Far Cry 2
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GC 2008: Ubisoft screenshot roundup
Ubisoft has released beaucoup d'images as part of the media overflow we call Leipzig Games Convention 2008. Below and after the break, check out new galleries of screenshots for Raving Rabbids TV Party, Prince of Persia, EndWar, HAWX, Far Cry 2 and more. It's just like Ubidays, only with no Beyond Good & Evil in sight. Oh, mon Dieu!%Gallery-30166%
Check out Far Cry 2's map editor
Ubisoft has released video of Far Cry 2's map editor, complete with a soothing narrator who holds your hands through the 5-minute trailer. Quite frankly, we're excited for how intuitive it seems to be, but perhaps that's just wishful thinking that we'll be able to accurately recreate the island from LOST and play out our own scenarios (only with fewer polar bears). Weather and time of day can also be altered. The folks at IGN have detailed impressions of the editor. It looks impressive, for sure, but remembering Unreal Tournament 3 for Xbox 360, what is unclear right now is how (if at all) console gamers will be able to trade maps. Update: Curse our insomniac ways! Previous entry Far Cry Instincts featured ways to share maps over Xbox Live, so it'd be safe to assume a similar method will also be used for Far Cry 2.
Far Cry 2's map editor is flipping amazing
Here's your jaw dropping amazing video of the day. After the break (or jump, if you're all about BIG videos) you can view a demo of Far Cry 2's map editor in action with commentary by a seductive narrator (not that we're complaining or anything). And it's a guarantee that you'll be impressed. Seriously, we had no clue Far Cry 2's map editor would be so vast, so customizable and so epic in scale. There are over 1000 objects, you can change the weather, the landscape AND even alter the environment's textures. It's hard to admit, but Far Cry 2's map editor puts Halo 3's Forge to shame. Hell, there is no comparison. We're flipping impressed with what the Far Cry 2 dev team has accomplished. A big round of applause to them.
Far Crysis: PCs will weep at Far Cry 2's system reqs
Ubisoft has revealed the minimum and respectable suggested system requirements for its upcoming FPS / wildfire simulator, Far Cry 2. Let's just say that if your current rig had trouble running Crysis well, it's a far cry from being able to handle FC2. Oh, and just because previous series-dev Crytek is currently designing Crysis Warhead to run well on $600 systems doesn't mean that its new caretakers at Ubisoft are giving up the war against two-week-old PC components. You'll find the full shopping list rundown of requirements after the break. [Via Big Download]
Joystiq E3 hands-on: Far Cry 2
Adding on to our hands-on with Far Cry 2 a couple months ago, our most recent experience at E3 gave us the same feeling that we'd only begun to scratch the surface of this title. For a general overview of what to expect in Far Cry 2, check out our previous hands-on with the game. Here we're going to get into a little bit more detail about our experience within the game.For starters, the African Serengeti, the open-world venue for the game looks the same on both the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions. The location has some great level design put into it with our 20-minute experience presenting us with several locales. After a battle in one particular village, we got on a boat and drove through a well-detailed ravine; while in another instance we drove to a location in a car along dirt roads. The driving in the game is surprisingly good, making sense depending on what terrain is being driven over, and we didn't find ourselves unnecessarily fighting with the controls at all. Now, let's discuss the surprising AI in the game.%Gallery-6687%
E308: Far Cry 2 trailer proves Africa is the hottest new setting for games
Resident Evil 5 and Far Cry 2 are both Africa bound! Coming soon from Ubisoft Montreal is Far Cry 2. A sequel of sorts, Far Cry 2 takes the name from the original title developed by Crytek and features a new story and world. Taking place in an unnamed part of Africa players can expect a more realistic shooter than the original. If that guarantees we won't be shooting up aliens in the boiling heat then sign us up! Also, check out the briefly flashed-URL that points to the blog of Reuben Monday-Oluwagembi, the personal blog of the journalist narrator from the trailer. Yay! More Alternate Reality Games! Far Cry 2 is set to release this October, the trailer is now available on the Xbox Live Marketplace.
Far Cry 2 video interview discusses day/night system
In this video interview with the developers of Far Cry 2, Ubisoft gives you a brief rundown of the story: track down an arms dealer supplying goods to both sides of some warring factions. There's also a lot of different ways to approach the game: there's a night and day system in place and depending on your actions during the day or night, the game will play out differently. Of course, the time of day will have coinciding strategies that will work to your advantage, whether you want to sneak Metal Gear Solid style or run in with guns blazing. It sounds interesting and we hope to hear more as the game nears completion.
