Basically, since crysis 1 at least was the benchmark of pc gaming I assume this is the right place to come for help regarding my system and upgrading.

Operating System
MS Windows Vista Business 32-bit SP2
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 @ 3.00GHz 76 °C
Wolfdale 45nm Technology
RAM
4.0GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 400MHz (5-6-6-18)
Motherboard
Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd. EP35C-DS3R (Socket 775) 63 °C
Graphics
DELL 1905FP (1280x1024@60Hz)
ATI Radeon HD 4870 (XFX Pine Group) 78 °C
Hard Drives
488GB Western Digital WDC WD5000AAKS-22A7B2 ATA Device (SATA) 34 °C
Optical Drives
HL-DT-ST DVDRAM GH22NS40 SCSI CdRom Device
Audio
Realtek High Definition Audio

Could some kind souls please tell me:

Can I handle the new crysis?

Am i being bottlenecked and if so, what by?

If the above answer is yes, what are the best buys atm?

I had no doubts about my system until about a week ago. I can run Crysis 1 maxed out at 1280x1024 at around 50fps, as well as other demanding games such as far cry 2 and the S.T.A.L.K.E.R series. However, on Battlefield bad company 2 with everything maxed I am achieving average frame rates of around 20fps and i also struggle with the latest total war games and even SCII when there is huge battle on screen.

I do not think i need to upgrade my GPU or motherboard, i am just concerned about my proccessor, please oh wise computer geniuses, help!

You want my honest opinion lol your rig svcks its behind in time man **** ditch the whole rig and get a new computer if u wanna be able to play todays games u wont be able too with that rig.

im sure you can run it. but not cranked up. did you try the demo?

OC you CPU a bit

Yes, that setup should run Crysis 2. It's not nearly as system intensive as the original and far more optimized. I know people playing it on similar systems, some even a bit weaker and older than yours.

What resolution are you intending to play at?

Can I handle the new crysis? Yes at medium settings.
Am i being bottlenecked and if so, what by? mmh well I think you need to upgrade the whole rig xd . Here some suggestions:

* OC first that CPU at least for 3.5 Ghz , if you have a decent aftermarket heatsink you can do it with no problems.
* Upgrade that videocard is kinda old . I suggest AMD 6850 or GTX 460 and up
* Sandy bridge is amazing , but you have to buy a new Mobo , DD3 memory and CPU ( $$ )