Far Cry Vengence Review.

Introduction:
I’m not new to FPS games at all and have played through plenty of PC and console FPS’s like Doom (PC), Unreal (PC), Exhumed (Saturn) Duke Nukem 3D (PC/Saturn), Far Cry (PC, XBOX & XBOX360) Halo 1 & 2 (XBOX) Metroid Prime 1, 2 and Hunter (Gamecube/DS).
When I first saw the Wii’s controller I always wondered how an FPS would work with this unique scheme, now I’ve found out.

Graphics:
FarCry is a game I’m familiar with on 3 different systems so far, so I’m not new to the CryTek engine or its graphical capabilities. It was one of the most beautiful game engines when released and still to this day has some impressive visuals. It looked good on the XBOX but thanks to a quick port apart from being in high definition it didn’t seem to push the 360, so what have Ubisoft done for the Wii?

The Wii version is not for those who like eye candy. It’s sad to say but like others have said, this game is behind last gen visually. Gone is the beautiful pixel shaded water of the CryTek engine. Gone are the beautiful shadows, textures and high quality foliage. What are Wii users left with? A game that regularly slows down, a game that likes blurry textures and ugly, blocky shadows which seem to come from nowhere! Overall, a game that looks worse than most last gen games.
Where did it go wrong Ubi? Was it rushed? Is the Wii not powerful enough? Whatever the reason, it is a shame and I believe that the Wii should be able to do better than this.

Gameplay:
One of the things that can have a massive impact on how a game plays is the AI. Well, the guys on these exotic islands have some of the worst AI I’ve seen. If you were standing next to a comrade, only for him to be gunned down would you stand there staring into space? These guys do! The AI is basic at best, which is a shame, with the visuals at an all time low, you’d hope all that wasted processing power was calculating some pretty hefty AI to help make up for that fact.
Now, onto the vehicles. When I first played, I couldn’t steer the Jeep that I got in for love nor money. I was hitting trees and generally getting nowhere fast until I worked out something in the controls, which I’ll share with you soon, to make it a ton easier.
Other gameplay mechanics are simple things like, 3 suicidal guys standing in front of a stack of logs, just waiting for you to shoot the support away, sending the wood flying towards them!

Sound:
I haven’t got a high end sound system, nor am I an audiophile so I’m probably not the best to comment on sound. The weapons sound good and the explosions rumble my sub. There are some oddities tho. Music skipping part way through like a stuttering CD and as the guys you’re shooting at utter the same few sentences, sometimes the sound is just cut before they stop speaking. Very unnatural and it can be slightly off-putting.

Controls:
I’ve saved this for last for a reason. Nintendo made FPS’s playable on a hand held with Metroid Prime and the DS’s touch screen and they have given FPS’s precision control with the Wiimote and nunchuck.
Ubisoft have done a fantastic job with the controls, the precision is amazing. When I first played it was disorienting but within no time I was straifing around people, shooting at them all over the screen and having a great time doing so.
Driving was a pain in the beginning, as you steered you seemed to look around and never knew what way you were going. Solution? Ubi have added the option to lock your view and still be able to move the cross-hair around by holding the A button and it also works whilst your on foot. These controls for me were very reminiscent of Goldeneye, but instead of aiming whilst still you can still move around.
Zooming seemed odd but you get used to it, quickly push the Wiimote forward to zoom in and do the same to zoom back out. To throw a grenade, hold the Z button on the nunchuck and literally throw them by throwing your hand forward!
One thing I would have liked is a left handed set-up. I’ve accidentally thrown a hand grenade instead of firing because on a normal gamepad the trigger in the right hand side is normally the fire button which confuses me sometimes! It’s a right handed world and I’ll just have to adjust.

Conclusion:
Despite the graphics, sloppy AI and choppy sound I’ve fallen in love with my first FPS experiences on the Wii. It’s like an EXTREMELY ugly girlfriend who is fantastic in bed. You wont what to show it off to your friends, but you will have fun playing it on your own!

6/10

Chaz.