[360, PS3] Crysis 2

[Neb]

Crysis 2 hands-on with pics.

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/c...6285425&mode=previews&tag=topslot;thumb;3

 

[Prophecy2k]

I'm still worried about the PS3 version of this game as i know my dog-slow PC won't get anywhere with this game and so PS3 is my only option.

So far all we've seen of the PS3 version is... well... nothing... :-S

We've seen engine vids on PS3 and such but nothing of Crysis 2 on the platform. After all their talk of how easy PS3 programming was for Crytek, and how the game is gonna be the best looking game on any console, i really hope that Crytek (for their own sakes) doesn't fail to deliver. They should have shut up and just put their heads down and worked to get the game done, rather than mouthing off and raising everyone's expectations.

If the game is meant to be 4 months from release and we (the public) have STILL yet to see the PS3 version (a little birdy told me they saw an early build at GDC which was pretty janky), then i'm just gonna have to expect Bayonetta levels of shite and hope to be pleasantly surprised.

 

[Rangers]

"Be the Weapon" trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOyD7SoY7LU

*picks jaw up off floor*

Also new IGN preview with the questions on all of our minds:

http://pc.ign.com/articles/114/1140767p1.html

I'm going to say something that may irk some of you, but I mean it in the best way possible: Crysis 2 seems to have taken some pages from the Halo series' design manual. The idea of strung together combat sandboxes is all over the place, though the sandboxes in question are enormous, and the organic feeling AI evoke Bungie's influential series. Clearly, Crytek has a number of tricks of their own in store for the game, but the comparison isn't hard to make.

I was also aided by significantly improved game-pad support in Crysis 2. I was playing the PC version of the game with a wired 360 controller, and aside from the raw visual splendor on the screen - and seriously, I'm not one to to fellate the original Crysis's graphics, since I found them a little boring, but DAMN is Crysis 2 looking amazing on PC - it played very smoothly. Crytek has thrown in some snap-to targeting on the left trigger and a bit of aim assist to boot, and configurations are customizable, a major change from the last game. Switching between powers might actually be easier on the 360 pad than on the PC; pulling off manuevers like taking aim, quickly uncloaking and firing, then cloaking again are pulled off quickly using the bumper to phase in and out.

Unfortunately, while my recent time with the game has reassured me that Crysis 2 will translate perfectly well to console controls, I'm left with more questions than answers as to how the game will fair technically speaking. To be blunt, I'm not quite sure how Crytek will be able to pull off the enormous combat environments on the Xbox 360 and PS3. We haven't seen the console versions of Crysis 2 for months; in fact, we've never seen the PS3 version at all. With just a few short months of development time left, I'm growing more and more curious about how Crytek's first foray outside of the PC space will end up.

 

[L. Scofield]

Console footage, hopefully.

 

[Neb]

I'm still worried about the PS3 version of this game as i know my dog-slow PC won't get anywhere with this game and so PS3 is my only option.

So far all we've seen of the PS3 version is... well... nothing... :-S

We've seen engine vids on PS3 and such but nothing of Crysis 2 on the platform. After all their talk of how easy PS3 programming was for Crytek, and how the game is gonna be the best looking game on any console, i really hope that Crytek (for their own sakes) doesn't fail to deliver. They should have shut up and just put their heads down and worked to get the game done, rather than mouthing off and raising everyone's expectations.

If the game is meant to be 4 months from release and we (the public) have STILL yet to see the PS3 version (a little birdy told me they saw an early build at GDC which was pretty janky), then i'm just gonna have to expect Bayonetta levels of shite and hope to be pleasantly surprised.

I think it is a tactical decision. They say they tapped the PS3 dry on perfomance (ignoring you can have 99% constant utilisation in any game ever, especially highly dynamic ones). Yet it underperforms vs 360 due to not being as flexible (unified shaders, one memory pool). Becouse seeing both platforms capabilities it is quite clear they are in the same ballpark with different strengths and weaknesses.

Think about how 360 exclusive titles generally are more open world style and how open world style multiplatforms performs on the 360 vs PS3. How PS3 exclusives are mostly highly linear which allows dev to much easier control what happens and what is rendered and take perfomance capabilities into consideration, reach a higher avg utilisation in preset scenes. In dynamic open world games this would not be possible in the same way becouse you cant predict all situations and how they affect perfomance.

360 with it's unified shaders would be able to adapt on the fly for the dynamic scenes and keep a more stable framerate and perhaps even more effects due to this since avg framerate could be higher.

