There's a South African proverb that states, "A tree is known by its fruit." Clever words and acts of persuasion can lead you to believe in many things, but once you see the result the truth becomes evident. Much has been said about Far Cry 2 and it often has been overshadowed by better-known franchises. The fruit this game bears, however, belies an impressive and evolutionary experience. Not only has Ubisoft delivered one of its best games to date, it has created a landmark title that fundamentally changes the genre. Better than the original in every way, it is an amazingly rich adventure packed with anything and everything from exploration to fierce gun battles to harrowing car chases. It's incredibly polished, enormous in scope, and one of the best games of 2008.

As any of a dozen mercenaries, Far Cry 2 thrusts you into an embattled African nation in search of an infamous underground weapons smuggler called the Jackal. It isn't long after arriving to the country that you meet with him, although the circumstances are hardly in your favor. Having contracted Malaria, the Jackal approaches you on your sick bed to warn you away. His belief in your imminent death holds him back from killing you on the spot; unfortunate for him, this only fuels your will to survive. Slowly recovering, your goal is to hunt down the Jackal across 20 square kilometers of African terrain.

From the start, you're given the freedom to explore the entirety of the game's fictional African habitat. Mission markers let you tackle a variety of tasks from disrupting weapons caravans to scouting out guard posts to scouring the jungles and outlying desert for diamonds. The enormity of it all is overwhelming, yet impressive in how stable and smooth the whole experience is.

The game is a technical achievement, one that easily surpasses other open-world shooters with its performance and depth of gameplay. Each square kilometer of game space yields hours of play with hidden objects, weapons to unlock, and missions to complete. All of this plays out on a beautiful wilderness that ranges from dank swamps to scorching sands to dirty shanty towns. It's a vivid game, both visually and practically. The action is as hot as the virtual sun, all of it dynamically rendered and responsive to your actions. If you want a car chase, start it by blazing through an enemy encampment in a vehicle. Favor a gun duel--you can do that too. It moves so seamlessly through all of its various elements to become more than the sum of its parts.

Far Cry 2 focuses on the single player experience, although there's a surprisingly robust multiplayer game to be had too. Four modes are offered--two varieties of Deathmatch, Capture the Diamond, and Uprising. Capture the Diamond plays like a jewel encrusted version of capture-the-flag, whereas Uprising has two team leaders seizing control points for the win. The assortment is small, but pairing these modes with six distinct classes and a comprehensive map editor gives it some bite. Weapon availability is entirely based on class with each emphasizing a particular set of arms sharing a common use; for example, playing as a gunner grants access to heavy equipment like the rocket launcher, machine gun, and grenades. These fit in well with the packaged maps, but it’s the ability to draft your own and play others that's really compelling.