"Can it play Crysis?" is a question that is still asked at times, even eight years after the game released. The reasoning behind the question is that at the time of release, Crysis could bring the best PCs to their proverbial knees on its highest settings. Of course, there is more to a game than its graphics and performance, and all of it impacts if this is still a game worth playing.

Some of you may be wondering why this review is covering both Crysis and Crysis Warhead, which is a separate title. My reasons for writing a combination review are that there are many ways that the two titles are more alike than different. Graphics are all but the same; the story of Warhead takes place within the story of Crysis; and gameplay is very similar, although Warhead has definitely been tweaked. I should also mention that I was playing the 64-bit, DirectX 10 versions of both games.

Both titles are first-person shooter games with very linear gameplay, and the playable character is wearing a Nanosuit with advanced capabilities. In Crysis you play as Nomad and in Warhead you play as Psycho; both members of Raptor Team. Initially the team is sent to the Lingshan Islands to rescue scientists that have been taken hostage by North Korean forces. Before long you realize there is much more going on and it involves forces never seen before.