Far Cry 2

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Far Cry 2
Far Cry 2 Logo
Developer(s) Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher(s) Ubisoft
Designer(s) Clint Hocking
Series Far Cry
Engine Dunia
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Release date October, 2008 [1]
Genre(s) First-person shooter
Mode(s) Single-player, Multiplayer
Media Blu-ray Disc, DVD
Input methods SIXAXIS Controller, DualShock 3 Xbox 360 Controller, Keyboard and mouse

Far Cry 2 is an upcoming first person shooter published by Ubisoft and is the sequel to Far Cry. Crytek, developers of the original game, are not involved in the development of Far Cry 2. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were announced on January 3, 2008, and will ship simultaneously with the PC version.

Contents

[edit] Gameplay

The game will be entirely open-ended and non-linear. Instead of using individual maps, the game will take place in a sprawling nondescript land in Africa, with terrain ranging from Savannah to jungle[1], similar to those seen in Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction, Just Cause and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl. The gameplay area will be around 50 km2. Some members of the Ubisoft Montreal team spent 2 weeks in several locations in Africa filming and photographing native wildlife. The team will use the animal footage and environment photos to create an extremely realistic environment.

The protagonist of previous Far Cry games, Jack Carver, will not be featured in this game. When Ubisoft interviewed players about the original Far Cry in their research for this game, the interviewees didn't find the character very memorable or likeable.[2] As a result, in the sequel the player will be able to choose from around twelve different characters to play, each with a unique look and back story. All of the playable characters will be different types of mercenaries. The playable characters the player does not choose to play will become non-player characters who are friends of the player's character.[2]

The goal of the player's character will be to find and assassinate "The Jackal"[2], an arms dealer that has been selling weapons to both sides of the conflict that's tearing apart a small fictional African country.[3] The way this is done, however is entirely up to the player, being possible to ally with anyone he/she chooses.

Various factions and vehicles will be featured; enemies will include human mercenaries, but sci-fi creatures such as the mutants from Far Cry will not be featured.[4] Furthermore, the player's feral abilities introduced in Far Cry Instincts and its expansions will not be returning in Far Cry 2. A dynamic weather system has been added that varies the weather based on the players ability - if the player is doing exceptionally well the sky will be clear and sunny, but if problems arise the sky will become dark and stormy.[5]

A pre-Alpha video of the game, showcasing visuals and 13 minutes of gameplay, with developer commentary, is available in .zip format at GamersLand [6]. The video showcases many dynamic gameplay features which included procedural breakage of vegetation, allowing players to shoot down trees and shoot branches and leaves off of trees, which can eventually re-grow. The developers also showcased dynamic propagation of fire, and volumetric wind effects capable of breaking vegetation and spreading fire. Man-made structures were also shown to be highly destructible.

The game will be much more realistic with features such as the player having to use a map and compass to get around, and more life or death related features such as having to use tools to dig bullets out of the body and pat themselves down when on fire. Several species of African wildlife can be encountered in the game, and will be able to distract the enemy as well as make them aware of your presence.[7]

The game's producer, Louis-Pierre Pharand, says that the single player will "potentially have close to 50 hours of game play."[3]

[edit] Development

[edit] History

The unveiling of Far Cry 2 took place on July 19th, 2007 in Paris, France, by head company Ubisoft. Ubisoft stated that the game had been in development by the Ubisoft Montreal team, and would be released in Spring 2008.[4]In December of 2007, Ubisoft announced a delay in the release of Far Cry 2, giving the estimate of fiscal 2008-2009.[5]

[edit] Research

In July 2007, Ubisoft sent a team of the game's developers to Africa to carry-out research for the game. They reportedly spent two weeks traveling around Kenya and camping out on the savannah. The game's producer, Louis-Pierre Pharand said that following the trip they realized they had gotten the design of the game "so wrong" and made several changes to "make the game feel like you were really there".[6]

[edit] Ubiday's 2008

During Ubisoft's Ubidays, held in Paris, France on May 28th & 29th, 2008, Ubisoft revealed brand new video footage for Far Cry 2. [7] Along with the new footage, Ubisoft displayed in-game screenshots showing off the photo-realistic visuals rendered by Ubisoft's Dunia Engine (see engine). A video of Ubisoft Montreal's developers talking about the upcoming game's features can be seen on G4TV's website Here [8]

[edit] Engine

Ubisoft has developed a new engine specifically for Far Cry 2, called Dunia, meaning "world" or "earth" in Persian, as well as in other languages including Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi, Arabic, Marathi, Turkish, Bengali, Swahili, Assyrian, Indonesian and Malay.[9] The engine will take advantage of multi-core processors and support DirectX 9 as well as DirectX 10.[10] Only 2 or 3 percent of the original CryENGINE code is being re-used, according to Michiel Verheijdt, Senior Product Manager for Ubisoft Netherlands.[11]

Far Cry 2 will also support the Ambx-technology from Philips. With the proper hardware, this adds effects like vibrations, ambient coloured lights, and fans that generate wind effects. The agreement will also see an amBX patch being released for the original Far Cry.[12]

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ Osborn, Chuck (October 2007). "Far Cry 2: Survival Guide to Africa". PC Gamer 14 (10): 28. ISSN 1080-4471. 
  2. ^ a b Osborn, Chuck (October 2007). "Far Cry 2: Survival Guide to Africa". PC Gamer 14 (10): 24. ISSN 1080-4471. 
  3. ^ MEGATONik.com Far Cry 2 single player will be (potentially) (close to) 50 HOURS!
  4. ^ Ubisoft Far Cry 2 Announcement - Ubisoftgroup.org
  5. ^ Kotaku.com http://kotaku.com/gaming/ubisoft/far-cry-2-endwar-hells-highway-delayed-333565.php
  6. ^ ThreespeechFar Cry 2 Interview - Keith Stuart
  7. ^ G4TV.com - The Feed http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/ May, 2008
  8. ^ G4TV - The Feed http://www.g4tv.com/thefeed/blog/post/685862/Far_Cry_2_Videos__Screenshots.html
  9. ^ We have an engine name! - Topic Powered by eve community
  10. ^ Gametrailers.com - Far Cry 2 - Developer Diary - Engine Introduction
  11. ^ "Tweakers.net (Google Translation)", VNUMedia, 2007-12-14. Retrieved on 2007-12-17. 
  12. ^ Philips - Press Releas: Philips Arms Ubisoft with amBX(390176) - GamersHell.com
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