Crysis Warhead, the latest high-end shooter from EA and Cryotek, is a great game, but it's simply too short. If you're one of those who play such games until their eyes bleed, eager to finish the single player campaign, then you surely know that Crysis Warhead's single player campaign can be easily beaten in one day's worth of gaming. You can even start another game once you finish it, and get a good night's rest, after all that!

Crysis Wars is the multiplayer component of Crysis Warhead, and despite the fact it was released about seven months ago, it can still bring good news to gamers all over the world! What kind of news? Well, what about a Crysis Wars free trial week, huh? :)
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To take advantage of this, you first have to download the Crysis Wars trial and the 1.4 patch. Both of them are available all over the Internet, so just pick your favorite game downloads site. A little warning - the client has about 5.6GB, and the patch has "only" 434MB, so I hope you're having a fast connection...

Once you downloaded the files and installed the game, run the patch, and go to MyCrysis.com to get your account. Once you do that, you'll receive the CD key to use to get your week of Crysis War free trial...or what's left of it, since this started about a day ago. Anyway, this comes just in time for the weekend, don't you think? :)

In close combat, having more than just your bare fists can make the difference between kicking some ass or having yours kicked, but I don't want to think about the outcome of a fight when brass knuckles are being used... Anyway, Godfather 2 is a pretty violent game, and some of the execution styles in it are a bit sick, to put it lightly. Anyway, I don't want to spoil any of the surprises awaiting in Godfather 2, apart from the brass knuckles part.

What about the brass knuckles? Those who were lucky enough to receive a review copy of the Godfather 2 game also got a set of brass knuckles, as you can see in the image above. So far, so good - everyone needs a bit of help to come up with some kick ass review, right? There's only a minor problem - one of those who got the review copies ended up with a illegal item in possession!
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Dennis McCauley, writer for Game Politics and the Philadelphia Inquirer, said "In fact, the kit is so cleverly detailed that I almost hate to point out that one other included item—a set of brass knuckles—is illegal in Pennsylvania, where GP is based."

Even more, the kit also included a wire, apparently for choking people, and a cigar. Damn, that's cool...illegal. We just invented a new word - coo(i)llegal!

Godfather 2, EA's last creation, is scheduled for release in Europe tomorrow, but I can tell you that this game, despite its obvious drawbacks, like the outdated graphics, will surely draw a lot of attention. In fact, it's already doin' it, and the brass knuckles are a good way of doing that. Let's just hope nobody ends up in jail for receiving the package...

I am getting old, that's obvious. Not for you, but to myself. No, it's not the shape I'm in, it's simply one gamer's thing - the list of games "to play" is getting longer with each week, and the worst part of it all is that, from time to time, I discover old games that I shouldn't have missed. That's exactly what happened this time, when F.E.A.R. 2 made me remember that I should have found some time since 2005 to finish at least the first F.E.A.R game, not to mention the two addons that followed...

Since I mentioned the original and the addons, you may want to take a look at the PlayerzBlog review of F.E.A.R. - Perseus Mandate. I know a review won't be able to replace the actual gaming experience, but at least that one should get you in the mood for F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, although this hot PC game managed to completely "forget" what happened in the two addons of the original, coming up with a storyline that may not bring a lot of happiness to those who really got into the game's universe.

OK, so let's say this - I got my F.E.A.R. 2 copy as soon as I was able to grab it, and I so I found myself inside a universe where a good knowledge of the past events should have been useful. Fortunately, it would have been nice to know more about the story in F.E.A.R., but that's not necessary to finish the game we're going to talk about today. Pheew!

Before moving on, I have to warn you that, if you have something against gore, you shouldn't play this game. Really, if you disable the gory parts from the settings, you miss a lot. The good part is that, no matter what you do, those few scary scenes when Alma comes to haunt you won't go away, but...just remember what I said - be sure to leave all the gory details enabled, all right?

Fortunately, F.E.A.R. 2 is more than just a shooter. If it was only a shooter, I wouldn't have been really impressed, because the F.E.A.R. 2 shooter game is an average shooter, with highs and lows, but what really makes the game stand out of the crowd, at least for me, is the F.E.A.R. 2 horror movie that comes in the same package...just don't look for a movie on the DVD, you get inside it once you fire up the game!


