Crysis 2 Multiplayer Demo released (PC + X360, PS3 to come)

[adam_grif]

This is the download link for the PC version.

Currently downloading, so no comments yet.

[Falarica]

The demo is pretty good, the motion blur spoils it a bit for me though. You can't turn it off!

I'm surprised (in a good way) they put in the cut down COD leveling system with weapon and suit customisation.

Gameplay wise the multiplayer feels much tighter and more responsive (over Crysis, don't have Warhead) with more than a passing similarity to COD. Doing a ground pound is probably never going to get old.

Graphics look gorgeous even on the lowest preset. Very little customisation apart from low/med/high presets but its meant to be a benchmark I suppose.

Probably would have preferred a single player demo though.

I'm not sure if I'm going to get the game yet, I think I'll wait until its ~£20.

[adam_grif]

"Press Start to begin". Really Crytek? Didn't want to take the time to change the word "Start" to "Enter" for the PC version? Ok.

First impressions terrible, spent last night trying to create an account but nothing worked. Got up this morning and it finally worked (servers were getting hammered or something). Go to graphics settings. No advanced options at all. Can't disable temporal AA (ungh). Just three settings - Gamer, Advanced, Hardcore. Set hardcore.

Finally got into a game. I like the ledge grabbing mirrors edge stuff. I really miss speed mode. When you switch to Armor/Cloak you move even slower than the default move speed. The stealth takedowns are a bit hard to pull off, it seems very selective with when it will give you the prompt to initiate it. 12 player maximum is a really weird limitation.

With the latest rumors going around that the final game won't even be shipping with DX11 features (which were absent both from the leaked internal beta and this demo), I'll be holding off on this game until Steam sales. Use the money I save for 3DS and Deus Ex 3 instead.

[Zixinus]

Has actually someone been able to play a single game? The only thing I managed to do was get into lobbies and ask the same question all over again: what is going on? Why can't I play?

[Zixinus]

I can't actually join a game. All I manage is either a "server is full" while I specifically filtered out full serves or getting into a lobby where nothing happens.

[Zixinus]

Figured out how to play: just join a server that actually has a ping.

Then you have to cross your fingers and hope that you'll be able to play more than 5 minutes.

[Zixinus]

"The connection to your opponent has been lost." What the fuck is that supposed to mean? One guy signed out and now I have to do the same?
This is the message I keep getting every time I actually manage to find a server where I can play in.

[DesertFly]

This definitely seems to be a case where the developer is focusing on the console version to the detriment of the PC. I downloaded this on 360 last week and played a few rounds and had no problems. Of course on the Xbox there are no graphics options (apart from gamma) to change, and the servers seemed stable enough.

[adam_grif]

This definitely seems to be a case where the developer is focusing on the console version to the detriment of the PC.

Yes, and it being Crytek is what makes this sting so much more than it normally would. Some changes are better and some changes are worse. No speed mode is painful, but they've redesigned the levels to be such a size that speed mode isn't necessary/would hurt the balance. Crysis of Duty 2 Future Warfare.

"The connection to your opponent has been lost." What the fuck is that supposed to mean? One guy signed out and now I have to do the same?
This is the message I keep getting every time I actually manage to find a server where I can play in.

Something is fucked on your end. I've had no problems, nor have most of my friends. One of them did have issues where joining servers resulted in a count-down not existing (for some reason) but he seems to be working now.

[Singular Intellect]

What the fuck is wrong with the developers? Do they have some kind of retardation going on whereas they can't figure out maybe, just maybe, a demo would be useful if people can poke around one their fucking levels without being forced to connect to a game first?

Either join a game or you can't even fucking test out the game mechanics and walking your character around to see how shit looks? Fucking imbeciles!

edit: and where's my fucking prone ability? Right now I'm disgusted with their 'demo'. It's a piece of shit that doesn't work on top of serious negative indicators (afore mentioned lack of prone function).

[CaptHawkeye]

If Crysis 1 was sucking Bungie's dick Crysis 2 is guzzling Infinity Ward. It's basically Call of Duty, but with Nanoman.

[adam_grif]

edit: and where's my fucking prone ability? Right now I'm disgusted with their 'demo'. It's a piece of shit that doesn't work on top of serious negative indicators (afore mentioned lack of prone function).

Prone is removed, lean is removed, speed mode is removed. Fucking advanced graphical settings are removed so I can't remove the temporal AA and turn off some of the shitty filters. The final fuck you from Crytek is that they have encrypted all of the configuration files so you can't even manually fix some of this shit. Oh, and no mod tools.



Hey, I guess the reason why EA is charging 60 bucks for the PC version of this game is because they're actually giving us a console version. So it's only right that we pay the 10 dollar premium.

[Commander 598]

Bummed by the lack of configuration options, disabled console, and encrypted configs? No problem!

