Far Cry 2

I've been playing Far Cry 2 for close to 24 hours on the hardest difficulty right off the bat. 

I move out of the stolen truck I picked up 2 Km ago from a military security check point.  I move quickly running across the open plain and slid into the taller grass.  Crouched close in to my target with guidance from my GPS and map.  Every so often I pull out my pistol and insure I'm alone as I creep up on my target.  The grass breaks away and I climb up a hill that looks out on to a lake and a small  village resting on stilts in the middle of the lake.  The weapons I brought with me were already chosen and purchased from the arms dealers 20 mins ago.  Nearby another set of weapons were waiting for me in transit cases at the closest safehouse I had unlocked on my way in.  With a silenced Dart Rifle, MP5 and 9mm pistol I start my assult on the village knowing full well my buddy is reaedy to pick me out of the fire if things go wrong.  With luck I won't alert anyone until I've already breathing down and if I can get away to the safe house I know a fresh serviacble assault rilfe, LMG and RPG are ready incase I need to convice anyone that following me was a bad idea.  3 seconds later some guard is looking around at his fallen buddy as I reload...

Gameplay
The controls on the 360 are slick and tight.  Simple classic FPS controls make the game that much more enjoyable.  With large portions of the game caught up in traversing the terrain getting bogged down with controls would have been another hurdle for people caught on the fence with this game.  The only negative comment was the incosistent "action button" command.  Sometime it would fail to pop up at the right place, making it hard to climb out of the water, picking up a discarded gun or switching from piloting the skiff to using the fore mounted MG.

The buddy rescue system is well done and easy to use.  Make friends, keep them alive and if you run into them tell them you are going out and you want a hand.  Once they arrive and pull your ass out of the fire, keep your eyes open.  They don't make the game easyer but they give you a second chance as long as you have a friend still alive.  As you work with these buddies from saving your bacon to helping them out with a job you build a connection with them.  I hated to lose one since most of the time it was my fault.  I was invested in the game through these buddies. 

Driving and shooting have been done right by loads of games.  Far Cry 2 has kept the standard of easy to drive jeeps and simple shooting.  No cover mechanic is easy to forget as I slide out of the drivers seat to the pint mounted machine gun with the push of a button.

Audio Vissual
The 360 was pushing how far it could go but showing me some HD loving landscapes.  The fields and terrain have never looked so good.  It is easy to get lost as you find your eye wanders to sight see instead of reading your map. 

The sound is well presented and left me with a sense of awe as I hunted enemie soldiers in the night jungle by hearing.  Too many times have I stopped sunddenly to the sound of a talking guard who is just around the corner  avoiding detection.  The dialogue is simple and easy and the buddies are also well done.  The Jackel takes the prize for best voice acting in the game which sets the tone and mood of the game.  The tapes left around are great reminders of why you're here and who this figure is. 

Story
No frills no icying.  Go here and kill this guy.  Thing go poorly work for other 3rd party groups inorder to fund your 2nd kick at the can.  Make some choices on the way in order to unlock more items, equipment and upgrades.

This is the weakest part of the game yet the writing for the lines is good and even better with the Jackel your primary target.  Everyone else other then your buddies are easy to forget.  The stark situation and story lines just makes you feel like you just want to get this over with without getting killed. 

A good FPS with a nice assortment of weapons, side missions and ways to take on a village of rebel soldiers.

I've hit the target by the time the alert was in full swing only two people where able to fight back.  A few quick bursts from the silenced MP5 puts the last fighter down as I move on to the target machete in hand. After convincing him that giving me what I want is the best.  I hack him down quickly and pick up what I came for.  The cell phone is already ringing with another friend who has some more info on the next step.  I steal a skiff land near my safehouse.  I switch up my weapon load out for the upcoming assault on the next target...