Shooter fans are used to feeling hero envy — a healthy respect for mighty protagonists like Marcus Fenix and Master Chief. But Crysis 2 is all about tech envy, and wanting the amazing gear that’s just out of reach. It’s a feeling some console gamers probably had when the first Crysis — a PC-only powerhouse with benchmark-setting graphics — debuted in 2007. Thanks to a multiplatform sequel, though, Crytek’s sci-fi shooter is here on 360, and what you’ll find is an interesting, if much less groundbreaking, experience.

The game starts with a surprise. Recon Marine “Alcatraz” probably wasn’t expecting to survive an attack on the submarine taking him to New York City. And he almost certainly didn’t anticipate becoming a super-soldier in the process. But after the mysterious Prophet (the hero in the first game) drags him from the flaming wreckage of his U-boat, the figure saves Alcatraz’s life by giving him the Nanosuit 2.0, a bioengineered piece of miracle armor that not only keeps him alive, but also bestows physical upgrades that make him nearly superhuman.

Right away, the Nanosuit starts to cause problems for Alcatraz. Because it’s a full-body suit, everyone thinks Alcatraz is Prophet — including the seemingly diabolical corporation C.E.L.L., which is hunting the former hero and whose troops have no compunctions about shooting to kill. Also, according to scientist Nathan Gould, the suit is the only way the human race can repel Earth’s imminent invasion by the squid-like Ceph. Oh, and the military wants the Nanosuit, too, for a reason Prophet doesn’t reveal.

At first glance, with so many factions working against him, things don’t look good for Alcatraz. But don’t fret, Nano-users: for every enemy the Nanosuit brings you, you get a powerful bionic ability. The cloaking Stealth ability is perfect for sneaking past dastardly C.E.L.L. agents, while the Armor skill helps soak up Ceph bullets, making it ideal for players with a run-and-gun strategy. And the military is no problem when you can jump super-high to a ledge above and rain bullets from the high ground. Yes, the Nanosuit is awfully powerful indeed.

Don’t get cocky, though. Using any of those abilities costs your suit energy, and though it replenishes over time, you’ll need to ration it so you don’t, say, get stuck in the middle of a gunfight without any Armor, where you’ll really feel the hurt.

Keeping one eye on your meter provides an ongoing source of tension — until you realize just how easy the game becomes if you abuse the Stealth ability. In later levels of the campaign, we simply jogged past large groups of enemies to reach and complete objectives. Sure, you can lay out your plan of attack far in advance using the Tactical Visor — which tracks enemy units and gives recommendations as to which tactics give you combat advantages over them — but why bother when you can easily sneak behind them and fill them with unexpected lead? And once you upgrade your suit’s abilities (using the Nano Catalyst points gained from killing Ceph troops) so that Stealth doesn’t take up much energy, the game feels even more unbalanced.

This power imbalance would be a smaller issue if you had more incentive not to take advantage of it. After repeated deaths against Pingers (the Ceph version of a Star Wars AT-ST), which absorb dozens of shots in the back before they’ll fall — it seemed like our only real option was to use Stealth repeatedly to flank them and blow them away with our L-Tag grenade launcher. It was even worse against Stalkers, infantry Ceph whose melee attacks are too fast to easily avoid, and who have a super-annoying knockdown effect. Whenever we spotted them, we threw up our cloak and waltzed right on by. For a game that ostensibly encourages players to try different combat tactics, the lack of tactical choice — especially on higher difficulty levels — feels like a missed opportunity.

Though the story (penned by acclaimed sci-fi author Richard Morgan) feels a bit overly complicated, with a few too many twists and turns, it does a good job of conveying the confusion that Alcatraz feels throughout the game. He’s tossed into a situation he has very little control over, with no idea what’s going on or why he’s being chased — right in the middle of a chaotic alien invasion, no less. It all works really well until the last couple hours of the 10- to 12-hour campaign, where the game tries to jam a ton of backstory and exposition into a short time. It’s overwhelming; the immersion you’re feeling up ’til then is hurt by the forced explanation of each faction’s motivations, and these plot points end up feeling superfluous.

Of course, if you want to blow off the story entirely, you can just grab your Nanosuit and hop into Crysis 2’s sizable multiplayer component. The sheer number of customizable loadout options is impressive, especially when you consider all of the special “Modules” — abilities you unlock by gaining XP and leveling up — that determine each player’s suit abilities. Our favorite was Visor Enhance, which highlights enemies while you’re looking down a weapon’s scope.

Multiplayer certainly has its share of thrills. But weirdly, despite the intriguing promise of all of these uniquely equipped super-soldiers running around, the modes never really feel like anything you haven’t seen in Halo or Call of Duty. You’ll find basic deathmatch modes (Instant Action, Team Instant Action), a Capture the Flag mode (Capture the Relay), and even a King of the Hill/control-point mode (Crash Site). The 4-on-4 Assault mode — where one team of Nanosuit-less (but better-armed) Marines defends points from a group of suited-up C.E.L.L. — is the only real reprieve, and mainly because of its asymmetrical nature.

Unfortunately, the map designs rarely take advantage of the Nanosuit’s unique powers. One of our favorite features of the suit is the ability to jump and insta-hoist yourself onto high ledges, but this ability to go vertical doesn’t come into play much on maps other than “Skyline” (a greenhouse-type setting atop a Manhattan skyscraper). We found it strange to have a bunch of flat, open maps (like the refugee camp “Evac Zone”) that render the death-from-above Air Stop attack and the hops-improving Mobility Enhance a lot less useful than they could’ve been. The maps generally feel uninspired by the suit’s abilities — a shame considering how the suit’s touted as an integral part of the experience.

Something that will keep you glued to your screen — in both campaign and multiplayer — is the game’s graphics. Thanks to the proprietary CryEngine, Crysis 2 delivers a beautifully realized New York City. Its devastation by the Ceph is depicted in stunning fashion, with rubble-strewn streets, fantastically textured characters, and awesome details like the Statue of Liberty’s arm lying in the roadway. Like a few other recent games (Call of Duty: Black Ops, de Blob 2, Top Spin 4), Crysis 2 supports stereoscopic 3D, but playing on a 3DTV didn’t do much to enhance the game’s visual impact for us.

Ultimately, Crysis 2 delivers a streamlined, gorgeous-looking experience — if not a particularly innovative one. It’s good, solid fun, but it offers very little that we haven’t experienced before.    

On Xbox 360

+ Rad upgradable suit powers.

+ Gorgeous visuals; a compelling, immersive story until the last

+ couple of hours.

- Some gameplay imbalances; confusing ending; uninspired multiplayer.

? What’s with the nautical animal nicknames for aliens?

7.5