Crysis 2
Preview
Building a Better Beast
by Ryan Phillip Hardesty
previewed on PC
Gentlemen, We Can Rebuild Him… (cntd)
Last is tactical, something entirely unique to Crysis 2. This new mode will appeal to all the strategists out there as it allows the collection of information on enemies, patrols, weapon locations, and more. See an enemy in the distance and you’ll be able to mark it and from then on it will appear on your radar. Did you spot a nice-looking weapon you’d like to use but more urgent matters are at hand? Nail it down with tactical mode and you can track it down later. Perhaps most intriguing about this new aspect of the second Nanosuit is its ability to dampen any ambient noise, thus allowing you to hear conversations in the distance or the sound of an enemy’s oncoming footsteps. The only drawback of tactical will be its vulnerability, as you’ll be the weakest armor-wise when you use it.
A Riddle Wrapped in a Mystery
Still steeped in secrecy so far is the story. The developers have stayed tightlipped about it and will remain to until summer hits, when they plan to reveal more. Crytek has taken special interest in the narrative this time around since they cited the original game’s story as a major weak point they weren’t fond of, calling it bland and clichéd. What can be known, however, is that it takes place three years after the first game with New York coming under assault by the aliens from the first game, and the Big Apple isn’t the only city being attacked since major cities across the planet are being targeted. There will be a mysterious third faction battling it out on the streets besides you and the aliens (they’re not the North Koreans, though they were labeled “Crynet Ops Infantry” at the time of the demo) and you’ll once again be playing as Jake “Nomad” Dunn, the protagonist from the first game.
And though there’s even scarcer info on multiplayer (Crytek has revealed nothing as of this article), fans can scarf down the possible promise of DLC while they wait. In an investor call a couple of weeks ago by Electronic Arts, Crysis’ publisher, chief operating officer John Schappert stated that every title released during its fiscal 2011 year (April 2010 through March 2011) will see the addition of downloadable content, something Crysis 2 will likely qualify for since its release date is scheduled for the fourth quarter of this year. Perhaps a little glance at how the other major cities are dealing with the alien invasion?
In Leaps and Bounds…Again
A first for Crysis will be its expansion over into Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 territory. That’s right - the franchise is no longer PC-exclusive. Many PC gamers have cried foul, claiming the developers will lessen Crysis 2’s graphics in preparation for the consoles’ (in-comparison) limited hardware. Some have even dubbed the choice of New York City as evidence of that, saying the sleek buildings and familiar setting are easier to design and thus will not be so backbreaking come the time when the game will undergo the console translation. Though there is logic somewhere in those arguments, that’s hardly any reason to worry, as one only has to check out the graphical splendor that is the game’s new engine, the CryEngine 3.
Many pegged the first game as only a show-horse for Crytek’s new engine at the time, the CryEngine 2, and those claims would have been valid had not the gameplay been so stellar. This time around some of those old accusations will surely make their way to the sequel but the graphics are nevertheless still worth checking out (which you can over at mycryengine.com). The visuals from Crysis have already been dubbed “obsolete”, AI will be reworked to imitate the cunning mind even more and computer physics will see a new plateau in gaming. So, if you were technologically left behind the first time around, well, be prepared for your second helping of dust.
Holding Out
With such a giant of a game to top, Crytek most certainly has their hands full. The gameplay, the storytelling, the graphics – all of it will have to be branded as better if the German developers are going to accomplish a feat so few have executed. Building a standout sequel is always looked at with eyes full of uncertainty, of weathered hopes, of simple doubt if not sheer rejection. It always helps if the minds that created the first game are still there creating the second but history has shown again and again how those minds fall short after the initial triumph.
There will always be the skeptics, the ones who so easily say “no” and are often proven right. But, at the same time, there will always be the sequels that did climb higher than their foundation, the sequels that silenced the skeptics and showed it’s still possible. Here’s hoping Crysis 2 can do just that.
