WARFACE Review for PlayStation 4

From the developers who brought you mega hits Far Cry and Crysis, Crytek has failed to add anything sensational to their impressive gaming repertoire with their newest first person shooter, WARFACE for PS4.

Let me start by saying that there is nothing inherently bad about this game, but it does not deliver anything unique to other titles within this genre, such as Call of Duty or Battlefield. WARFACE does share the high-octane energy of its contemporaries, but the gameplay model is very much what you expect from your cookie-cutter first person shooter.

What initially turned me off to this game is the clunky tutorial. It is an unfortunate introduction to the game to be forced into a repetitive step-by-step guide on the basic combat system. This tutorial is too quick to continuously reiterate the need to shoot your target, when you’re simply trying to get used to the sights. For the more casual gamer, this is where the controller gets set on the couch and a field trip to Game Stop commences for any Call of Duty title. For the devotees of first person shooters who hold out hope for a more Far Cry-esque gaming experience, they’ll begrudgingly continue. If you have never played an FPS before, this tutorial is actually a pretty good place to learn the prototypical controls for the genre.

What is unique about WARFACE is the buddy system in which you can launch yourself and a team member up to a higher point that you would be unable to reach on your own. This adds a fun element of teamwork and camaraderie amongst your fellow soldiers that I thoroughly enjoyed. This system takes a little while to get used to, as everything has to be in perfect alignment before the square button will actually perform this action.

One of the biggest highlights in this game for me is the insane amount of weapon choices. I am partial to the gold SCAR, because who doesn’t want to feel like a soldier who moonlights as a rockstar? Crytek does a fantastic job keeping consistent with the detailed visuals that we have come to expect from their claim to fame, Far Cry. The plentiful maps, while fairly basic, captivate with stunning environments from sand to snow with exquisite colors and careful details. I am impressed by the amount of time spent on the facial meshes. Your choice of character appearances are pretty realistic—sculpted with fine lines and nuanced bone structures. For some of you, this isn’t really a big deal, particularly in a first person shooter, where you rarely see your own character, but I think it is an important component in bringing a personalized experience to an otherwise generic game.

The important question is if this game is fun enough to have any replay value. Yes, it has enough positive qualities to pick up every now and then if you want a co-op war game, but as far as quality, you can do much better with just about any of Crytek’s other titles.

Rating: 6.5/10

Check Out the Warface PS4 Launch Trailer: