The upcoming Crysis Remastered has been delayed after a leaked trailer disappointed fans with uncharacteristically poor visuals for the franchise. Crysis, released in 2007, became famous for its impressive graphics and infamous for its inability to run on low-to-mid-tier PCs. Besides a handful of hints here and there, the franchise has lain dormant since developer Crytek launched Crysis 3 back in 2013.
That changed when Crytek teased Crysis Remastered before releasing an official trailer earlier this year. The brief announcement trailer showed the game’s nano-suit clad protagonist, Prophet, retextured with gloriously updated graphics. Following the announcement, Crytek described a slew of updates Crysis loyalists could expect to the future-set shooter, including improved graphics, lighting, and art assets. The company scheduled the official gameplay reveal for today, July 1. However, yesterday, the footage was published early on the Microsoft Store in a store listing, kicking off a wave of fan complaints on social media that the final product didn't look up to par. The game will launch on PC, Playstation 4, Xbox One, and the notoriously underpowered Nintendo Switch, and was slated for a July 23 release - until today.
Crytek announced the delay via a statement on the official Crysis Twitter account. The company verified the leaked trailer's accuracy and has taken fans’ comments into close consideration. Crytek said it plans to further polish the game, noting that many of the features players expect have already been implemented. “This extra time until release will allow us to get Crysis Remastered up to the PC - and console - breaking standard you’ve come to expect from Crysis games. We hope you understand what we’re up to - and that you stay with us while we make a few more improvements.” Crytek has not announced a new release date but said it only plans to push the game a few weeks back.
Crysis Remastered has a lofty legacy to live up to. The original will remain a historically important, technically impressive piece of software - it was and is one of the prettiest games released in the mid-2000s, but the remaster doesn’t need to launch to the same acclaim. No game does. Not even a hefty and modern AAA release like The Last of Us Part II should have to meet those impossibly high standards, and that goes doubly for a proper remaster of a 13-year-old shooter. Graphics, frankly, don’t matter that much. (That said, there are some things that almost look downgraded, which is okay but certainly confusing.)
It’s quite enough for Crysis Remastered to rerelease on modern systems (especially the portable, cheap Nintendo Switch) and become accessible to an entire new audience, all the while potentially paving the way for a series revival. Fans will be delve into an old favorite, players new to the series can explore the Lingshan Islands for the first time without worrying about whether their system will buckle under the strain, and everyone wins.
Source: Crytek