History YMMV / FarCry2

* AssPull: [[spoiler:In the last mission of the game, all your missing buddies from the first act alongside your current best buddy reappear only to betray you by trying to steal the blood diamonds needed to save a large group of refugee, this is never clearly foreshadowed in the story outside of characters telling you to never trust anybody as everybody is in for themselves.]]

* ContestedSequel: This is considered the most debated installment in the franchise with many people loving the game despite its gameplay flaws thanks to its themes, tone and unforgiving world, while others '''hate''' it with a passion for its frustrating gameplay mechanics, bugs and unsatisfying ending that ties loose ends in a very rushed manner. Even OnThisVeryWiki you will find people either praising the game or disparaging it for the above-mentioned reasons.

** The more altruistic buddies [[spoiler: crossing the MoralEventHorizon by stealing the diamonds needed to ensure the refugees’ safe escape]]. Did the time spent in the country cause them to grow more cynical and selfish, leading to them deciding that self-preservation was more important than helping the innocent? Were they always [[spoiler: self-serving bastards whose previous PetTheDog moments were just them trying to feel good about themselves or an attempt to manipulate the Player Character? Are they even aware of what the Player Character intends to use the diamonds for?]] Or are their actions in the final stretch of the game just the result of the game being played the way it was made by the developers, regardless of what choices you made previously?

* MagnificentBastard: [[CulturedBadass The Jackal]] is an infamous ArmsDealer, currently funding both the APR and UFLL factions in a war torn country to [[PlayingBothSides play them against each other]]. Rumoured to be dying of brain cancer, he openly uses cancer as a description of war and how it corrupts people. It is soon revealed he his helping refugees escape the country, by keeping the factions fighting each other, using underhanded tactics to prevent a ceasefire that would kill the civilians; such as stealing blood diamonds and [[FrameUp framing the player]] for his killing of a warlord. Coming out on top of every encounter with the player, he eventually gets them in on his plan to save the last refugees, having the player kill the last warlords and their corrupt "Buddies". The Jackal then has the player take part in his suicide mission to ensure the last refugees escape, claiming that their own deaths are to destroy "every cell" to "[[TakingYouWithMe keep the cancer from spreading]]".

* OlderThanTheyThink: The "revolutionary" WideOpenSandbox gameworld of ''Far Cry 2'' was actually done a couple years earlier in ''VideoGame/BoilingPointRoadToHell'', a revolutionary game done in by a buggy pre-patch release and its non-big-name publisher/developer and their lack of publicity. There's also ''VideoGame/{{STALKER}}: Shadow of Chernobyl'', which came out a year before ''Far Cry 2'' and was in development even before the engine for the ''first Far Cry'' was created.

* ScrappyMechanic: The malaria mechanic forces the player to occasionally undertake a FetchQuest to get pills, as the attacks will happen during '''every 30-40 real-life minutes'''.

** Two words for casual FPS players: '''[[BreakableWeapons Weapon. Jamming.]]''' [[SubvertedTrope This wouldn't be that bad of a mechanic]], [[DoubleSubverted except]] that most guns in the game start breaking down and malfunctioning after only one or two dozen shots, forcing the player to constantly resupply at arms dealers or risk having their gun jam in the middle of a fight or even '''blow up in their face''' if its condition decays enough. This makes gun juggling a must during some of the longer missions as sticking to one favorite is a good way to eat a facefull of lead in the middle of a firefight due to your firearm jamming at the worst possible moment. No scavenging spares from enemy corpses either, since their guns are always in poor condition and usually not worth dropping what you already have. Unsurprisingly, this feature was outright removed in later games.

** And what of his ultimate fate? [[spoiler: Was the fact that his body was never found an implication that he never truly intended on committing suicide after fulfilling his objective? Did he make sure that there was no body left to find? Did whoever hired the Player Character to assassinate him have an ulterior motive for wanting him dead, and concealed any information on his true fate (background dialogue in the fifth game reveals that the file on The Jackal was heavily classified and wouldn’t be made public until three decades after the events of this game). Or is The Jackal just that much of an implacable badass that he managed to survive his HeroicSuicide and just decided that attempting to off himself wasn’t worth the trouble. The latter two options only create more questions if you subscribe to the theory that The Jackal is the mutagen altered Jack Carver from the first game.]]

