Crysis 2 is the best looking game on console. Boom.
There's your takeaway statement. There's your excuse to scurry for the comments section foaming at the mouth, dismiss this article as the ranting of as a clueless moron who doesn't know what he's talking about or read on in interest. Perhaps even all three.
But however you react, Crysis 2 is what it is. It's the best looking game on console. Or rather, the best looking game on 360.
"What about PlayStation 3?" you cry, waving a DualShock3 in disgust. Blame Crytek for that one.
When we attend the Crysis 2 world premiere in New York earlier this week, it's obvious from the Crytek turnout that they know that you know Crytek can make great looking PC games (see Crysis 1).
The only question mark hangs over the studio's ability to take advantage of CryEngine 3 on console. That means choosing between showing gameplay on Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. They opt for 360.
There is no real reason for choosing Microsoft's console to showcase its baby, Crytek explains to flustered journalists at the reveal. They just had to pick a side and figured they'd run with Xbox 360.
They shrug off the decision with a casual indifference that suggests they aren't quite aware how hot the frontlines are in the console war, having come from the solidarity world of PC.
It's worth nothing that Crytek's reps take time out of their Crysis 2 presentation to focus on CryEngine3 and all the fancy new stuff it can do. It's during this demonstration that we catch the briefest of glimpses of Crysis 2 on 360 and PlayStation 3 running side by side. Deep breath. Ready? Both versions look exactly the same. And relax.
Crytek shows off the interior of a building and how the shading changes during the day/night cycle - and there's nothing to pick between the two versions. It's the only side-by-side comparison during the event and the only time Crytek drops its guard to show the PlayStation 3 version.
CryEngine3 demo over, we're then shown a pre-rendered trailer, met with polite and curious applause from the room full of journalists rather than whooping or hollering.
Anyone could put together a pre-rendered trailer, after all, and that's not the reason journalists travelled across the globe to see what Crytek could do. The real test comes when the gameplay footage was shown, which is next on the list. When it lands, you can hear jaws hit the floor in sync with the big moments of the demonstration.
Crysis 2
Official trailer
2:10Launch trailer
Crysis 2
Official trailer
2:10Launch trailer
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Crytek decides to run through a hefty chunk of gameplay in real-time to prove that what we are witnessing isn't an elaborate smoke and mirrors act.
As with most real-time demonstrations, it lends a clumsy but authentic feel to the demonstration; indeed, it's easy to picture that what Crytek shows off is the exact same experience gamers at home will have (especially given whichever Crytek employee was at the controls had almost no aim whatsoever with their shotgun).
So how does it look? Well... awesome. Crysis 2 is the kind of game that makes it all too easy to stray into list territory when describing the visuals. So we will anyway: Glass shatters and falls under gunfire; bullets ping off concrete blocks while throwing up thick clouds of dust; cars warp and crumple under heavy alien feet; buildings shake off suffocating layers of settled dirt thanks to nearby rumbles and shockwaves, often caused by aliens bursting through the concrete.
Yet picking and listing the ingredients does a disservice to the overall cocktail of visual splendour. It's the way everything hangs together that made us want to check round the back of the screen to see if the leads were running to a 360 or a nuclear-powered PC.
Crytek spend a great deal of time talking about the gameplay changes to the Nanosuit, and the hiring of sci-fi scribe Richard Morgan to write the story - both genuine efforts to address complaints thrown at its predecessor.
But the real takeaway here is the sentence we opened up with. If you remember only one thing from this, make it so: Crysis 2 is the best looking game on console. Boom.
I think a lot of Sony fanboys are gonna be weeaally upset at that news.
That said, I never played the first Crysis- though I've heard a lot of mixed opinions on it. Can the engine be optimized for different kinds of games other than fps?
It's worth nothing that Crytek's reps take time out of their Crysis 2 presentation to focus on CryEngine3 and all the fancy new stuff it can do. It's during this demonstration that we catch the briefest of glimpses of Crysis 2 on 360 and PlayStation 3 running side by side. Deep breath. Ready? both versions look exactly the same. And relax.
Well done Crytek. Not only have the made a graphical step up, but also made it work similarly on both consoles.
No console war needed here. Move along. Nothing to see here.
