GDC 08: Crytek on Porting CryENGINE 2 to Consoles

"Porting CryENGINE 2 [was] not as hard as we expected."

Harald Seeley is Crytek's engine business manager, and by his estimation, things couldn't be looking better for his company's venture into console development.

While work on the console version of CryENGINE 2 only began after Crysis shipped in November, it is now in a fully operational state. Graphically it appears somewhere between mediun and high detail as compared to Crysis on the PC, and the team hopes to support game worlds as large as those found in its flagship title.

But will Crysis be heading to consoles?

"We're certainly looking at it and considering it," said a tight-lipped Seeley. The studio is currently debating if such a project is the best use of its time. Among its several internal teams--which boast a total of over 200 employees--Crytek is working on at least one other console game, as well as a non-FPS title at its Budapest office.

While Crytek might consider outsourcing Crysis for console development, Seeley noted that any potential client would need to be very talented and be able to meet high expectations.

Crytek won't be getting the console version of CryENGINE 2 to its licensees until later this year. But while we won't be seeing CryENGINE 2-powered console games will not be showing up anytime soon, it's safe to say the company is preparing to make an aggressive foray into the market.