Making the Crysis 2 demo feel like a proper PC game is as simple as 1, 2,

"C:\Program Files (x86)\Electronic Arts\Crytek\Crysis 2 Demo\bin32\Crysis2Demo.exe" +cl_fov=90 +r_DrawNearFoV = 90 +pl_movement.power_sprint_targetFov = 90 +r_MotionBlur=0 +g_skipIntro=1 +gpu_particle_physics 1 +e_stream 1 +g_joint_breaking 0 +ca_UseFacialAnimation 0 +e_decals 0 +r_MotionBlur 0 +ca_UseDecals 0 +g_dof_ironsight 0 +g_radialBlur 0 +r_SSAO 0 +e_shadows 0 +r_TexMaxAnisotropy 1 +e_particles 0 +r_UseSoftParticles 0 +e_proc_vegetation 0 +r_DepthOfField 0 +r_Glow 0 +i_mouse_smooth 0 +sys_maxfps 120 +r_vsync 0 +cl_hitblur 0 +cl_hitshake 0 +r_motionblur 0 +r_motionblurhdr 0 +g_radialBlur 0 +r_sunshafts 0 +r_Coronas 0 +r_ColorGrading 0 +r_Flares 0 +r_Glow 0 +r_Reflections 0 +r_dofminzblendmult 0 +r_HDRBlueShift 0 +r_HDRBrightLevel 0 +r_HDRGrainAmount 0 +r_HDRVignetting 0 +i_rejecteffects 0 +ca_UseDecals 0 +e_decals_allow_game_decals 0 +e_decals_life_time_scale 1 +e_particles_thread 1 +e_particles 1 +e_particles_lod 0.3 +i_particleeffects 0 +r_UseParticlesRefraction 0 +r_UseSoftParticles 0 +e_hw_occlusion_culling_objects 1 +e_vegetation_static_instancing 1 +r_GeomInstancing 1 +r_PostMSAA 0 +r_PostMSAAMode 0 +r_PostProcessEffects 1 +r_PostProcessFilters 0 +r_PostProcessGameFx 0 +r_DepthOfField 0 +r_ShadowBlur 0 +r_ShadowJittering 0 +r_FSAA 0 +r_UseEdgeAA 0 +sys_flash_edgeaa 1 +r_TexMaxAnisotropy 1 +e_flocks 0 +e_clouds 0 +e_sky_type 0 +e_fog 1 e_fog_volumes 0 +q_ShaderFX 1 +q_ShaderGeneral 1 +q_ShaderGlass 0 +q_ShaderHDR 1 +q_ShaderIce 0 +q_ShaderMetal 0 +q_ShaderPostProcess 0 +q_ShaderShadow 1 +q_ShaderSky 0 +q_ShaderTerrain 0 +q_ShaderVegetation 0 +q_ShaderWater 0 +r_fullscreen 1

Now the mouse is responsive, no more intro movies, and there's a decent FOV!

Just thought I'd drop that here. Yes, it's a paragraph length command line.

[Singular Intellect]

Prone is removed, lean is removed, speed mode is removed. Fucking advanced graphical settings are removed so I can't remove the temporal AA and turn off some of the shitty filters. The final fuck you from Crytek is that they have encrypted all of the configuration files so you can't even manually fix some of this shit. Oh, and no mod tools.

They just lost a sale, I'll tell ya that. I'm tired of the PC community being fucked over the retarded gaming consoles.

[weemadando]

edit: and where's my fucking prone ability? Right now I'm disgusted with their 'demo'. It's a piece of shit that doesn't work on top of serious negative indicators (afore mentioned lack of prone function).

Prone is removed, lean is removed, speed mode is removed.

So they streamlined it and removed a few items that, aside from perhaps prone were excess to need.

Fucking advanced graphical settings are removed so I can't remove the temporal AA and turn off some of the shitty filters. The final fuck you from Crytek is that they have encrypted all of the configuration files so you can't even manually fix some of this shit.

Man, I remember when the only option for games was to run in CGA or EGA. Kids these days with their notions of entitlement. Anyhow - as people have already said, there's a bunch of command line options and the encryption of the cfgs was busted all but instantly. There's probably tools out already to let you configure.

Oh, and no mod tools.

When was the last time you played a mod for Crysis, rather than just watching a vid of one on ModDB and going: "hah, that'll never get released."

Hey, I guess the reason why EA is charging 60 bucks for the PC version of this game is because they're actually giving us a console version. So it's only right that we pay the 10 dollar premium.

Hey, guess what, if you don't like a game, don't fucking buy it. Or wait a few months until it's in a bargain bin. No one if forcing you to buy shit on day one.

