Crysis Remastered
"Can Your PC Run Crysis" Is As Archaic As Its Circumstance
That phrase has been a mainstay once upon a time, developing into a meme at one point, but it wasn't without merit. Once upon a time, in 2007, Crysis broke new ground in the gaming industry. Crytek boasted graphics that, to this day, rivals that of many games in the present, showing the prowess of the developers following Far Cry. While the original developer moved away from the series it was named after, it developed the Crysis series like a phoenix from the ashes.
As ambitious as Crysis was from a graphical and technical standpoint, serving as the benchmark of the late 2000s, its console ports proved to differ from its PC origins. Originally released in 2011 on the PS3 and Xbox 360 following the release of Crysis 3, the console version was more optimized than the PC version. Although the content was cut, Crytek proved that its games could be enjoyed by the console market. This makes Crysis Remastered on the Switch a marvel in itself.
Another Port Proves That The Switch Is Top Tier
The Switch version of Crysis Remastered ran surprisingly well from the opening cutscene onward. Aside from some loading screens taking close to a minute, it's a compromise I'm willing to accept. The graphic settings aren't expansive save for a Motion Blur effect as well as Parallax Occlusion Mapping. The latter aims to bring the fidelity and shaders as close to the original Crysis as the Switch is able to within reason.
The story involves a soldier named Nomad who is a part of a small unit set to land on a Philippine island. Their enemies are the North Koreans, although moments as they arrive it's clear that not everything is what it appears to be. As the members of the unit get picked off one by one, it's revealed that an alien species is attracted to the island. Discerning no one as friend or foe, Nomad is forced to fight against the alien species as well as the North Korean units while they survive.
Nomad's Suit Has Powers To Make Winter Soldier Jealous
Aside from the graphics, Crysis shines in its gameplay while taking a spin on the "open-world island FPS" shooter that Crytek established in Far Cry. From the beginning of the game, Nomad has access to several abilities his suit provides including a 'speed mode' in sprinting and a boosted jump. The suit has two modes, an Armor Mode and a Cloak Mode. The latter proved useful in picking off enemies while keeping yourself concealed.
Even if your position is compromised, the suit has regenerating health capabilities, which come in clutch during firefights. During my short time playing Crysis, I felt like a "super-soldier," which I'm sure was the intent in playing. If Far Cry had people feel like a survivor, Crysis had players feel like the judge, jury, and executioner. That is until the aliens started to show up. Despite this, there are many ways to clear missions. Sometimes fighting enemies is slow and drawn out. Good thing you can commandeer vehicles and drive to the next checkpoint while ignoring the enemy fire.
Crysis On The Switch May Sound Like A Novelty But It's Anything But
Especially when one considers how "weak" the Nintendo Switch is in comparison to other platforms, it's always nice to see a developer push the console to its limits. Despite the console version being "weaker" than the original PC version, Crysis is an impressive title. For its remaster to run on the Switch without much of a hiccup is amazing. Sure the framerate is not the highest it can be, but if you're playing this on the Switch you're playing for portability. It holds its own far better than other games that claim it "exhausted the most out of the Switch as possible."
Overall, there are many outlets to play Crysis Remastered be it on PC, PS4, Xbox, and now on the Switch. Technology has advanced quite a bit since 2007. What was once a shining benchmark for PC gaming can now be played on the go, which is awesome to consider. Perhaps in ten years' time, games that were once considered advancements in technology could be played on the Nintendo Switch 3. Or, rather whatever zany name Nintendo thinks of for their console in ten years.
Crysis Remastered is available on the Nintendo Switch