This week marked the release of games that made developers Crytek known, that’s none other than Crysis Trilogy Remastered. The first game originally released in 2007 and had its own remaster release last year (you can read our review on that specific game HERE, reviewed by Greg Vander Velde). Similar to Greg’s review, most of the issues that were had in the first game echo in its sequels here for me. I have no past experience playing the franchise and unlike most remasters I’m used to playing these days, it seemed odd that playing these still felt like a dated experience. Primarily I think that resulted in the general controls.
From what I recall back in the day, the most talked about aspect of the franchise was its multiplayer. Unfortunately for this collection, the multiplayer has been completely omitted. So, if you’re wanting to go into this to relive fond memories playing online, I’m sorry to say, not going to happen right now. While this is a Playstation 4 release, I do recommend playing them on the latest gen if possible. I encountered a lot of framerate and stuttering issues, especially when hitting checkpoints. On PS5, it is a little better as it supports 60 FPS and up to 4K with dynamic resolution. There are also additional features such as improved vegetation shading, higher frame rate weapon animations and water ripple effects. Lighting, shadows, glass, and debris also feature added depth thanks to enhanced shadow technology.
While that is all well and good, I never thought a remaster was all about graphical improvements. It’s to also take dated games and modernize every aspect to current standards, which includes the controls. The devs could have at least added full button remapping but no, that wasn’t the case. The experience indeed made me nostalgic, however, as I felt transported to a decade ago and the gaming experience was not quite the same level as it is now. My nostalgia was filled with memories of disappointment and made me appreciate how far we have come with so many quality-of-life improvements in gaming.
With a price tag of $50 dollars, perhaps I’m being harder on it than I should be. You are getting three games after all. There is an audience that has been clamoring for these games to be brought back. I’m unsure if this franchise is even all that relevant anymore, but maybe I’m in the minority. I do hope, if this does lead to a brand-new game in the franchise, that they learn a lot from the mistakes and omissions made in these remasters and also adapt to modern gaming a bit better. If this is to be the end of “Crysis” for good, I suppose it’s not the worst news ever. Fans have this to look back on and even without multiplayer there is still the same campaigns that they remember… even with those dated controls. Hey, at least it looks nice and shiny!
6.5/10
For more information, please visit: https://www.crytek.com/games
PlayStation 4 Review
Gaming since I was given an original Nintendo as a kid. I love great storytelling and unique ingenuity. When both collide in a single game, I'm a happy gamer. Twitter/IG @NickNavarro87
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