***300th Post!***
Far Cry 2 Hands on Preview
By God, I think we have a solid contender for Game of the Year and Game Best Utilizing DX10 Horsepower!

Ubisoft Montreal gave its first public showing of the pre-alpha build for its first-person-shooter Far Cry 2, currently in development for PC only, at PAX 07. Taking over development of the series from the Crytek, creator of the original Far Cry on PC, Ubisoft Montreal will now have to compete with the German developer when Crytek's Crysis launches in November. That's a massively daunting shadow to be working under, but based on the looks of this early build, Ubisoft Montreal is taking the challenge on full-bore.

"My job today is to take your preconceptions of what Far Cry 2 was supposed to be, and pretty much burn those to cinders," said Far Cry 2 creative director Clint Hocking at the event. Hocking, whose past roles include creative director for Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory and lead designer for the original Splinter Cell, made it clear what would return in the sequel: exotic locales, open-endedness, realism, and immersive gameplay. Unlike in Ubisoft's own Far Cry Instincts reimaginings, there won't be mutant powers or anything else that couldn't roughly realistically happen. And rather than placing gamers in the lush island environment of the original Far Cry (and now Crysis), Far Cry 2 will take players to a 50-square-kilometer African landscape.

This doesn't mean there won't be jungles, but the jungles will be joined by savannas and deserts, with wildlife and weather patterns appropriate to the area. Using a proprietary engine, environmental elements like trees and clouds will be generated procedurally, ensuring distinct looks for these objects in-game. All areas will load dynamically, and everything in the world is destructible down to the pixel, according to Hocking. He demonstrated by using a sniper rifle to shoot off the branches of a distant tree, one by one.

Complementing this expansive, interactive environment will be what Hocking described as open-world gameplay--exploring the harsh habitats of Africa at your leisure while building relationships with other characters and taking on sidequests. You begin the game in a central African hospital dying of malaria. Where you go from there depends on your choices, Hocking said. I've heard developers make this promise before, so we'll see if it's as dynamic as he claims.

Read all about it here, courtesy of Shacknews.com.

Eric