Crytek Feels That Bringing Crysis 2 to the Xbox 360 Generated 'Creative Constraints'

Not long ago, Crytek surprised the PC gaming community by announcing that Crysis 2 would take place in the urban environment of New York City. Compared with the original Crysis that took place on a completely open island, where you could go and do anything and anywhere, skyscrapers taking over palm trees and thick bushes might feel somewhat claustrophobic. Speaking to Xbox World 360, Crytek described the upcoming title as a "sandbox game with borders," according to CVG.

As to why the sudden change was made, some suspected that it was meant to accommodate the Xbox 360 console, a platform on which the game would also be launched. Nathan Camarillo, Crytek's executive producer, answered the supposition by saying that, "I wouldn't exactly call this generation of consoles 'limited.' However, the challenges have allowed us to avoid over-designing features, to keep the focus narrower and tight for a compelling experience on all platforms." In other words, fewer words, his answer would be yes.

"In the end this will make for the best experience for the gamer, because we will spend more time per feature, making it polished, rather than spreading ourselves thinly just because we can," Camarillo added. "Creative constraints can be refreshing." And he's perfectly right, as long as this was something that they indeed decided upon during the creative process, and were not forced to do because of the platform to which they were bringing the series.

Last but not least, when asked about the sense of freedom the first Crysis game offered, the executive producer told Xbox World 360 that, "I think the freedom of Crysis 2 will surprise console gamers. Crysis is not about 'go anywhere.' It's about looking at a situation from a great vantage point and then formulating a plan that you proactively initiate to defeat your foes." And with very little details about Crysis 2 to go on, we have to trust him, but at the same time can't help but wonder if the features that "will surprise console gamers" will also impress the PC players that got used to the standard imposed by the original Crysis.