haven’t tried the multiplayer mode yet, we recommend checking those videos out, as they will definitely make things easier for you.

Weapons

Crysis 2, despite its more ambitious characteristics, is still a good ‘ol-fashioned FPS at heart, so you’ll have plenty of weapons to choose from as you play through the game. In our Noob Guide we made some suggestions regarding what types of guns you should carry on you, but this is one of those games where everyone will have their own preference.

Thankfully, there’s a Crysis wiki which has a full list and description of all the major weapons. Give it a look and see what sounds interesting.

Achievements

Most games feature “achievements” these days, and Crysis 2 is certainly no different. XBox360Achievements.org has a complete list of the achievements you’ll complete over the course of the game. Nothing too interesting, but you might want to know.

Cheat Codes

There hasn’t been too much news regarding cheat codes for this game as of yet–we’ll likely come back and update this section when that kind of information develops–bu in the meantime, IGN has some interesting suggestions if you’re looking to play a fun minigame when you’re all finished with the campagin.

Our Take

• What’s New? While Crysis 2 may owe more than it’s willing to admit to the later sections of Half Life 2, it is a breath of fresh air when most good FPS games have been Call of Duty titles. There’s nothing wrong with that franchise, we love it, but we also love variety, and Crysis 2 offers a unique gaming experience that makes it stand out from the crowd.
• Replay Value: As we said, we’re not thrilled with the multiplayer side of things yet, but a common complaint about this game is that you need to level up a few times in the multiplayer mode before it bcesom enjoyable. At this point, it’s tough to tell whether Crysis 2 is the kind of game that will stay fun after you’ve finished the campaign a first time, but the world itself is so immersive that we wouldn’t be surprised if you’d want to make a return visit.
• Story: The story is fairly decent. It’s not the most original plot we’ve ever encountered, but we doubt you’ll care very much when you’re in the middle of a shootout in downtown New York.
• Getting Technical: yes, everything that’s been said about the Crysis 2 graphics is true: it is one of the best-looking games you’ve EVER seen. This is the kind of game designed with the hardcore tech-geeks in mind, the kind of game that justifies playing on a huge hi-def TV. It’s simply gorgeous.
• Overall: Crysis 2 is fantastic. If you’re a fan of the FPS genre, it certainly offers an amazing gameplay experience, but its ambitions allow it ti distinguish itself from the genre to a degree. You’ll have a blast.

So, have you been enjoying this game as much as we have?