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Far Cry Instincts Predator Review
Jon Wilcox
07/04/2006
Jack Carver makes his Xbox 360 debut from the islands and archipelagos of Micronesia...
Following some delay, and the cancellation of a PlayStation2 version, Far Cry: Instincts was finally released at the end of September 2005 on Xbox. Unveiling the story of ex-Navy man Jack Carver as he tries to escape from the Jacutan archipelago in Micronesia, the game was a showcase for how good a current-gen title could look, even if the enemy AI was a bit dodgy from time to time. What made Instincts unique was that it featured a number of 'Feral' abilities that unlocked themselves as the game progressed, enabling Carver to see in the dark, jump long distances, and tear enemies to shreds. Six months on and Ubisoft have not only decided to release an 'expansion pack' for the Xbox, they've also touched up the original Instincts and packaged it (along with the expansion, 'Evolutions') for Xbox 360 as Far Cry Instincts: Predator.
Allowing players to experience the story of Carver chronologically, Predator initially locks out the new Evolution storyline, instead forcing players to complete the Instincts adventure. As we've said for those unfamiliar with the storyline of the original Far Cry: Instincts, players follow the adventure of Jack Carver on the Micronesian archipelago of Jacutan. Initially out to find a 'journalist' who hired his jet ski just before a couple of mercenary owned gunships destroyed his fishing boat, Carver becomes entangled in a story of CIA operations and a serum developed by a Dr. Krieger that reawakens some of the more primal instincts within humans.
Opening out the claustrophobically renowned genre of first-person shooters and setting the action on a tropical island obviously began in the PC original Far Cry title, and the developers have continued in that same vein in both Instincts and Evolution. It's an almost idyllic setting that would be '...paradise if it wasn't for the armed pirates...', a line of dialogue from Carver that couldn't be more accurate. That's what Far Cry is renowned for: golden beaches, tropical plants, realistic water effects...and guns. Of course, all that remains in Predator, with the game undoubtedly featuring the most stunning looking water in a videogame. Forget what other developers have described as realistic, in Far Cry Instincts: Predator, the water looks good enough to swim in - and I don't mean playing as Carver. Waves, and lighting effects make the seas surrounding the two island chains in the game stunning to look at; just make sure that you don't get distracted enough to miss the odd gun barrel pointed at you.
As you'd expect in a first-person title, the guns of Far Cry form an important part of the gameplay, with pistols (both silenced and non-silenced), sub-machine guns, and sniper rifles all playing a part. The game also features independent dual-wielding capabilities although it's only on a like-for-like basis, and not the pick 'n' mix pistol and machine gun of other FPS titles such as Halo 2. Despite the weapons continuing to feel powerful, there remains the feeling of lightness, and that even the larger guns are as light as a feather and easier to manoeuvre with. In addition to the ballistic weapons, Jack also has access to a knife, which is particularly handy for stabbing someone in the back, and traps that he can lure enemies into with an everlasting supply of stones to throw at them.
Of course the real niche of the Far Cry Instincts series is Jack's feral abilities, which allow him to see in the dark, follow the scent of enemies (and thereby follow a trail to them), jump higher and run faster, and perform a melee attack with vicious predatory precision - sometimes. Although it can be argued that the melee feral attack is a tad over-powerful, especially with its one-hit kill capability, the aiming on the ability can be loose at times, making it frustrating when it does go wrong. Reliant on a replenishing source of adrenaline, these skills help Carver to survive in both titles, although they only emerge after a couple of hours in the original Instincts campaign. In Evolution, Carver can also receive adrenaline boosts from a certain plant found on the island, which appears far too frequently for it not to impact on the difficulty of the game on occasion.
Speaking of Evolution, the second adventure is no pushover; initially locked out until players complete the Instincts storyline, it launches players right into the thick of the action as they take control once again of Jack Carver on another set of islands in Micronesia. Beginning with a race across a dirt path in the back of a gun-mounted 4x4 with a weapons dealer called Kade, Carver goes back to retell the story of how he came to be in that situation. Not entirely in flashback, in fact only the first couple of hours are, Evolution offers a real challenge for Far Cry veterans though the length of the campaign is shorter than the original Instincts story at about half the length. On occasion however this challenge does spill over into frustrating gameplay, with Feral Attacks especially affected with touch 'n' go effectiveness. Since Evolutions begins after the events on the Jacutan Archipelago, Carver still has access to his primal senses, which are put to good use from the off. Set piece stand-offs (including one where Carver defends Kade whilst she tries to hot-wire a vehicle) raise the tension levels of the game, although for the most part the gameplay is more focused on travelling across the islands to complete objectives, and killing pirates along the way.
As with the first Instincts campaign, vehicles play an important part in moving around the various islands in Evolution with jet skis and gun-mounted craft available to cross the waterways, or quad-bikes and 4x4s for moving across the land. Hang-gliders of course feature in the game, together with that memorable sequence of Carver gliding through a huge gorge in the Jactuan. More often or not however these are introduced as set-piece chase sequences, especially the land vehicles, which is an effect of the game losing the PC Far Cry's open-world gameplay. A criticism of the Xbox Instincts release was the less than fluid control system for the vehicles, especially so when players tried to manoeuvre a gun into the correct direction. It would have been a bit much to expect Ubisoft to refine the system as a whole, but it's something that does have to be addressed ahead of any future Far Cry titles.
Ubisoft has boosted the level of AI in the game, which is definitely noticeable compared to the Xbox version from last year. Enemies are much more tempted to follow a sound, enabling gamers to put the much maligned trap system to better use, although their general intelligence remains a tad floundered. Sometimes they won't see you when you're standing next to them, whilst rather more annoyingly, they will see you when you're prone in thick grass fifty metres away.
For all the good that Ubisoft has achieved in making the water look nothing short of stunning, there are also a number of disappointments in terms of Predator's visuals, not least regarding the shadows. Remaining firmly in the current-gen, the raggedy-edged shapes really stand out compared to true next-gen titles with enabled soft shadows. Bloom-lighting and other HDR techniques are used in the game, but they remain a thin layer of gloss in the game. Furthermore, the rag doll physics of the enemies and their vehicles does get a little 'bizarre' at times with bodies flailing or running off cliffs to dodge a grenade, comedic but silly, and the odd 4x4 missing its landing spot and exploding. Both textures and character models look decidedly current-gen, and betray the game's roots; hopefully a true next-gen Far Cry will be on the cards following Ubisoft's acquisition of the IP in the last couple of weeks.
Away from the two campaigns, Predator features the multiplayer maps from Instincts, together with new maps based on the new Evolution islands. The standard fare of gametypes included in the Xbox version of the game make their reappearance in Predator, including Chaos (Deathmatch), Predator, and Capture the Sample (Capture the Flag). In addition however is the new Seek and Secure mode, which anyone who's played King of the Hill gametypes will recognise. Up to sixteen players will be able to take part on Xbox Live, or if you have enough lucky friends, via System Link, and fight it out in the jungles, ruins, and fishing villages created in the game. Over twenty maps are available to play, though the Map Editor in the game will allow gamers to once more express and share their own creativity. It's difficult to see gamers going out to buy Predator for its multiplayer options, especially since for the most part the gametypes replicate the same old FPS standards. The Map Editor, which has seen further additions to the objects available to use (such as always fun zip lines) may be appealing to those who like to dabble in map modding on their PCs.