[weemadando]

Prone is removed, lean is removed, speed mode is removed. Fucking advanced graphical settings are removed so I can't remove the temporal AA and turn off some of the shitty filters. The final fuck you from Crytek is that they have encrypted all of the configuration files so you can't even manually fix some of this shit. Oh, and no mod tools.

They just lost a sale, I'll tell ya that. I'm tired of the PC community being fucked over the retarded gaming consoles.

Then you're a fucking idiot. PC gaming is being fucked over by the increasing call for everything to be more and more goddamn niche and specialised games and then further fracturing the community through insistence on keeping alive old patch versions, mod varients and the like.

But then again, it's not like PC gaming is in trouble. What with it having a 20% rise in sales in the past year, PC versions of some games outselling console versions and the independent games space on PC having a goddamn renaissance right now.

But no, I guess you just want to feel special in your Sisyphean drama-fantasy of repression and struggle against the console hordes.

[adam_grif]

So they streamlined it and removed a few items that, aside from perhaps prone were excess to need.

I assure you Speed mode getting removed wasn't a "streamline", they removed functionality and made the regular sprint you used to be able to do in any mode cost energy. Arguably keeping speed wouldn't mesh well with the new level design, but the fact they shrunk the levels down for consoles is another compromise from the first game anyway. It's like "oh don't worry we only removed the awesome speed mode because the levels aren't big enough for it to make sense anymore!" Well great!

I didn't mention removing strength mode because that was just about the only positive change to the nanosuit that they've made. Armor mode working differently isn't better or worse, it's just different, so I didn't mention that either.

Man, I remember when the only option for games was to run in CGA or EGA. Kids these days with their notions of entitlement. Anyhow - as people have already said, there's a bunch of command line options and the encryption of the cfgs was busted all but instantly. There's probably tools out already to let you configure.

What's your argument here, that I shouldn't expect features that the game they shipped 4 years ago had? It's not like Crysis was some kind of sales disaster either, it sold more than three million units, and then an extra 1.5 million units from the expansion pack. Nor is it like "advanced graphics settings" is something that takes a lot of work, since all you have to do is let the config files be manipulated from the menu. They actually went to extra effort to encrypt these files so we couldn't access them. That isn't just "not giving us a feature", that's them rubbing their dicks in our faces. And for what? Did it upset them that some people tweaked the graphics settings beyond what the menu options normally let them do?

The fact that somebody hacked the functionality back in despite them isn't changing that this is a shitty thing for them to do, and it was done for no reason.

When was the last time you played a mod for Crysis, rather than just watching a vid of one on ModDB and going: "hah, that'll never get released."

Hmm, that'd be the day before yesterday when I played Warhead, since I run both games with high res foliage mod, re-skinned nanosuit and an extreme quality config. If you only count "custom levels" for some reason, then it was when I played Amazonia River to gawk at the visuals a few weeks ago.

This is also a very suspect argument you're making, because what it boils down to is "oh, well only X portion of the population uses it, so it's fine that they removed it". That doesn't change the fact that it sucks for X, and once again it's a change they've made because... no reason. It's not like Mod Tools make the game worse for people who don't use them. "Don't complain because it doesn't effect you specifically" is not a very persuasive argument at all.

For reference, here is ModDB's list of released Crysis mods.

Hey, guess what, if you don't like a game, don't fucking buy it. Or wait a few months until it's in a bargain bin.

Erm, I'm not? I already said that several posts up - I'm not buying it until it goes on steam sale for cheap. But this statement is very amusing considering you then chastise SI for doing exactly what you just told us to do - not buying the game.

"If you don't like it don't buy the game"

"I'm not going to buy this game because I don't like the changes they made."

"YOU'RE A FUCKING IDIOT RARRR"

Then you're a fucking idiot. PC gaming is being fucked over by the increasing call for everything to be more and more goddamn niche and specialised games and then further fracturing the community through insistence on keeping alive old patch versions, mod varients and the like.

Yes, Crysis got fucked over so hard that CryTek opened up a new studio, purchased another studio and made huge profits. T-minus 30 seconds until someone posts the 2007 boogeyman articles about how piracy ruined Crysis sales

[Sarevok]

If we went from this to the 2007 game instead then everyone would be exclaiming about how Crysis 1 is what the first game tried but failed to be...

[adam_grif]

If we went from this to the 2007 game instead then everyone would be exclaiming about how Crysis 1 is what the first game tried but failed to be...

Except Weemadando, who would be complaining that it was becoming too niche!

[Sarevok]

Speaking of speed mode anyone who does not decry it's loss obviously has not played Crysis well enough. I too used to think speed was an useless feature. Like most peoples first approach to Crysis I used cloaking feature most, followed by armor.

Then I learned how strength mode alone can change the whole game..

Then I discovered the power of doing entire battles in speed mode...

