Far Cry 2

I had always heard ooh's and aah's about the "pretty" games such as Crysis and Far Cry, but I had never really given them a shot. So when trailers for Far Cry 2 began popping up around my internet stomping grounds, I didn't pay them much attention.

And then I watched the below trailer, and I thought hmm that looks cool, but there's no way the game engine can handle true-to-life water ripples, fire which can burn down entire towns, AND have all the elements of a great first-person-shooter ON XBOX360, PS3, AND PC.



But I was wrong. The game engine holds up fine- no sputtering or lagging (on 360). Its amazing: The water DOES move in a life-like manner. A small brush fire can soon grow into a full-fledged forest fire in a matter of seconds. The 1st person shooting is fluid, much like Battlefield 2 or Call of Duty 4. And the best part is that it is free-roam, like Grand Theft Auto. Don't want to go to point A? Fine! Go the completely opposite direction to point C or D and come back later.

Also, the combat is different from anything I've ever seen before. Here's a brief example:
My 1st mission was to kill 2 men in a camp. (Cliche shooting game at its best.) So, slightly disgusted with the STALKER-like aspect of the game (being told to go somewhere, going there and doing the task, then going back to get paid), I embarked toward my goal. Only once I got there, I decided to try to bend the rules of the game.
The small camp was next to a field of corn or weed or something flammable, so I lit the field on fire. As the blaze grew larger and larger, I ran around to the opposite side of the camp, flanking the 2 men. The beautiful thing was, my 2 targets were completely focused on the approaching wall of fire, so I was able to do my dirty work almost instantly and without hardly and return fire.

Again; this was only after a few minutes of gameplay, so I can't wait until I have time to put more time into it.