crysis posts

In the "Not a huge shock" category. Electronic Arts has announced that it has signed a new deal with Crytek to publish Crysis 2, the next game in their sci-fi shooter series. EA published the original Crysis in 2007 for the PC and a second game, Crysis Warhead, was release for the PC in 2008.

Little else is know about Crysis 2 other than it will be release on consoles as well as the PC and that it will be the first game to use Crytek's CryEngine 3 technology. There is no word of a release date nor if the game will continue the story left behind at the end of the original Crysis.

Late last week we reported that Crytek would be offering another chance for anyone to download and play the full version fo the multiplayer shooter Crysis Wars online for a week. Today the MyCrysis web site has revealed more info on the trial period. It will begin on Thursday, April 9 and end on Friday, April 17

People who have already downloaded the full game and have kept their CD Keys from the previous free trials will have their keys reactivated for the new event. For any newcomers you can receive a CD Key by becoming a member of MyCrysis.net.. The day the free trial starts, MyCrysis.net members will be able to get their CD Key to play the game online. You can go ahead and download the full game and the most recent 1.4 patch to play the shooter in LAN mode for free.
Download the full Crysis Wars trial version from Big Download (2 GB)
Download the 1.4 Crysis Wars patch (434 MB)

For those who don't recognize the system, Big Download gave away a computer very similar to this one in contest a few months ago. So, we couldn't help trying out one of these monster systems for ourselves. iBuypower custom builds high-powered gaming computers, and the Paladin F870-SB has everything top-of-the-line technology has to offer. For starters, they system features an Intel Core i7-940 2.9GHz Quad Core processor along with a Nvidia GeForce GTX 295 video card. Other features include a whopping 6 GB of RAM, a Blu-ray/HD DVD drive in addition to the standard DVD read/write drive and multicard reader, running Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit. It's all topped off with a Sceptre 20.1" monitor, an NZXT "Avatar" gaming mouse, and a Logitech G15 gaming keyboard. Altogether, this monster has power and features to spare, and we threw a bunch of games at it to see how it all stacks up.

In a bit of a surprise annnouncement, Crytek has revealed that it plans to demo the next generation version of its CryEngine game graphics technology at the Game Developers Conference later this month. CryEngine 3 is the first game engine from Crytek that is not just for PC games but for "console, online, MMO and Next-Gen game development."

Crytek developed the first generation CryEngine to use for their 2004 first person shooter Far Cry. CryEngine 2 made its debut in 2007 with the release of Crysis and was used again in 2008 for Crysis Warhead. Both engines have been licensed by a number of different game developers in the past. Crytek states it will be giving public demos of CryEngine 3 during GDC along with holding meeting with developers who are interested in licensing the game engine.

After weeks of speculation, at least two separete stories on the Interweb have posted up word that UK developer Free Radical Design has found itself a buyer. 1Up.com reports that Free Radical's scriptwriter Rob Yescombe has told them it's German-based Crytek (the original Far Cry, Crysis and Crysis Warhead) has bought the company. Our sister site Joystiq has also heard the same thing from an anonymous source.

If true (and we expect to hear something official tomorrow) this move would represent only the latest expansion for Crytek. Besides their home office in Frankfurt, they have launched other development studios in the past two years in Kiev, Ukraine, Seoul, South Korea and Budapest, Hungary. They also purchased the former Black Sea Studios in Sofia, Bulgaria and renamed it Crytek Black Sea

Last October, developer Crytek and publisher Electronic Arts allowed folks to download and play the full version of Crysis Wars for free for a limited time period. Today EA announced they are doing it again for the holidays. Starting at Noon ET on Friday, Dec. 19 and ending on 2:59 am ET on Dec. 29, the full version of the sci-fi multiplayer shooter will be free to play online.

The full version will include the two new multiplayer maps, Savanna and Frost, that were released today as part of the new 1.3 patch for Crysis Wars (you can download that patch now at Big Download). As with the last free trial, you will have to go to the MyCrysis.com web site and register to receive a key that will allow you to play the game online during the new trial period. Of course we have the full version already available to grab here at Big Download.

[via email press release]

If you have been playing the stand alone Crysis Wars multiplayer game that comes with Crysis Warhead, get ready to get happy on Wednesday. Developer Crytek has announced that tomorrow they will release patch 1.3 for the game that will include two new multiplayer maps.

One is a PowerStruggle map named Frost that as the name implies has a lot of snow and ice in the jungle (courtesy of Crysis' aliens who apparently like things a bit chilly). The other is a Team Instant Action map called Savanna. It's notable for both being large and for taking place in a setting that's meant to look like an African wilderness. Of course the patch will be made available here at Big Download tomorrow.

We are just one week away from "Black Friday" and more and more retailers are revealing what specials they will have on the single biggest shopping day of the year. Blackfriday.info has revealed what game retailer Gamestop will have on sale on that day and it includes some PC game titles. It's admittedly not much of an offering compared to all the console game titles but it's better than nothing.

Crysis - $19.99
Guild Wars Trilogy With Free Eye Of The North - $49.99
Guild Wars With Free Eye Of The North - $19.99
Lord of the Rings Online - $29.99
World Of Warcraft Battle Chest - $19.99
World Of Warcraft - $9.99

The latest patch for Crysis Wars, the stand-alone multiplayer aspect of Crysis Warhead, updates the game to version 1.2 and includes a number of bug fixes and enhancements. Steam customers should try the autoupdater before using this patch. Keep reading for full patch notes.

Download Crysis Wars v1.2 Patch (104 MB)

This patch removes the online activation from Crysis Wars. It also includes bug fixes and a number of game enhancements such as upgrading the game to 64-bit.

Download Crysis Wars v1.1 Patch (93 MB)
Check out all Crysis Warhead downloads