Crysis: Warhead Review

September 18, 6:01 PMPC Game ExaminerBryan Edge-Salois

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Stuff blows up real pretty in Crysis: Warhead.

If you liked Crysis, you'll love Crysis: Warhead.

It's pretty much more of the same, with better pacing, better visuals, better performance, and plenty of new weapons and tweaks. Although short, it's virtually superior to its predecessor in every way. If you liked Crysis, buy this game - period.

The story is the same as Crysis, but this time it's told from the perspective of Seargant Sykes ("Psycho"). In Crysis, Psycho spent his time on the other side of the island from the original game's protagonist (Nomad).

More of the same, but all better
Warhead's strengths are the same as Crysis, but it improves on virtually all of them.

1. The vehicles are easier and more fun to control
2. Performance on the PC version is faster (now you just need a 'good' gaming rig and not a 'godlike' gaming rig to run the game well.)
3. The overall pacing of the action is better

Like Crysis, it's Warhead's tactical freedom and sandbox-style missions that make it so fun -- it's the ultimate tactical playground. Your nano-suit's abilities (super speed, strength, armor, and stealth) and a large array of guns and explosives (which boasts quite a few new additions in Warhead) provide countless tactical combinations--and it's fun to try different tactics from mission to mission. (For example, I tend to like the cloaked sneak and snipe/hit and run approach, but every once in a while I like to cut loose--turn on the super strength, leap into a horde of enemies, and lay the smack down with twin machine pistols.)

Warhead's pacing is also definitely better than the original. You'll routinely face scores of enemies from all directions in frenetic firefights, fighting in enemy camps, the jungle, and beach heads. The action pauses just enough to give you a breather (and lower your heart rate) now and again before it starts again with the next objective. Various vehicle-based missions also help break things up, and improved vehicle controls make vehicle missions more fun than those in Crysis. (Vehicles blow up real pretty too.)

Crysis: Warhead is short at about 6-8 hours of play, but it's a great ride, and you might want to ride it more than once just to try out different tactics. And once you've finished with the single-player game, there's plenty of new multi-player goodness to keep you happy. For $30, you really do get 'Maximum Game'.