Anyway problem is if PS3 version doesn't look better/run better than 360 version then the lunatic defence force will "hang" Crytek and call them lazy-devs, liars etc etc. Thus better to show nothing.

 

[nightshade]

I'm not 'getting' this game, the styling looks so uninteresting and usual. :|

 

[Neb]

I'll take that back, artowork/TOD style seems quite good seeing the different locations and it is console version.

 

[L. Scofield]

The TODs in the video make everything look boring, except for the one with the bright sky. Lens flares look great though.

 

[dragonelite]

Loved ending with the water.
Kinda gave me a Halo Reach vibe seeing a city getting destroyed and stuff.

 

[Neb]

Saw this trailer called "Be the weapon". Shows gameplay fro mseveral new places in singleplayer and seems to be console footage.


Also at the ending there is OMG fluid dynamic water mass with physics pulling objects on the road when water mass moves ahead. Somebody resurrect that lunatic that was all over simple/shitty water effects in lastgen and this gen games. /sarcasm

Nice, probably scripted sequence there.

 

[nightshade]

Honestly speaking that water part at the end looked bad, doesn't matters if its using fluid dynamics or using it at a large scale.

 

[Neb]

Honestly speaking that water part at the end looked bad, doesn't matters if its suing fluid dynamics at a large scale at that.

Nothing ground breaking but a nice addition. Mesh doesn't seem to have much geometry and splash effects are not complex dense particle emitters. However sequence in motion is nice or lets say does it's work and since it is on consoles.

 

[Svensk Viking]

There was much action in that trailer, now I want to see some stealth gameplay(you know, sniping from afar, invisibility, change place style)...Also want to see more big, open environments

I have one question regarding the 360 version...Is it possible that the 360 version is getting some extra benefits in optimisation due to Crytek developing Codename: Kingdoms exclusively for it?

 

[Neb]

I have one question regarding the 360 version...Is it possible that the 360 version is getting some extra benefits in optimisation due to Crytek developing Codename: Kingdoms exclusively for it?

Not when they put their reputation in play when they say they are tapping the PS3 as few others.

 

[L. Scofield]

Also at the ending there is OMG fluid dynamic water mass with physics pulling objects on the road when water mass moves ahead. Somebody resurrect that lunatic that was all over simple/shitty water effects in lastgen and this gen games. /sarcasm

Nice, probably scripted sequence there.

I wonder if the fluid it's actually calculated realtime or it's just an animated blob. Probably the latter :/

All in all, this looks like a poor man's Crysis.

-Small environments with very limited interaction (almost no props, and very limited destructability, compared to the hundreds of trees you could take down in C1)
-Worse graphics. Sure, it has limited GI and some nice flares, but textures suck bad, horrible filtering too.
-Gameplay wise the NS got dumbed down. Look at speed mode, it's just a regular sprint with some extra radial blur .

Bleh.

 

[nightshade]

The 'Speed mode' is actually the same as Crysis/Wars.....I know this from playing the stress test. When I sprint in the speed mode the character moved just as fast as he did in Crysis/Wars, I assume that they have reduced the max speed in multiplayer mode when compared to singleplayer, just like how they did with the previous two games.

 

[Neb]

I wonder if the fluid it's actually calculated realtime or it's just an animated blob. Probably the latter :/

All in all, this looks like a poor man's Crysis.

It wouldn't tax HW with such geometry. Thats by far simpler than PhysX 3D water in other games in terms of collision calculations. Though maybe they push that effect on PC but... who knows.

-Small environments with very limited interaction (almost no props, and very limited destructability, compared to the hundreds of trees you could take down in C1)

They sure look smaller but there where some areas that looked to give a decent playarea and then we need to see how much vertical gameplay are will be available. Though havent seen much of the procedural destructions they showcased but lets wait for PC version.

-Worse graphics. Sure, it has limited GI and some nice flares, but textures suck bad, horrible filtering too.

That video seems to sport almost only console visuals. The tech and visual downgrade from Crysis is huge. Textures, filtering, shadow filtering and res, effects, SSAO quality, lighting, shading.

 

[L. Scofield]

They sure look smaller but there where some areas that looked to give a decent playarea and then we need to see how much vertical gameplay are will be available. Though havent seen much of the procedural destructions they showcased but lets wait for PC version.

Not only destruction, but props. Remember the houses in the village filled with dozens and dozens of physicalized props

 

[nightshade]

You mean shanties ?

 

[L. Scofield]

Yes, those. But all areas in Crysis were full of objects to interact with, even the alien base.