Far Cry Instincts Preview

It's alive!

That can truly be said about the game Far Cry. It really made some waves on the PC when it splashed down and shook the gaming world by storm, some people were immediately quick to heap scorn upon it, but the game while it was short reinvented the FPS and introduced some wickedly sharp AI and nerve-biting gameplay.

One of the innovations that Far Cry brought to the table was the large seamless Island of Jacutan, which allowed you to go anywhere and created a world as far as the eye could see with a level of graphical richness and detail that became the trademark of the Cry Engine.

Well there's good news for the Xbox. Far Cry: Instincts, is just around the corner.

What is it?

It's a re-invention and re-imagining of the Far Cry story and game from the PC. You're Jack Carver, who has a dodgy background and all sorts of Special Forces training under his belt. He operates as a bit of a tour guide and is the only lunatic that will take a person to the Jacutan Islands.

Jack however runs afoul on one of his contracts and thus you're thrown into the action with an explosive start. If this all sounds similar to the old Far Cry then it pretty much is, however this time around there have been some suitable new additions to the game and a little surprise that will have you more Predator than Prey as the game progresses.

While this preview is only based on the Far Cry: Instincts demo for the Xbox it has to be said that the game is shaping up to be one of the best FPS on the console to date.

What's new, what can we expect?

The demo has two playable areas/missions and the first is fairly short, a tutorial that will introduce by means of gameplay mechanics and a quick run through of the first part of the island of Jacutan. It demonstrates how to sneak, remain in cover and use the Jungle to your advantage.

It introduces the 'trap' system which allows you to get your own back on the pesky mercs and security that are out for Jack's blood. In a few button presses you can set up a nice spring-loaded branch trap on a nearby tree and step back, remembering not to get too close or you might trigger it yourself.

Take one of your many rocks and make a noise, if you get it spot on you'll attract the guard and send him flying backwards in a ballet of rag doll physics goodness.

There are other goodies being packed into the Xbox outing for the game, Jack will eventually become infected with some kind of DNA altering mutation. This will give him enhanced senses and other abilities, such as Feral Strength which will allow you to take the fight to the mercs hand to hand - who needs guns when you can hit someone for 200 yards with a punch.

The second part of the demo showcases a longer section and allows you to play around with doing things, your way. You're given a rough idea where to go and then it is truly up to you how you get there and how you deal with the guards that are in your way. Far Cry: Instincts is really shaping up in that respect and I can't wait for the full game.

There will also be a tonne of Multiplayer content to backup the solid Singleplayer element of the game, with a number of new modes that work on adversarial and team based ideas. I personally like the idea of the Predator mode where one player is the Predator and the mercs must work as a team to take them down and survive.

Its got the look

Far Cry: Instincts is a good looking game, there are some gorgeous graphics and some outstanding locations. The Island itself is a beautiful place and the developers have brought it back to life with a nice colour palette and some really nice touches graphically, so nice that you could draw in every breath and smell the air on the Island as you play.

I kid you not; the game really does look that good. There were however a few animation problems and so forth in the demo, but what do we expect - after all it's a demo. It looks like the developers have really gone to town with the Xbox version of the game and in all departments it seems that Instincts may well outshine its PC counterpart. Of course the proof of the pudding is in the eating as they say, and until Ubisoft release a review copy for Games Xtreme or you play the demo, you'll have to take my word that this game is going to be a blast.