... but is it worth the hassle?
So now I’ve banged on about the environment and the AI, I guess we better talk about the graphics, which is going to be the most contentious part of this whole review.Simply put, getting Crysis going under Windows Vista and DX10 is one of the most painful experiences I’ve ever had with a PC, including dropping one on my foot. Whether the fault of all the stability and performance and stability issues I experienced with Crysis lays with Crytek or NVIDIA we’re yet to know for certain but its true to say that the current HEXUS.gaming rig (which i use) is based on NVIDIA SLi graphics. From that damn nvlddmkm.sys issue (a simple search on Google exposes the size of problem relating to that pesky file and a lot more too) raising its head again through to matching up drivers with the version of the game, I can only say that by the time I got it working, that XP part of my dual boot was looking so attractive I would’ve slept with it.
For a detailed insight into the problems I faced, check out the HEXUS.afterburner at the end of this review… for now let’s get on with what Crysis has to offer in both Windows Vista DX10 and Windows XP Pro DX9.
Click for larger imageFirst off, regardless of which DX version you play, you’ll be treated to some of the most sumptuous graphics going in an FPS. Quite rightly, Crysis opens with you in a jungle and it has to be one of the most luscious, overgrown jungles you’ll see short of a doing a stint in a posting in Belize. Grasses, flowers, tress, bushes, they’re all over the place. And I’m not talking about Far Cry’s ‘clumps of shrubbery’ stuff either, this is seriously overgrown, wild jungle.
But the level of detail isn’t just limited to the jungle. Manmade areas are chock full of details too. A barracks room is strewn with the humdrum debris of everyday life, water bottles, magazines, cans of food... it’s all here. And it’s all actual objects too, not just an immovable texture pasted to a tabletop.
Click for larger imageThe texture detailing is impressive too, with none of that short-cut ‘dark space’ on vehicles and, though textures are re-used to some extent, you won’t see the same poster plastered on a wall too many times, reminding you you’re in a game. The models used, especially for the enemy troops are damn impressive though their motion can at times seem a bit jerky, especially when they turn around. That said, these guys walk turning on their heels to spin around, crouching down if they’re alerted and generally looking like real soldiers…
So what’s the difference between DX10 and DX9? Well to be honest, you get a far more realistic view under DX10 which goes a little way to making up for the pain I had getting there. There’s far more image smoothing with less harsh edges on everything, more shadowing and more lifelike light interactions with objects. When it’s working, the DX10 Crysis looks gorgeous.
That said, playing under DX9 will still give you bags more eye candy than you’ll have seen in an FPS before. The explosions, whilst having more convincing smoke and heat blur under DX10, are still damn impressive under DX9, and of course all those physical interactions and the AI are still there too.
Click for larger imageThere are plenty of film inspired visual effects too, such as depth of field, with what you’re looking at being in sharp focus whilst the foreground and far distance blur. There’s lots of other nice touches too, such as rivulets of water running across the screen as you emerge from a swim, or dirt spattering across the screen as bullets chew up the ground around you.
One contentious issue is the motion blur, which will be toggleable in Patch 1, but for now you’ll have to put up with everything going a bit fuzzy as you spin around. I got used to it after a few minutes though it still got in the way to some extent in some of the more frantic moments. But otherwise, the real differences are purely the niceties. Textures under DX10 look more realistic, explosions seem more real, the water is lovely and even the manmade areas will have you stopping to look around and just ogle.
Click for larger imageYou’ll be doing the same if you’re playing in DX9 as Crysis is a work of art… but it’s a bit like seeing a photo of the Mona Lisa and then seeing the real thing… it’s good but it really comes to life under DX10. I suppose a more pertinent question is whether or not I feel Crysis is enough to make me want to jump to Vista, but we’ll cover that in the conclusion.
On the performance side of things, Vista showed what system hog it is and yes, I did have all the settings maxed, which you can’t do under DX9, and there was a noticeable difference in framerates. It wasn’t enough of a drop to make Crysis unplayable by a long shot, but it did feel distinctly jerky in places, especially when switching to the binoculars as there’s always a slight hiccup of a pause before the framerate recovers. Of course, you can argue that using higher settings under different versions of DX is unfair but my response to that is why bother having the higher settings if they can’t be used? I know the machine I’m using has the grunt, so it’s either a driver issue, coding with Crysis itself or Vista wanting more than its fair share of resources. Seeing as Patch 1 will be addressing some performance issues, I’m inclined to think that it’s a bit of all three…