Crysis Warhead

Author: Joe Martin
Published: 23rd September 2008
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In A Crisis

Unfortunately, just because the core plot has improved a bit and the game is now a bit more compelling, doesn’t mean that the gameplay itself has improved dramatically.

On the plus side, it doesn’t mean it’s got any worse either. In fact, if there’s one thing you can staunchly say about Warhead without worry of error then it’s that the basic gameplay is essentially the same.

The nanosuit is the same, your special powers are all the same, most of the weapons and vehicles return (with a few additions we’ll get to in a minute) and so forth. In fact, a lot of the maps and levels return as well and there are levels you fought through in Crysis which you’ll clear again in Warhead, though the areas are always changed a fair bit.

The game is so similar in fact that it actually says in the bottom right hand corner ‘Sykes Mod’, which doesn’t do a lot to promote the idea that Warhead is an entirely new experience.

Crysis Warhead Crysis Warhead - Gameplay

It isn’t all bad though and there’s the standard array of extra weapons and vehicles that have been thrown into the mix like pepperoni onto a pizza base to try and add spice to the mix. Whether the resulting flavour works or not is ultimately going to depend on your palette, but we certainly didn’t find it offensively spicy and some of the added weapons like dual-wield SMGs are very rewarding to use.

Then there are the extra vehicles and though some of them feel a tiny bit unbalanced, they are definitely a lot of fun to use – like the new APC vehicle with a 20mm cannon on top that fires explosive shells. It’s fantastically overpowered on the lower difficulties (and annoying on the higher difficulties where you have to stop in order to shoot), but the brief feeling of raw power is intoxicating if a touch indelicate.

That’s something which perfectly sums up the experience offered by Crysis Warhead too – a little awkward, but ultimately very fun and it’s easy to tell that the entire game design has been a bit refocused to suit action-centric players.

Admittedly it’s a bit of a departure from the norm for Crysis. The first game was very much about letting you play your way and in your style and the levels reflected this, with multiple approaches and open bases for you to charge or sneak into at your discretion. The speed and cloak abilities were key weapons in the arsenal of many players in the original game, but it’s the strength ability which moves to the forefront in Warhead.

Crysis Warhead Crysis Warhead - Gameplay

That isn’t to say that the game is going to constantly force you to play it as a shooter instead of an sniping gallery though – the island is still free roaming and there are still multiple ways to victory, but stealth is now the less-attractive option for sure. There’s too much stuff to blow up and the AI seems to be more alert and responsive, catching onto you far quicker initially despite the occasional enemy who will just stare blankly at you while you shoot him.

This shift isn’t a bad thing though and one thing it definitely does is help make Warhead cinematic and explosive, so while the game may be slightly funnelling you toward one particular way of experiencing the game, it is at least doing it for a reason.

Nowhere is this demonstrated more than in the few places where the game really puts you into positions where you have to throw stealth out of the window – like assaulting the huge spider aliens and defending the entrance to the mine. Here you have to fight, but the payback makes that slightly uncomfortable departure from the norm very forgiveable. Possibly even likeable when you consider the way that these levels use traditional level archetypes (the Escort Mission, The Defense Mission) without ever making them feel forced or faltering with the ally AI.

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