Story

Story...damn, the story! Yes, my friends, the story is one of those you can love and hate at the same time, because it could have been awesome. Unfortunately, it's not quite awesome. Some F.E.A.R. fans claim that, compared to the original, the story in F.E.A.R. 2 really sucks. To me, this is only one of those typical horror movie plots that keeps you in tension for most of the time, but it only gets really high for a few moments, and the ending makes you want to break the TV - or computer monitor, in this case.

I am not going into spoilers' realm here, so I will only give you a vague description of the story. As I said earlier, the story in F.E.A.R. 2 has nothing to do with what happened in the two addons, F.E.A.R. Extraction Point and F.E.A.R. Perseus Mandate, since it starts exactly where F.E.A.R.: First Encounter Assault Recon left off, more or less.

That means the creepy psychic entity known as Alma is extremely angry after the gigantic explosion that obviously failed to destroy her at the end of the first game. How could we have a new game, if Alma disappears at the end of the first one, huh?


This time, your character has a name - you're Michael Becket, a Delta Force military operative assigned to arrest Genevieve Aristide, but we're talking about more than just a soldier here, since Becket has paranormal abilities like Point Man had in the first game. These abilities can help you from time to time, but they also make Alma develop a special "passion" for you.

Unfortunately, you get no clue on Genevieve Aristide, and the references to Alma's past are sketchy, if I can put it this way. On the other hand, characters could have been developed nicely during this game, but they're not. This makes me think about horror movies again, where characters develop relationships just enough for one to feel the unstoppable need to look for the other after he disappears, or go berserk when the companion he met a few hours ago got killed.


Obviously, this is a game to experience with your lights off, speakers with volume pushed to the max, or using your favorite headphones - even better. Here and then, tension gets really high, and surprises like Snake Fist's beheading don't come too often, but when they do...they make your time with F.E.A.R. 2 worth the price!


In the end, it doesn't really matter if you like computer games or not, because the story in F.E.A.R. 2 will surely make you push your way forward through the levels, and since I've been able to finish it pretty easy, on average difficulty, I guess most beginners should be able to do the same. Just be sure that your enemies can be pretty smart, so don't play like you're immortal - F.E.A.R. 2 may show you this more than just once...


Gameplay

I will never complain about close quarters combat scenes where I am asked to press various keys to defeat my enemy. Really, and you want to know why? Probably the most annoying parts in F.E.A.R. 2 were those two face to face encounters, if I recall it well, when I had to click my way through. How's that possible?


Well, think about this - Colonel Vanek kicks you down, and then you have to right click as fast as possible to rise up. Then, you have to click some more to point the gun to his head, but you may end up down once again, so you will have to click as fast as possible again, rise, and click some more. With this occasion, I discovered that using my index finger on the right mouse button is safest way to success, although it seems pretty lame.


Anyway, these were the most frustrating parts, because if we leave these close encounters aside, you will usually have enough ammo at your disposal to go through the game pretty easy, as long as you don't simply push forward like Rambo.
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Think about these as my personal hints - try to always have your back to a wall, and as soon as you see some enemies, use the slow-motion capability to fill them with lead faster than they can do that to yourself! Oh, yeah - and don't forget to reload as soon as you get out of a fight!



Shooting around in slo-mo can be quite fun, especially seeing heads spinning through the air or limbs flying all over, but when you get to enter a Powered Armor Unit, then the real fun begins! Unfortunately, during the single player campaign, you won't get to do this too often. In fact, there are only two such opportunities, if I recall it well, but they are both great!



The mech riding parts of the game allow you to use the Thermal Vision of the Powered Armor, which is great, but I wasn't really overwhelmed by the way rockets fly out of your launchers. Anyway, the cannons are pretty accurate, and a skilled player in such a mechanical beast can keep the enemy in chess for entire rounds in a multiplayer game.



OK, so we have slo-mo combat with smart enemies, as well as a lot of interesting encounters in single player mode(oh, yeah, one more thing - once you get the rocket launcher during the campaign, don't you ever let it down, it may make your life much easier in a few situations!), a bunch of monsters to kill, apart from the usual troops you will stumble upon, and I won't tell you anything else about that, because I have to say just a bit more about the multiplayer part of the game...


...and this multiplayer part could have been great, but it's not. The most interesting multiplayer game mode is, for me, Armored Front, where you fight with your team to control some key points, and each team can use one Powered Armor Unit. So far, so good, but there are only three maps available for this mode, and I think the makers of this game should add more to the multiplayer part, especially since I think a Team Deathmatch or simply Deathmatch using mechs would be absolutely awesome!