Don't be sad, but a Far Cry 2 demo isn't happening
Far Cry 2 will not have a pre-release demo according to Clint Hocking, the game's creative director. Hocking explains to Eurogamer that given the open-world nature of the game, that even if they put walls around a certain section, there could still potentially be hours worth of game in that space -- defeating the whole point of a demo being a teaser.Hocking went on to say that Far Cry 2's features are all locked and now "100 guys" are sitting around picking out the bugs. We should certainly get some hands-on time with the game next week at E3 and we'll report back what we find from our jaunt through the savanna.
No Far Cry 2 demo and no hours of fun for you
No demo for you, you unworthy and too needy fanboys! Or so says Ubisoft (not exactly word for word, but it's the general idea) in regards to offering up a pre-release Far Cry 2 demo, because it'd be giving away too much of game. "Even if we were to give out what you played today - even if we put invisible walls around it and said, here's the demo, you can go anywhere you like inside these walls and play it how you want - that's potentially right there eight-to-ten hours of gameplay" says Far Cry 2's creative director Clint Hocking. "I don't know too many people who are willing to give away a 12-hour game for free." Do you feel the fun getting sucked out of the room?So, it's confirmed, no Far Cry 2 demo love for us. Then again, it isn't like we don't have 20 minutes of game footage to garner some sort of opinion off of. But that's looking at the whole thing from a "glass half full" perspective.
Video: 20 destructive minutes of Far Cry 2
We aren't entirely sure how we missed this juicy Fary Cry 2 bit of news (we blame you for not tipping us off, for shame fanboys!), but we're here to rectify our mistake. Earlier in the week, Shacknews posted twenty minutes, yes twenty long minutes of in-game Far Cry 2 footage that came from a stage presentation at this week's DreamHack computer expo. After skimming through the twenty minute video, we're impressed. If you ignore the demo's complete lockup at the 7:13 minute mark, Far Cry 2 looks to be shaping up very well, with top notch destructible environments, solid animations and combat that seems very Far Cry'esque. Grab a chair and watch twenty minutes of Fary Cry 2 bliss after the jump. Did we mention it's twenty minutes long?
Far Cry 2 tech video is a pyro's dream
More from the Ubidays event, as Ubisoft has released a tech demo video of Far Cry 2 and, more specifically, the Dunia engine on which it runs. The video shows off lots of nifty aspects of the engine, such as dynamic weather, dynamic light and shadow, day and night cycles, and (beautiful) procedural sky. Oh, and did we mention that it's frickin' gorgeous? Well, it totally is. Lest we forget, the video also shows off the engine's fire propagation. In other words, if you set something on fire, it will, in turn, set other things on fire. Sounds like a great way to surprise a hut full of guerillas.
Joystiq hands-on: Far Cry 2
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Hands_on_Far_Cry_2'; When we last saw Clint Hocking, creative director at Ubisoft Montreal, he was making a last minute stop at PAX to show off Far Cry 2. The visibly tired Hocking took us on a tour of the new game's exotic environment, the African Serengeti – exoticism being the game's major connection to the original. A couple weeks ago at Ubisoft's Ubidays event in San Francisco, Hocking was there again, but in a smaller room (decorated in an African theme) surrounded by journalists actually playing the game. "It's 50 square kilometers, an open world," he says. We'd heard the same thing previously, as far back as PAX. The game had always been ambitious; now, it was running quite smoothly right in front of us, on an Xbox 360. So, how close are they to reaching that goal of being an entirely open world shooter? From what I could tell in this very limited demo, pretty close.%Gallery-23913%
Video: Far Cry 2 and an explosive Africa
Coming straight out of Ubidays 2008 is a brand new Far Cry 2 trailer, complete with a reporter voice over, a look at the lovely African countryside and some explosive in-game footage. And after giving it a quick watch we've come to the conclusion that Far Cry 2 looks good, sounds good and just may actually be ... good. We aren't sure if it's the African wildebeests, the stunning sunset or the game itself, but Ubi's Far Cry 2 is coming along quite nicely. Go ahead, watch for yourself.