It can be more effective than armor mode. Speed + an automatic weapon with a silencer and laser sights = kill everything without a scratch. You just just zoom and boom like a supersonic jet picking off slow moving bombers at a leisurely pace. After getting hang of it you may find armor mode turns into an annoyingly slow moving turret on legs.

In SP getting surrounded by three dozen North Koreans in armor mode used to be a nasty situation. But in speed mode massacring them can become a breeze. They can no longer pin me down behind cover. Instead I just switch to speed and basically play Crysis as if it is a Quake 2 death match. It is incredibly effective and fun to play in run and gun fashion while circle strafing in a supposedly "tacticool" situation.

[weemadando]

Sooo... What you're saying is that it sucks that the totally awesome speed mode is now just a single button depression away from use at any time in combination with other modes, rather than being a discrete and incompatible ability which you had to separately select and utilise to the exclusion of all others.

Your argument Sir, is unparalleled. I concede a thousand times over. Clearly this is terrible consolification of game designyness gone mad.

[Zixinus]

Something is fucked on your end. I've had no problems, nor have most of my friends. One of them did have issues where joining servers resulted in a count-down not existing (for some reason) but he seems to be working now.

I've opened ports given in the readme file and the only thing that made is that it made things worse.
Quite frankly, bullshit. I've played many other multiplayer games and never had a problem like this.

I'll guess I'll just buzz in to the litany of complaints.

[CaptHawkeye]

Prone is removed, lean is removed, speed mode is removed. Fucking advanced graphical settings are removed so I can't remove the temporal AA and turn off some of the shitty filters. The final fuck you from Crytek is that they have encrypted all of the configuration files so you can't even manually fix some of this shit. Oh, and no mod tools.

They just lost a sale, I'll tell ya that. I'm tired of the PC community being fucked over the retarded gaming consoles.

We should have some kind of function on this forum where the first person to go "lol consoles" gets shocked by their computer.

I swear to god I cannot stand the arrogant nerdy bullshit in G&C anymore. Especially amongst the PC users, who literally go for every fucking opportunity to trash consoles over the most irrelevant reasons. I don't even care about the PC vs console argument that has infected this forum. I just care that it's brought up every time for no reason at all by people who must be retarded.

[Zixinus]

We should have some kind of function on this forum where the first person to go "lol consoles" gets shocked by their computer.

I swear to god I cannot stand the arrogant nerdy bullshit in G&C anymore. Especially amongst the PC users, who literally go for every fucking opportunity to trash consoles over the most irrelevant reasons. I don't even care about the PC vs console argument that has infected this forum. I just care that it's brought up every time for no reason at all by people who must be retarded.

Can sympathize. I am also tired of the "PC GAMING IS DEAD" bullshit going around (yeah, the dying platform appears to have game release dates on it over a year in advance). It is clear that Crysis 2 has signs of a half-assed port (which is funny, as Crytek gushed about how cross-platform compatible the thing is) and even more quarter-assed demo.

But if you think this is bad, don't look at the Steam forums. If there is one thing gamers can do, is whine like a broken motor while cats are in heat.

[adam_grif]

Sooo... What you're saying is that it sucks that the totally awesome speed mode is now just a single button depression away from use at any time in combination with other modes, rather than being a discrete and incompatible ability which you had to separately select and utilise to the exclusion of all others.

Your argument Sir, is unparalleled. I concede a thousand times over. Clearly this is terrible consolification of game designyness gone mad.

There IS no speed mode. It's not "just a button press away, that's "sprinting". Sprinting was something that you could do in any mode in the first game without any energy drain, and is markedly slower than "speed mode".

When you sprinted in speed mode, you got a burst of super speed and could cross huge distances in a few seconds. Speed mode also boosted your melee attack speed. What they have in Crysis 2 is sprinting. It's the same speed as C1 sprinting, and now it's energy limited. You get no additionla functionality, and instead you lose some (by not having super speed dash anymore and not being able to switch into speed mode to cross large distances in shorter times when you didn't have a vehicle available for transport).

Why did they take it out? Because the levels are smaller, both in SP and MP. Why are the levels smaller in both modes? Is it because they decided that their large open levels that they got showered with praise for in the first game sucked and they wanted to make it like Call of Duty, or do you think it's because they shrunk down the levels to fit inside the crappy hardware that the PS360 have because their design goal is to bring it out on those platforms?

I swear to god I cannot stand the arrogant nerdy bullshit in G&C anymore. Especially amongst the PC users, who literally go for every fucking opportunity to trash consoles over the most irrelevant reasons. I don't even care about the PC vs console argument that has infected this forum. I just care that it's brought up every time for no reason at all by people who must be retarded.

As opposed to the smarmy crap about how PC sucks and is too complicated and consoles can do everything they can do AND BETTERRRR that we get from users every time someone dares to suggest that a genre is better on PC or that some game's design was compromised by it's multiplatform nature, which you aren't annoyed by?