I think I'll give my F.E.A.R. 2 copy to some kid and buy Quake 4, especially since I missed it when it came out. There's always time for some intense multiplayer action, and if there's no time, we'll make it!

No, no, that's not the conclusion, it was just a thought, don't worry! In case you were wondering about the weapons, it's enough to say there are enough of them to make your favorite weapon a pretty tough choice, especially in multiplayer games, although the assault rifle seems to be a great one, as long as you don't have to face a mech, or snipers located pretty far.

These being said, I am sure I missed something, but now all I can add is this: I don't know about others, but I really didn't find the time to get bored during those hours that I had to spend to get to the finish of the game(10-12 hours in all, I guess, I didn't keep track of it). Now, let's talk a little about sound, graphics, and some technical mumbo-jumbo, shall we?


Sound & Graphics

As I was saying, you have to play the game in darkness, with volume pushed to the max. Nevermind the neighbors, as long as the cops won't be knocking at your door, everything should be fine. Just be sure not to scare your gramma to death, and also be sure to check your heart before getting into F.E.A.R. 2!

If you're wondering about the system requirements, I guess it should be enough to say I played the game with everything pushed to the max on my computer, and 2XFSAA/8XAAF - AMD X2 4000+@2.4GHz processor, 2 GB of DDR2 memory, 256 MB DDR3 X1950 Pro video card, and it moved really great, apart from those moments when the automatic saves made it all hang on for a few moments.

Oh, yeah, I played at 1280X1024 resolution, so you may need a pretty powerful computer to play F.E.A.R. 2 maxxed out on a large monitor, but I am sure most mid-range cards of the moment can handle this game well.

When talking about the graphics, I have to bow to those who worked on the flashback parts and those close encounters with Alma, because most of them look simply astonishing. Unfortunately, I can't say the same about some of the building interiors, where some graphics seem to be really outdated. Fortunately, you get to shoot some enemies there, too, and once you start seeing blood and bullet traces in slo-mo...who cares about anything else? Not me!

Some repetitive elements can be found here and there(the only bug I managed to spot can be seen in the image above), but I wasn't really bothered by them. As you get closer to the end of the single player story, you'll experience some great scenes. What's you favorite? Drop a comment at the end, don't be shy!


These being said, I guess all there is left to do is listen, and watch carefully. You never know what could be lurking in the darkness...but I know what's next for us now: the conclusions!


Conclusions

F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin works great, and I never had some crash to desktop or any other similar issue. While some reviewers claim it gets boring from time to time, I didn't manage to get bored. Maybe they shouldn't try to finish it all in a single gaming session...

All in all, this is a game you shouldn't miss. It doesn't matter if you like horror movies or not, and it doesn't matter if you played the first F.E.A.R. game or not. If you want to know more about the story, just be sure to look for intel items once you've taken out all available threats.

I don't want to get into the story more than just saying that this game's end is worst I've seen since Assassins' Creed. On the other hand, is a decent ending for a horror movie, leaving a lot of room to develop the next episode, so there's a hot and a cold side of the story. Some like it hot, some like it cold, so...

...here you have my ratings:

Story: 7/10 (the ending killed the rest of it, and the characters could have been developed much better)
Graphics: 9/10 (some interiors looking pretty old, but great overall graphics)
Sound: 9/10
Gameplay: 8/10
Originality: 6/10
Tilt Factor: 9/10 (sometimes you can really fall off your chair!)
Multiplayer: 6/10 (with a well done update, it could get much, much better)
Overall: 8/10

This should be all of it. Just be sure you won't get this game for some 12 years old... because it has a lot of dirty language, dismembered people, you'll even get to see Alma naked, and if you take away the gory parts, it becomes really sad. Come on, why remove gore, WHY?

Anyway, I am not going to start a crusade for video game gory details. If you can't stand gore and flying limbs, go play Solitaire or Chessmaster! At least the last one can give you a serious run for the money...

...but if we get back to F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, you should remember this: blood&gore are not making the game better, they just make it a bit more complete. Unfortunately for perfectionists and hardcore F.E.A.R. fans, it just may miss its target, but it also gets really close to it, in my opinion. I only hope F.E.A.R. 3 will make justice for anyone.

What if...what if F.E.A.R. 3 will allow you to play as Alma's child? Whatever that child will become, I have no idea. Switching sides could really be an interesting experience. If you have any ideas, drop them below, because this is where we part ways. I hope you enjoyed this review - and don't fear F.E.A.R., it's just a game! ;)