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Far Cry 2

From PCGamingWiki, the wiki about fixing PC games
Far Cry 2
Far Cry 2 cover
Developers
Ubisoft Montreal
Publishers
Ubisoft
Russia Buka Entertainment
Engines
Dunia
Release dates
Windows October 21, 2008
Reception
Metacritic 85
IGDB 85
Taxonomy
Monetization One-time game purchase, DLC
Modes Singleplayer, Multiplayer
Perspectives First-person
Genres FPS, Open world
Vehicles Automobile, Motorcycle, Truck, Naval/watercraft
Art styles Realistic
Themes Africa, Contemporary
Series Far Cry
Far Cry 2 on HowLongToBeat
Far Cry 2 on IGDB
Far Cry 2 on MobyGames
Far Cry 2 on Wikipedia
Far Cry
Far Cry 2004
Far Cry 2 2008
Far Cry 3 2012
Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon 2013
Far Cry 4 2014
Far Cry Primal 2016
Far Cry 5 2018
Far Cry New Dawn 2019
Far Cry 6 2021


General information

Ubisoft Forums
GOG.com Community Discussions for game series
GOG.com Support Page
Steam Community Discussions
Manual

Availability

Source DRM Notes Keys OS
Retail
Disc check (requires the CD/DVD in the drive to play)
CD key
Requires online activation
SecuROM PA DRM, 5 activations on 3 PCs.[1] Additionally uses SecuROM 7 DRM for disc checking.
Removed in patch 1.03[2]
Windows
Amazon.co.uk
DRM details are not known
Fortune's Edition
Windows
Epic Games Store
Icon overlay.png
Fortune's Edition
Windows
GamersGate
Icon overlay.png
Fortune's Edition
Windows
Gamesplanet logo.svg
Icon overlay.png
Fortune's Edition
Windows
GOG.com
DRM-free
Fortune's Edition
Windows
Green Man Gaming
Icon overlay.png
Fortune's Edition
Windows
Humble Store
DRM-free
Fortune's Edition
Windows
Steam
DRM-free after installation through Steam client (notes may include more details)
Fortune's Edition. Can be run DRM-free when launched directly from the executable
Windows
Ubisoft Store
Icon overlay.png
Fortune's Edition, included with Ubisoft+.
Windows
Games for Windows Marketplace (unavailable)
Icon overlay.png
[3]
Windows

Version differences

The Fortune's Edition is a complete edition containing the base game and the Fortune's Pack DLC.
Pre-order versions contained "Predecessor Tapes", additional missions that can now be unlocked using FC2 MultiFixer.

DLC and expansion packs

Name Notes
Fortunes Pack Included with the Fortune's Edition
Windows
Intel Bonus Missions Released as a free download.
Windows

Essential improvements

Skip intro video

Use -GameProfile_SkipIntroMovies 1 command line argument

Patches

Patch 1.03

The patch removes the activation requirement and allows the game to be played without the disc. Only required for the Retail DVD version.

Utilities

FC2 MultiFixer

A small program made by FoxAhead that allows you to toggle on and off essential fixes and tweak various parameters like FOV, unlocking missing DLCs, fixing the missing Jackals Tapes, Cheats and more - all in a user-friendly user-interface. Its biggest advantage over manual tweaks is that it does not modify the game's file or .dlls. Instead, your changes will be stored in a configuration file. This allows you to revert to a full vanilla state if need be. It is compatible with most mods, and is even bundled with the most popular ones like Redux. The link provided above explains in detail how to set it up.

FC2 MultiFixer Options List
FC2 MultiFixer Options List

Game data

In-game general settings.
In-game general settings.

Configuration file(s) location

System Location
Windows %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Far Cry 2\GamerProfile.xml
%LOCALAPPDATA%\My Games\Far Cry 2\InputUserActionMap.xml
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/19900/pfx/[Note 1]

Save game data location

System Location
Windows %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Far Cry 2\Saved Games\
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/19900/pfx/[Note 1]
"Quicksave" button creates a new manual save each time, they don't overwrite each other.

Save game cloud syncing

System Native Notes
Epic Games Launcher
GOG Galaxy
OneDrive
Requires enabling backup of the Documents folder in OneDrive on all computers.
Steam Cloud
Ubisoft Connect
[4]

Video

In-game video settings.
In-game video settings.

