OK, and now for the review i have been waiting to do......

What can i say about this game, aside that i believe it's about as close to perfection as a game can get...??? From the AI, the weapons, the amount of immersion, graphics, story, sound, everything in this game just oozes awesomeness.

This was a game that managed to draw a fine line between what people enjoyed and didnt. Either you absolutely hated it, or you loved it dearly, with no middleground. Most of the complaints revolved around the respawning checkpoints, which didnt bother me because, well, IT IS a shooter afterall. If you're playing a shooter and you're not shooting something, then it can get a little boring sometimes.

First on the discussion list is the story. Loosely based on the short book titled "Heart of Darkness," the story has the player hunting an arms dealer named The Jackal who supplies two rival factions with an armory to start, and continue waging war against each other. On your journey you aid both factions in search of information of the Jackal's whereabouts. Now, this isnt a story that unfolds like you initially think it will. Far Cry 3's story is very similar in context, but told in a more dude-bro lingo, while Far Cry 2 does so in a rich, yet immensly dark tone that will test what kind of man (or woman) you would become in this situation. Considering that you're thrown into a real-world senario in a fictional African country, the story is constantly unfolding without the player even knowing. Many games these days have taught us that the story is only told through dialogue or cutscenes, but this game has a story that unfolds with every bullet you fire, and every death you cause. It's a morailty tale that might give each player the insight as to who or what kind of person he or she is, or will become.

The gunplay is some of the best i've personally encountered in any game. From the sniper rifles, to the assault rifles, to my personal favorite, the 6P9 silenced Makarov, every gun feels rather unique in its own right. Each sniper rifle has a different characteristic, the 2 rocket launchers each perform differently, even (most of) the pistols perform differently. And, of course, everyone's favorite is unlockable very early in the game: the flare gun. Spreading fire was the key innovative feature in this game, and when done correctly is a very strategic tactic when taking on the numerous guardposts.

The AI is unscripted and acts accordingly to you. If you haven't engaged the targets, they talk amongst themselves. If they think someone is nearby, they will slowly approach the location of the disturbance. Also, your reputation determines how aggressively the AI will combat you. The lower your reputation is means the AI will hunt you down because they dont fear you. The higher the reputation is the more cautious they are, meaning they may find cover or try to flank you.

The graphics and sound seem very dated in 2015, but for it's time it was top notch. Some might argue that the graphics in Far Cry 2 are better overall than Far Cry 3. When you factor in small details like shadow resolution, texture quality, and Ambient Occlusion, Far Cry 2 does have the upper hand over 3.

Lastly, the immersion plays a pivotal role in this game. There is next to no regenerating health and health is restored using syringes or water bottles. Malaria can attack you at any given point, although as your symptoms improve the time between attacks increases. When very low on health your character performs a "surgical technique," in what is basically described as one of the coolest animations in a video game. Gruesome, sure. Cool??? You bet!

I've logged over 600 hours in this game on steam, and another 200+ on disk, and almost all invested in single player. I can't even describe why i keep coming back to this game so much. Maybe it has to do with the fact that this game allows my imagination to run wild in the combat senarios. Maybe because the story is that engaging. I don't know. What i do know is that since this game came out 6+ years ago, i've only found 1 other game like it, and it still doesn't hold a candle to this sheer brilliance.

Advice for new players reading this??? Give the game some time. Allow yourself to sink into the story and REALLY think about your every action and what it's doing to you. Study how every decision you make affects YOU, not your character, but YOU. And for the love of god, play with all the guns. There's only 31 guns (with DLC).

9.8/10