They sighted HL2 as an influence for the story telling in this game, so that straight away invokes my interest. It will be nice to have another intellegent shooter, as they have been few and far between in this generation.
I think a lot of Sony fanboys are gonna be weeaally upset at that news.
That said, I never played the first Crysis- though I've heard a lot of mixed opinions on it. Can the engine be optimized for different kinds of games other than fps?
I'll be watching this one, me thinks.
If you had played the Crysis you wouldn't really have cared about the engine.
Focker will have his head in his hands at this point. The ps3 fanboy was convinced the ps3 version would be better. It was always going to be the same or slightly worse than the 360 version(like most ports).
The pc version of this will be fantastic(if you have a gaming rig).
y would ps3 fans b upset? im not. isnt it great that graphics gets better?
also, crysis will b out a half year later than uncharted 2 and more than 1 year after killzone 2. so its rly no surprise that the game got better graphics. lets just hope the gameplay is as good...
Any claims of 360 having better graphics are shot down when we reach the line '...we catch the briefest of glimpses of Crysis 2 on 360 and PlayStation 3 running side by side. Deep breath. Ready? Both versions look exactly the same. And relax.'
Any claims of 360 having better graphics are shot down when we reach the line '...we catch the briefest of glimpses of Crysis 2 on 360 and PlayStation 3 running side by side. Deep breath. Ready? Both versions look exactly the same. And relax.'
Indeed! and... when was that claimed exactly?
360 reporter reporting, game demoed on 360 by Crytek, best graphics on 360, and it looks exactly the same as PS3.
There really isn't an awful lot the fanboys can get their panties in a bunch over there. May I suggest one CVG's fine baiting articles instead? Plenty of flaming in there. Or, perhaps finding a better purpose in life than arguing with anything that may suggest your chosen games console isn't the best thing ever.
Where my laptop could most likely run this game with ease. I am still getting it for one of the consoles. PC gaming is a bit boring mouse and keyboards make it way too easy. I want a challenge. Nicer graphics dont do nothing for me its all about the gaming experience which for me wins on console everytime. Plus my friends can sit on sofa and watch/play it too. Laptop isn't great for that stuff. Hate if you feel you must its just my preference. Peace!
If this game is successful in both story and multiplayer it has a very big chance of competing against halo reach.
Its true that graphics isnt everything, for example what happened to killzone 2, had amazing graphics and was known to be the halo killer. What happened? It did not scratch Halo 3s sales. and halo 3s graphics looks pathetic compared to killzone 2.
As a game though, Killzone 2 was a far better experience than Halo 3 offline and matched it online with added perks, sales make tites such as endless Fifa, Pro Evo games exist but sales don’t make them better than titles such as Okami or SOTC.
Halo's a big franchise as the series got off to a blistering start in the form of Halo Combat Evolved (I still nip back now and again to play it on Legendary Co-Op with the Control Room level and that island getting plenty of play throughs), what a game. The rest fell away as Bungie focused on pushing online mp onto the console market and look at how far the series has fallen, but given the success of Live, I don't think MS care. Hopefully Reach will be mainly single player focused with those great online options available too.
Killzone didn't start well and the first title was headache inducing (those bloody Helgan voices!!! arrrggg) but the series has kicked off really well on PS3 were sales are concerned given how s**t the first game was and I'm looking forward to the Threquel, which should be a contender for best looking game along with Crysis 2 considering the Killzone graphics engine on PS3 has been built already leaving only time for even more improvements.
The Xbox 360 is a powerful machine and I don't think there's a different overall in titles than PS3 (if PS3 is more powerful then its only slight) but the PS3's blu ray adds advantages, take the space used up by Uncharted 2 for example. Things are gona get even more interesting though when Alan Wake and Gears 3 are released, they should also be contenders for the best graphics accolade.
"Not gonna bother with this on PC, better on console, through my big shinny LCD TV and digital amp."
no, better on my pc in non-upscaled 1080p with 8xAA through my big shining lcd tv with full surround. not that i'm gloating, just mystified by your use of the word 'better'.
Not gonna bother with this on PC, better on console, through my big shinny LCD TV and digital amp.
You know that you can hook your pc to your big ass LCD TV and right into your amp and even play with gamepad but with MUCH better graphics, right? Right?
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