Crysis Warhead Hardware Performance Review

Developer: Crytek
Platform: PC
Genre(s): First Person Shooter, Action
Released: September 18th 2008
Price: $29.99
Links: Crysis Warhead

For nearly a year, Crytek’s Crysis has retained its position on the podium as not only one of the best games of all time, but for us hardware nuts - one of the best benchmarks of all time. Crysis benchmarks are often sought out in reviews, much like the sacred Futuremark scores; in fact, here at Hardware Canucks, you readers gravitate towards the Crysis pages more than any other benchmark available! It is the unfathomably high system requirements and stunning graphical details that have earned the game its “System Killer” label.

Now Crytek welcomes a new family member, Crysis Warhead. Warhead is the sequel that follows the adventures of the character Psycho, one of Nomad's sidekicks in the original game, moved to fight on the opposite side of the island. While the developers claimed their intentions for Crysis to be a trilogy, Warhead appears to merely be a standalone "expansion-pack". The number of levels has been cut down and the play time required clocks in at a little under six hours. There are very few additions or improvements to the gameplay; a few weapon changes, some additional vehicles and a little nicer scenery. The story line has obviously been altered, but as it runs parallel to the original adventures of Nomad, the course of events is identical. Much like the first, the story is engaging, the graphics plentifully and lovely, and the action even more fast-paced.

When Crysis Warhead was first announced, the issue of optimization for lower-end systems was a critical factor in its creation. Crytek even went so far as to design a "budget" gaming machine that became a focal point for optimization. Along with making the game a little more system friendly, they also worked on improving the graphics quality to keep the CryEngine the king of visual performance. However, questions surrounding a system's ability to tame the beast still remain. Hardware has evolved at a rapid rate in the past year, the best video cards of 2007 are long dead and buried and new challengers have arisen. Will the acclaimed game of the year be relegated to just another shelf title or will Warhead still tantalize even the most elite of systems?