Far Cry 2 gets new trailer, blog for Ubidays
Ubisoft has released a new trailer for Far Cry 2 as part of its Ubidays press event about to get underway in Paris. The trailer is narrated by Reuben Oluwagembi, a freelance reporter in the fictional African city of Port Selao. Oluwagembi wants to tell us about "The Jackal" – a merchant of death, a mercenary (we always think of that West Wing episode where C.J. performs "The Jackal" for the staff too). If you're paying attention, you'll notice a link to Reuben's blog – War Unlimited: My Journey Through a Warzone – where he writes about his experience covering the violence and factions that dominate Port Selao. Far Cry 2 is expected later this year and will have us hunting down "The Jackal" across the African savanna on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC. Hopefully we'll get a firmer release date from Ubidays today.%Gallery-6687%
Video: Ubisoft welcomes you to Far Cry 2
Always better than boring old screenshots is full motion video, so that's why we bring you this latest video gem courtesy of the folks over at Ubisoft's Far Cry 2 team. In this introductory video, you'll be treated to visual bliss as the dev team showcases Far Cry 2's Dunia engine, how combat will take place and where the story is headed this time around. Fun fact: the dev team actually took a trip out to Africa to gather some 7GB of pictures and video to aid in developing Fary Cry 2's look. Fun fact number two: We love producer LP Pharand's accent. Watch and enjoy.
Far Cry 2 shows us the light
Over on the Far Cry 2 developer blog, the crew posted a couple new in-game shots showcasing Far Cry 2's wondrously illuminate lighting system after the team claims they've made "leaps and bounds" on the engine. We placed both new screenshots in the gallery below and our first take on them and the lighting is something along the lines of "wow" and "amazing". Who knew an old tabletop fan and piles of rubble could look so darn good?%Gallery-12579%
Far Cry 2 release date narrowed down to Fall 08'
Earlier today, Ubisoft confirmed with the folks over at Eurogamer that Far Cry 2's release is currently planned for sometime later this autumn, thus putting to rest any speculation that the title was slipping into 2009. Previously, Ubisoft gave us a general release window from April '08 to March '09, so it's comforting to know that we'll see the visually impressive Far Cry 2 before year's end. Ubi also told Eurogamer that they have plans to release a demo, but specifics regarding it have yet to be released.
Far Cry 2 confirmed for PC, Xbox 360, PS3 this Fall
Ubisoft informs EuroGamer that Far Cry 2 will release in "autumn" this year. The game is currently in development at Ubisoft Montreal and this latest information narrows down the previous year-long release window of April to March of next year. Ubisoft also states a demo is likely for the game and that the title should release simultaneously for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.Given the impressive footage we've seen so far of the game, Far Cry 2 can take its time in development and keep upping the pretty. And you know, our summer is already looking pretty full.%Gallery-6687%
GDC08: Madden inspired Far Cry 2
Seriously? Seriously. Ubisoft Montreal learned a valuable lesson from sports games, revealed Patrick Redding during a lecture on the narrative design of Far Cry 2. No, not that it's possible to sell millions of the same game year after year, but rather, games like Madden provide players with their own unique moments. Something big -- a game-winning catch -- can happen in Madden, and that particular event, and the specific elements that surround that key experience, become an epic moment in a player's mind. I created that -- it happened to me! The Far Cry 2 team is importing this concept into its free-form FPS and building a gameworld with unscripted highlights -- minus the Maddenisms.
GDC08: Far Cry 2 gives you malaria, deal with it
During a lecture on narrative design today, Ubisoft Montreal's Patrick Redding revealed that Far Cry 2's health system is tied to infection. Upon arriving in the game's fictitious African country, the player's character -- the strong, silent type -- is immediately stricken with malaria. Ubisoft's Patrick Redding called this device the "ultimate mechanical drawback." The disease creates a dependence on medicine ('health packs'), but the pills aren't scattered throughout the plains or hidden inside crates. Instead, medicine can only be obtained from civilians. The developers use this device as one of the game's few "push" designs; otherwise, players control the order and scope of Far Cry 2.The reality of malaria and its debilitating symptoms (ultimately death -- if untreated) forces the player to interact with non-threatening characters, in turn, exploiting the urge to anthropomorphize the AI. Human conditions are recreated through these interactions. A few doses might be exchanged for, say, travel papers. The civilians don't simply operate as the game's 'store,' but function as "micronarrative" elements who bring life to the gameworld -- like, the desperation inherent in a war-torn country. But Ubisoft Montreal doesn't "presume to know what's in the player's heart." Whether you obtain the papers simply to quell the fevers and convulsions, or instead come to sympathize with the civilian's helpless condition, the developers provide the space for freedom of experience. You've got malaria. Deal with it.