** Two words for casual FPS players: '''[[BreakableWeapons Weapon. Jamming.]]''' [[SubvertedTrope This wouldn't be that bad of a mechanic]], except that most guns in the game start breaking down and malfunctioning after only one or two dozen shots, forcing the player to constantly resupply at arms dealers or risk having their gun jam in the middle of a fight or even '''blow up in their face''' if its condition decays enough. This makes gun juggling a must during some of the longer missions as sticking to one favorite is a good way to eat a facefull of lead in the middle of a firefight due to your firearm jamming at the worst possible moment. No scavenging spares from enemy corpses either, since their guns are always in poor condition and usually not worth dropping what you already have. Unsurprisingly, this feature was outright removed in later games.

* GameBreaker: The M-79 Grenade Launcher. Very reliable, powerful, capable to kill multiple enemies in a single blow, and counts ''as a sidearm''. While it can be used in a similar way to the Type 63 Mortar, the only drawback is it's reloading speed, though. It's cousin, MGL-140 can be this, specially for it's rate of fire and the ability to hold four grenades.
** For those who own the Fortune's Edition DLC, the Explosive Crossbow can become this [[DiskOneNuke early in the game]]. Despite it's rate of fire, lowest blast radius and average reliability, it's a massive upgrade for the RPG-7 [[DifficultButAwesome in hands of a skilled player]], since it features a combat scope in which gives you the advantage to perform an accurate shot while [[FakeDifficulty trying to take down convoys]].
** Even though being the weakest sniper rifle in the game, the SVD Dragunov is an excellent choice while paired with a MAC-10/Uzi and any Special type weapon such as the PKM. It's high rate of fire can allow you to quickly dispatch enemies '''even at point-blank range''' thanks to it's quick sharpshooting capabilities.
** The Dart Rifle is also pretty damn powerful regardless which body part you hit, which always results in a OneHitKill as long it's low reliability doesn't let it down.

* HypeBacklash: The game was widely praised at the time of the 2008 release, but like many games of it's vintage, once looked back at retroactively the flaws can be quite brutal in comparison to more polished and linear modern shooters. Like many games from the TheTwoThousands it suffers when looked back at retroactively with but the general consensus today amongst the general gaming public seems to be that in hindsight it actually had significant flaws and game mechanics that are a detraction from the core gameplay & story. It does remain a CultClassic, with a number of industry insiders who cite the game, the interface & design as inspirational and a major influence on their own work. A player with an open mind and suitably warned about the downsides will find it an immersive and deeply atmospheric game that stands well alongside the later games in the series.

* NightmareFuel: [[NightmareFuel/FarCry2 Has it's own page.]]

** Two words for casual FPS players: '''[[BreakableWeapons Weapon. Jamming.]]''' [[SubvertedTrope This wouldn't be that bad of a mechanic]], except that most guns in the game start breaking down and malfunctioning after only one or two dozen shots, forcing the player to constantly resupply at arms dealers or risk having their gun jam in the middle of a fight or even '''blow up in their face''' if it's condition decays enough. This makes gun juggling a must during some of the longer missions as sticking to one favorite is a good way to eat a facefull of lead in the middle of a firefight due to your firearm jamming at the worst possible moment. No scavenging spares from enemy corpses either, since their guns are always in poor condition and usually not worth dropping what you already have. Unsurprisingly, this feature was outright removed in later games.
* ScrappyWeapon: Barely anyone uses the [[AwesomeButImpractical USAS-12 due to it's very poor reliability and being very prone to jamming]] compared to the other shotguns despite it's firepower, for example: the Franchi SPAS-12 and Homeland 37 (as both of them are alot more reliable than the latter from Act 2). Some weapons such as the [=G3KA4=] and [=M1903=] fall into this once better weapons like the SVD Dragunov, AK-47 and AR-16 are available to purchase.

* CultClassic: 2 was sandwiched four years after Far Cry, four years before Far Cry 3 ''and'' was released in the wake of both Crysis & Stalker: Shadow Of Chernobyl, two far more popular and well known games in the same open world, ImmersiveSim FPS genre. But it still managed to find a cult fan-base that appreciated the atmosphere, the novel technology involved in the open world as well as the characters and the story it told. It is not uncommon to find old gamers who reject the rest of the games in the series as being too fantastical and prefer Far Cry 2 to the rest. It could be said that being a cult classic was the only way Far Cry 2 could ever end up being viewed by history while still being successful enough to push Ubisoft to keep making games in the series.

