Crytek is flexing its muscles at GDC by doing what it does best: showcasing the latest technologies and progress for the next version of CryEngine. More new footage from the CryEngine 3-based Crysis 2 was revealed this week in the demonstration.
The company reassured an anxious crowd in San Francisco on Thursday that they are still at the bleeding edge when it comes to real time computer graphics.
The video details many of the new technologies that are being implemented in Crysis 2, most of which are featured on the PlayStation 3/Xbox 360 version of the game. Amongst the features we’ve come to expect from CryEngine, like its signature real-time dynamic lighting and advanced shader techniques, the video shows off plenty of new technology. Notable additions include color grading, blend shading and a much more robust procedural system for object destruction.
To ease concerns that CryEngine 3 is going to be watered down to console standards, the video also showcases PC-specific tech such as facial animation and subsurface scattering techniques that look significantly better than they did with Crysis. Also specific to the PC is deferred lighting, which is a rendering technique that calculates lighting per pixel and renders the information down to the texture, which is stored in a buffer. In short, deferred lighting is able to handle a large amount of lights without crushing GPU performance.
We also get to see more of the war-torn cityscape environment that has been so prevalent in other CryEngine 3 videos. Whereas Crysis’ gameplay focused on semi-futuristic guerrilla warfare set on a tropical paradise, Crysis 2 looks to be a CQB affair.
Finally, the video demonstrates a dynamic cover system, which lends credence to the urban combat model. Battles look tight and intense with an impressive amount of destruction in tow.
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