Graphics feature State WSGF Notes
Widescreen resolution
Patch 1.02 and above.[5] Separate widescreen option is optional and changes FOV with weapon zoom.
Multi-monitor
Ultra-widescreen
Menus and loading screens are stretched.[6] Make changes on the main menu, changing aspect ratios in-game may result in stretching and other errors.
4K Ultra HD
Field of view (FOV)
Use Far Cry 2 Multi Fixer for version 1.03.
Windowed
Press Alt+ Enter to toggle.
Borderless fullscreen windowed
See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Anisotropic filtering (AF)
See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Anti-aliasing (AA)
Up to 8x MSAA. Nvidia users can use SGSSAA through anti-aliasing compatibility bits 0x000010C1 in Nvidia Profile Inspector. This requires the game to be in DX9 mode and AA fix is necessary to avoid issues with geometry.
Vertical sync (Vsync)
No frame rate cap. High frame rates can cause save corruption and game ending engine bugs.
60 FPS
120+ FPS
No frame rate cap. High frame rates can cause save corruption and game ending engine bugs.
High dynamic range display (HDR)
See the glossary page for potential alternatives.

Ambient Occlusion

Force HBAO+ (Nvidia only)[7][8]
  1. Download and run Nvidia Profile Inspector.
  2. Select the Far Cry 2 profile.
  3. Change Ambient Occlusion compatibility value to 0x00000031.
  4. Change Ambient Occlusion setting to High Quality.
  5. Change Ambient Occlusion usage to Enabled.
  6. Press "Apply Changes" in the top-right corner.

Notes

Requires the game to be in DX9 mode.
The effect bleeds through distant scenery (terrain, buildings, etc.), especially during rainy weather and with effects such as fog present.

Deleting borders for 16:10 resolution

Change your desktop resolution to 16:9 before starting the game, and keep set your 16:10 resolution in the game
Also fixes blue borders in 16:10 while using Reshade
Task switch activating windowed mode will add the borders back (game restart required) - it doesn't happen in DX9 mode (minimization works correctly).

Input

In-game key map settings.
In-game key map settings.

Keyboard and mouse State Notes
Remapping
Some minor commands, such as exiting turrets and operating the wristwatch, are permanently bound to the default WASD controls.
Mouse acceleration
Mouse sensitivity
Can be modified further by editing Sensitivity value in GamerProfile.xml.[9]
Mouse input in menus
Mouse Y-axis inversion
Controller
Controller support
Full controller support
Controller remapping
See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Controller sensitivity
Controller Y-axis inversion
Controller types
XInput-compatible controllers
PlayStation controllers
Generic/other controllers
Additional information
Button prompts
Controller hotplugging
Haptic feedback
Digital movement supported
Simultaneous controller+KB/M

Toggle aim down sights

Create AutoHotkey script
  1. Download AutoHotkey
  2. Copy the code to the clipboard (CTRL+C).
  3. Open AutoHotkey, go to File>Edit script, paste the code in Notepad.
  4. Change "Fallout4" to "Far Cry 2" in the Notepad, save.
  5. Reload Script in AutoHotkey

Audio

In-game audio settings.
In-game audio settings.

Audio feature State Notes
Separate volume controls
Surround sound
Up to 7.0 output.[10] May require DirectSound 3D restoration software.
Subtitles
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost
EAX support
EAX 3.0, DirectSound3D.[11][12]
Royalty free audio
EAX 3.0 only used for indoor occlusion effects, not reverb.

Localizations

Language UI Audio Sub Notes
English
Traditional Chinese
Czech
Retail only.
French
German
Hungarian
Retail only. Patch for digital release here.
Italian
Polish
Retail only. Patch for digital release here.
Russian
Retail only. Patch for digital release here.
Spanish
Turkish
Fan translation, download.
Brazilian Portuguese
Fan translation, Tribo Gamer.

Network

In-game network settings.
In-game network settings.

Multiplayer types

Type Native Players Notes
LAN play
16 Versus
Online play
16 Versus
The official mulitplayer service was shut down on June 1, 2021. FC2MPPatcher patching utility is needed: GitHub or FC2MP.COM

Connection types

Type Native Notes
Matchmaking
Peer-to-peer
Dedicated
Self-hosting
Dedicated Server software available for Windows and Linux (The latter link starts an immediate download).
Direct IP

Ports

Protocol Port(s) and/or port range(s)
TCP 9000-9003
UDP 3074, 9000-9003
Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support status is unknown.

VR support

3D modes State GG3D Notes
Nvidia 3D Vision
Use Helix Mod for better 3D support.
TriDef 3D
iZ3D
vorpX
G3D, DirectVR
Officially supported game, see official vorpx game list.
Devices
3RD Space Gaming Vest

Issues unresolved

Stuck/can't exit turret

This happens if the "interact" key is rebound to anything other than the "default" (E). In order to exit the turret if key is rebound, E must be used.

Issues fixed

Bouncing NPC glitch

High FPS will cause errors in character animations. At very high FPS this can be a game-breaking bug as important NPCs can't complete their dialog to progress the story.
Cap your framerate. Some people report that up to 90Hz/FPS is fine, but 60 is recommended.