* CultClassic: Arguably. While the game isn’t that well known or regarded by fans of the series, or as memorable in regards to plot and characters (specifically central antagonists) as it’s sequels, once in a while you’ll find someone holding this game up as the pinnacle of the franchise, despite its flaws.

* HypeBacklash: The game was widely praised at the time of its release, but the general consensus today amongst the general gaming public seems to be that in hindsight it actually had significant flaws, especially in comparison to ''Far Cry 3'' and other open-world shooters like ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{STALKER}}''. However, a number of industry insiders cite the game and many elements of its interface and design as inspirational and a major influence on their own work.

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: The game opens with the main character entering a war-torn hellhole filled with backstabbing warlords, psychopathic soldiers and profiteering mercs while being infected with malaria. From that point onward the game only gets darker and more brutal with the player being forced to balance gun maintenance, medicine retrieval and faction loyalties, all while making choices that don't seem to amount to anything. [[spoiler:Not to mention the fact that the whole game is more or less pointless since the main character loses their friends, their life and ultimately ends up aiding the man they were hired to kill in the first place]] and even several hardcore Far Cry fans have trouble feeling like the game is worth the slog through several hours of annoying gameplay to reach the end. Add in the many frustrating mechanics, lack of supernatural elements present in other titles in the series and general gritty bleakness of the world and it's hard to feel the game is worth bothering with at all.

** Your buddies betraying you for the diamonds, forcing you to gun them down one by one.
* TrueArtIsAngsty: ''Far Cry 2'' seems to have a substantial amount of retroactive popularity when it comes to the "Games as Art" topic, due to the relentlessly grim tone and the often cruel and ([[DeliberateFlawRetcon supposedly]]) deliberately frustrating gameplay mechanics that make it seem the game itself actively hates the player. This is largely based around imagining that everything in the game is intentional rather than compromises based on a too-early ship date and a ridiculously large map size.

* EvilIsCool: While more morally grey than evil, [[StrawNihilist The Jackal]] is regarded as one of the best parts of the game by fans. While not as charismatic, entertaining or iconic as future Far Cry villains, The Jackal's creepy mannerisms, [[AboveGoodandEvil personal philosophy]] and surprisingly [[VillainHasAPoint well-founded self-justifications for his actions]] has led to him being seen by fans as an interesting character perfectly fitting the style of the game.

** The more altruistic buddies (such as Quarbani Singh, Michele Dachss and Flora Guillem) [[spoiler: crossing the MoralEventHorizon by stealing the diamonds needed to ensure the refugees’ safe escape]]. Did the time spent in the country cause them to grow more cynical and selfish, leading to them deciding that self-preservation was more important than helping the innocent? Were they always [[spoiler: self-serving bastards whose previous PetTheDog moments were just them trying to feel good about themselves or an attempt to manipulate the Player Character? Are they even aware of what the Player Character intends to use the diamonds for?]] Or are their actions in the final stretch of the game just the result of the game being played the way it was made by the developers, regardless of what choices you made previously?

* GameBreaker: The M-79 Grenade Launcher. Very reliable, powerful, capable to kill multiple enemies in a single blow. While it can be used in a similar way to the Type 63 Mortar, the only drawback is it's reloading speed, though. It's cousin, MGL-140 can be this, specially for it's rate of fire and the ability to hold four grenades.

* The more altruistic buddies (such as Quarbani Singh, Michele Dachss and Flora Guillem) [[spoiler: crossing the MoralEventHorizon by stealing the diamonds needed to ensure the refugees’ safe escape]]. Did the time spent in the country cause them to grow more cynical and selfish, leading to them deciding that self-preservation was more important than helping the innocent? Were they always [[spoiler: self-serving bastards whose previous PetTheDog moments were just them trying to feel good about themselves or an attempt to manipulate the Player Character? Are they even aware of what the Player Character intends to use the diamonds for?]] Or are their actions in the final stretch of the game just the result of the game being played the way it was made by the developers, regardless of what choices you made previously?

