5/5 ★ – conmanwilson's review of Far Cry 2.

An imperfect game, but an undeniably unique one. This game doesn’t care about you. It doesn’t like you. It doesn’t like its characters. It doesn’t seem to like anyone. Far Cry 2 is the franchise’s boldly unfriendly, inhospitable journey through Africa, and it means business from the get-go. Weapon jamming, malaria as a mechanic, aggressive enemies, vehicles that break down, on-site surgery, and a diegetic map make this an unforgettable entry in the series, for better or worse. It’s ugly and weird and I can easily see why some might find it impenetrable, but it’s an upsetting artistic statement; one that I wish more developers would look to for inspiration. Unfortunately it runs at 30fps (currently on Xbox Series X,) it has fairly simplistic and repetitive mission design, and I think it’s a tad too long, but this is one of the best and most immersive games I’ve ever played. Heck, I can’t think of any other game where the backblast from your rocket launcher can start a bush fire and kill you. What a ride! Also diegetic maps rule. Please do more of them.