"Silent phone call" bug (DirectX 10 ONLY)

When answering a call the dialogue may be missing at times. You will still get the mission objectives, but you will miss out on the dialogue and potential tips.
Cap framerate to 60fps[citation needed]

This can be done using the FC2 MultiFixer. This doesn't completely eliminate the issue but it minimizes it a lot.

Set compatibility mode[citation needed]
  1. Right-click FarCry2.exe in Far Cry 2\bin folder and click Properties
  2. Click the Compatibility tab
  3. Check the Compatibility mode box and select Windows Vista (Service Pack 1) from the drop-down box
  4. Click OK to apply and close the properties window
If the above fixes do not work, don't use DirectX 10, but switch to the DirectX 9 renderer via in-game option.
Comes with worse performance (but this can be mitigated by using DXVK) and some very minor graphical downgrades.[13]

"Black Square" bug (DirectX 10 ONLY)

When using DirectX 10, using Bloom in combination with HDR (enabled by default in DX10) will cause a black square to fill parts of the screen in many different scenarios, but mainly when looking down.[14]
Play in DX9 mode.
This comes with worse performance but this can be mitigated by using DXVK.
Disable bloom.
This makes it harder to see in dark areas since it disables brightness adaptation.

Audio glitches

Certain audio devices (namely older Realtek integrated audio chips) aren't compatible with the audio in the game and will reverse all channels or make the back channel primary and the front channel near inaudible.
Modify .ini file[citation needed]
  1. Go to <path-to-game>\Data_Win32\SoundBinary\
  2. Open DARE.ini.
  3. Find the line DISABLE_OPTIMISATION and set the value to FALSE.
  4. Save your changes.

Vegetation looks blocky

Disable alpha to coverage[15]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Open GamerProfile.xml.
  3. Set AlphaToCoverage to 0.
Disable anti-aliasing (including that by external tools)[15]

Launch crash to desktop on newer systems

Use systemdetection.dll from Far Cry 3[citation needed]
  1. Navigate to Far Cry 3's or Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon's <path-to-game>\bin\ and copy systemdetection.dll.
  2. Paste this file in Far Cry 2's <path-to-game>\bin\, making sure to overwrite the current DLL.

Notes:

This will only work if you also have a legitimate copy of Far Cry 3 or Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon installed on your computer.

Game automatically minimizes after launch

Change resolution in GamerProfile.xml
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Open GamerProfile.xml.
  3. Change ResolutionX="xxxx" ResolutionY="xxxx" in <RenderProfile> and <CustomQuality> to your prefered resolution (eg.ResolutionX="1920" ResolutionY="1080").

Splash screen crash

This issue occurs when you have a 4kb logical sector size.

Move your game to another drive formatted with a 512b LOGICAL sector size or format your current drive to have a 512b logical sector size[16]
For those concerned regarding the effects this might have on your drive, changing your logical sector size will NOT result in worse drive performance. A 4kb logical sector size performs worse than or equal to 512b and has worse compatibility. The 512b emulation layer exists for this reason. It's a good idea to keep the logical size at 512b for general PC use anyway, hence why most PCs come with this emulation layer enabled automatically, and therefore most people won't have this issue.

Game resolution changes to 1600x900 when Alt-Tabbing

Alt-tabbing out of the game may cause the resolution to reset to 1600x900.
Reset your resolution[17]
  1. Open the Options menu, then Display
  2. Change your Resolution to something other than your preferred choice.
  3. Hit Apply
  4. Now change the Resolution back to your preference.
  5. Hit Apply again
Can also be fixed by either switching to the DX9 renderer(this has a decent hit to CPU performance but modern cpus will have no issue targeting 60 fps) or running the game in a window and using Borderless Gaming although this may lead to issues with G-sync/Freesync not activating properly.
or just press Alt+ Enter

Other information

API

Technical specs Supported Notes
Direct3D 9.0c, 10
Shader Model support 3
Executable 32-bit 64-bit Notes
Windows

Middleware

Middleware Notes
Physics Havok
Cutscenes Bink Video
Multiplayer Matchmaking+
Anti-cheat PunkBuster

Advanced improvements

The following tweaks require editing XML documents within the game's resource file[citation needed]
  1. Download mod tools from moddb.
  2. From the archive, extract the contents of the WobFC2DUNIAxxx folder into the <path-to-game>\modding\ folder, creating this folder if it doesn't exist.
  3. Run bootstrap.bat to unpack Far Cry 2's resource file into your modding folder.
  4. After changes have been made to the unpacked resources, run build_patch.bat to pack the modified resources back up into patch.fat and patch.dat files.
  5. Copy patch.fat and patch.dat into <path-to-game>\Data_Win32\, backing up the existing resource files before overwriting them.