* AccidentalInnuendo: "I'll need to hold your equipment, bro."

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: Both the Jackal and the player character are heavily subject to this, particularly during the endings. For example, [[spoiler:did the player really agree with the Jackal in the "Diamond Delivery" ending and commit suicide after his job was done... or did he just do that to trick the Jackal into killing himself with the bomb, thus finally accomplishing his mission to assassinate him? Conversely, did the Jackal fool the player into executing himself while he made a clean getaway in the "Set Off Bomb" ending or was he genuine in his desire to help the refugees and give Africa a chance at recovering?]]
* The Jackal in general has a lot of this, especially in regards to TheReveal [[spoiler: that he is helping the refugees and innocent civilians escape the country, and that him selling his weapons to the factions at a cheap price is an attempt at preventing the factions from potentially exploiting and/or hurting the people he is trying to help.]]

** ''"You are terminal... same as I am"''. Also, the ending, though it might also count as SugarWiki/{{Heartwarming Moment|s}}.

** It’s possible that The Jackal is a ManipulativeBastard playing everything he comes into contact with for chumps. [[spoiler: If so, are his VillainHasAPoint moments and HiddenDepths just him making himself appear sympathetic to Reuben and the Player Character, in order to ensure he makes it out of the civil war alive? If this is the case, was this his m.o. everything he got involved in a civil war in Africa (manipulating a random mercenary with a conscience into helping him escape, and then starting the cycle anew in a different area of Africa?]]
** And what of his ultimate fate? [[spoiler: Was the fact that his body was never found an implication that he never truly intended on committing suicide after fulfilling his objective? Did he make sure that there was no body left to find? Did whoever hired the Player Character to assassinate him have an ulterior motive for wanting him dead, and concealed any information on his true fate? Or is The Jackal just that much of an implacable badass that he managed to survive his HeroicSuicide and just decided that attempting to off himself wasn’t worth the trouble. The latter two options only create more questions if you subscribe to the theory that The Jackal is the mutagen altered Jack Carver from the first game.]]
* The more altruistic buddies (such as Quarbani Singh, Michele Dachss and Flora Guillem) [[spoiler: crossing the MoralEventHorizon by stealing the diamonds needed to ensure the refugees’ safe escape]]. Did the time spent in the country cause to them to grow more cynical and selfish, leading to them deciding that self-preservation was more important than helping the innocent? Were they always [[spoiler: self-serving bastards whose previous PetTheDog moments were just them trying to feel good about themselves or an attempt to manipulate the Player Character? Are they even aware of what the Player Character intends to use the diamonds for?]] Or are their actions in the final stretch of the game just the result of the game being played the way it was made by the developers, regardless of what choices you made previously?

** If you believe that [[spoiler: The Jackal is truly motivated by altruism, was this his m.o. for every civil war he got involved in? Or did rumoured terminal illness cause him to have a HeelRealisation and lead him to attempt to atone for his past actions.]]

* EvilIsCool: While more morally grey than evil, [[StrawNihilist The Jackal]] is regarded as one of the best parts of the game by fans. While not as charismatic, entertaining or iconic as future Far Cry villains, The Jackal's creepy mannerisms, [[AboveGoodandEvil personal philosophy]] and surprisingly [[VillainHasAPoint well-founded self-justifications for his actions]] has led to him being seen by fans an interesting character perfectly fitting the style of the game.

* CultClassic: Arguably. While the game isn’t that well known or regarded by fans of the series, or as memorable in regards to plot and character as it’s sequels, once in a while you’ll find someone holding this game up as the pinnacle of the franchise, despite its flaws.

* The more altruistic buddies (such as Quarbani Singh, Michele Dachss and Flora Guillem) [[spoiler: crossing the MoralEventHorizon by stealing the diamonds needed to ensure the refugees’ safe escape]]. Did the time spent in the country cause to them to grow more cynical and selfish? Were they always [[spoiler: self-serving bastards whose previous PetTheDog moments were just them trying to feel good about themselves or an attempt to manipulate the Player Character? Are they even aware of what the Player Character intends to use the diamonds for?]] Or are their actions in the final stretch of the game just the result of the game being played the way it was made by the developers, regardless of what choices you made previously?