GRTV: Crysis 3 Launch Interview

We sat down with Crytek CEO and President Cevat Yerli and Creative Director Rasmus Hojengaard to discuss the development of {Crysis 3}. And we also learned about some of their thoughts on next-gen and the plethora of projects Crytek are currently undertaking.

During the interview we discussed how the development process has changed from earlier iterations in the series:

CY: The team has had a much smoother run with {Crysis 3}, despite the fact that I think it is much more innovative than {Crysis 2} itself... the maturity of the IP has come together much more, I mean those guys have been working for many years together.

Yerli went on to explain how the studio have tried to ensure that {Crysis 3} is the definitive game in the trilogy:

CY: We have to come up with something that is the anchor of the game, the identity of the game. So we want to continue {Crysis} 1 spiritually, we want to tell the story of {Crysis 2}, but we want {Crysis 3} to still be {Crysis 3}. We want it to be an innovative, evolving, yet mastered DNA experience... So it has to be like our last Crysis forever, even though it might not be. But it has to be like that, it has to be our very best offering.

Some fans of the series preferred the more open-ended approach to level design as appeared in the first game, so how are Crytek moving away from the more linear approach of {Crysis 2}:

CY: With {Crysis 3} we've made a concise choice saying: ok more breathing room, when you're out in the fields you should have some breathing room, you can have some room where you can digest what is around you. You can take your time, you can proactively make the first shot, as opposed to be "go go go".

Towards the end of the interview we asked about the future of Crytek, and how the rest of 2013 is shaping up for the company:

CY: In a nutshell I can say that the future is super exciting at Crytek right now... we're launching {Warface} as the first tripleA free-to-play social shooter, and we've got {Crysis 3} obviously launching in a few weeks from now. We have {Homefront} which is an acquired IP which is going fantastic. We have the {Ryse} project, which we can't talk about, but it's going really well. So 2013 is going to be a fantastic year... We've just formed Crytek USA; they're going to do a spectacular new type of game, super excited about that, but I think that's a bit longer away from now. But in principle 2013 and 2014 will be transformative for Crytek, and will change the way people perceive Crytek.

And one last question: what do they think about the imminent announcement coming from Sony on February 20:

CY: It's going to be interesting - what will be revealed - and I think that kind of step-up will be super important for the market. I think it will reinvigorate the market and the belief in gaming. Markets are going down right now, it needs a new injection, and I think whatever company does it as soon as possible is going to be really good for the market.