Notes

This process should work even with mods installed. Mods are typically distributed as patch.fat and patch.dat resources. The mod tools will unpack these resources if installed, so when the resources are repackaged after making these improvements the mod should be preserved.
This method won't work on vanilla game if it's not Steam version. You can use these Steam patch data files which will mostly work with the retail or GOG copy (minor niggling issues) or you can modify patch files of the existing mods.[18][19][20]

Mouse sensitivity multiplier

Far Cry 2's resource file contains a set of mouse sensitivity multipliers which augment the sensitivity slider in the options menu.
Instructions[citation needed]
  1. In the original\patch\config\inputactionmapcommon.xml file, change the sensitivity attributes within each <MouseFilter> element to the desired scalar.

Remove mouse speed clamp

Far Cry 2 clamps mouse speed once it reaches a certain rate. This can be problematic for player who use high DPI mice or low sensitivities.
Instructions[citation needed]
  1. In the original\patch\config\inputactionmapcommon.xml file, remove all the maxOutput=10 attributes from each <MouseFilter> element.

Eliminate one-frame latency

Far Cry 2 uses a multithreaded renderer, meaning the rendering happens in a thread separate from the main game loop. This pipelining, which is performed by default, increases framerate substantially but at the cost of one frame of latency. Since Far Cry 2 needs to be framerate limited to avoid certain bugs, this tradeoff can be beneficial in cases where framerate is capped well below the system's capabilities, or in cases where the player values low latency over outright framerate.
Instructions[citation needed]
  1. In the original\patch\engine\settings\defaultthreadingconfig.xml file, set ThreadCnt="0" on the <ThreadSetting id="RENDER_THREAD" ...> element.

Notes

Additional threads can be allocated to the PHYSIC_THREADS and JOB_THREADS to regain some lost framerate. 4 physics threads and 2 job threads appear to yield the greatest performance increase on quad core machines. Increasing job threads too far can have catastrophic effects on performance.
The game will feel much, much smoother comparing the same framerates (especially when you can achieve constant 60 FPS using the solution).

Command line arguments

Parameter Effect
-GameProfile_GodMode 1 Enables god mode (only enable after tutorial)
-GameProfile_UnlimitedAmmo 1 Unlimited ammo (only enable after tutorial)
-GameProfile_AllWeaponsUnlock 1 Unlocks all weapons
-GameProfile_UnlimitedReliability 1 Weapons will never break
-exec filename Parses console commands from the file named filename in your Game data directory. Known to work for files with a .CFG extension. Execution results can be viewed in-game by opening the console with ~.

Mods

Scubrah's Patch

Refines the vanilla gameplay experience by introducing new features and a host of tweaks & fixes. Intended to be an overhaul for the vanilla gameplay loop, with a focus on QOL improvements, bug fixes and entirely new features that make the gameplay feel fresh.

Active development.

Far Cry 2: Realism + Redux

Combination of both Realism+ and Redux overhaul mods with new features such as a vibrant color palette, extra difficulties and further improvements to enemy AI behavior.

Far Cry 2 Redux

Immersion focused massive overhaul of Far Cry 2, includes bug fixes, more dynamic AI and a complete re-balance of multiple aspects of the game.

Stays true to the vanilla emergent gameplay loop.
2019 ModDB MOTY Winner (Editor's Choice).

Far Cry 2 Patched

Fixes lots of bugs and developer oversights, as well as adding a couple of small features to improve gameplay.
Compatible with Steam, GOG, Ubisoft Connect and Epic Games Store versions of the game.
May reduce performance to some extent due to graphics changes.

Far Cry 2: Vanilla+ (Tom's Mod)

A vanilla focused mod that maintains the feel of the original game while adding improved graphics, re-balanced weapons, quality of life features, massively increased gameplay variety and plenty of bug fixes.

Chill+, Realism+ and Insanity+ mod flavors exist by the same author.

Far Cry 2 Modernized

Overhaul mod based on Far Cry 2 Redux that includes other mods and fixes, as well as a Reshade Preset.

Dylan's Realism Mod

Revisions to enemy health, diamond prices, enemy AI and other balance changes.

Infamous Fusion

Major mod with countless improvements on realism, graphics, weapons, animations and gameplay.

No Malaria and Infinite Sprint

A simple mod that only disables malaria attacks and removes the cooldown on sprinting.

System requirements

Windows
Minimum Recommended
Operating system (OS) XP
Processor (CPU) Intel Pentium 4 3.2 GHz
Intel Pentium D 2.66 GHz
AMD Athlon 64 3500+
System memory (RAM) 1 GB
Hard disk drive (HDD) 3.5 GB
Video card (GPU) Nvidia GeForce 6800
ATI Radeon X1650
256 MB of VRAM
DirectX 9 compatible
Shader model 3 support
Multiple saves and user created maps will increase the amount of needed hard disk space.


Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data (use Wine regedit to access Windows registry paths). Games with Steam Cloud support may store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/19900/ in addition to or instead of this directory. The app ID (19900) may differ in some cases. Treat backslashes as forward slashes. See the glossary page for details.

References