Far Cry 2

Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PC

By Garrett Martin

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FAR CRY 2 | XBOX 360, PLAYSTATION 3, PC

UBISOFT | 10.21.08

Even if you're sick of first-person shooters, you should give Far Cry 2 a chance. The surprisingly ambitious FPS isn't just another generic war simulator, but an open-world sandbox game like Grand Theft Auto. Also like GTA, your character, a foreign mercenary in the midst of a civil war-torn African nation, can't help but get his hands dirty. Your job is to kill the Jackal, an arms dealer who supplies both sides. You track him down by doing jobs for both factions, compromising your morality in the process. Between a vividly realistic Africa and the need to pop malaria pills and pull bullets out of your body, this is one of the most immersive games of the year. It's also a highly engaging bummer with a blatant Heart of Darkness influence. Maybe it's unseemly to exploit Africa's very real problems for video game fodder, but at least Far Cry 2 refocuses attention on something most Westerners completely ignore.