Welcome to a feature so huge that we had to span it over 4 pages.
In what can only be described as a huge step forward, Ubisoft and Megarom organised to have international game developers from around the world visit South Africa to promote their upcoming titles and talk to the local press.
A few lucky journalists were invited to a special three day event in the Pilanesberg to get one on one time with the Far Cry 2 developers as well as a ton of hands-on time with Far Cry 2. I just happened to be one of those lucky journalists and I have come back with exclusive inside information, hands-on impressions with both the single and multiplayer as well as an in-depth look at a map-editor that is going to change the way that things are done in these parts.
This is the hugest feature ever seen on Lazygamer so click through and find out whether or not you should be saving a couple of extra bucks for this holiday season.
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So What’s it all about?
Throughout the presentations and interviews, we were able to get a lot of dirt on the developers thoughts behind Far Cry 2 as well as the reasons behind many of their decisions. Let’s kick things off by looking at why Far Cry 2 is what it is.
Far Cry 2 began development in 2005, before the awful Far Cry: Instincts had made it to consoles. The developers from Ubisoft Montreal were asked to renew the Far Cry brand and bring something special to the plate. 174 people worked on the game for a total of three and a half years.
From focus testing, they learned two important things about what gamers thought. The first was that most gamers did not enjoy the latter half of the game as much as the first part which focused more on encounters with human enemies. The second is that everyone could not care less about the games protagonist, Jack Carver. This quickly made them realise that the focus for Far Cry 2 would be on humans and that there was no need to continue with the story of the first game but instead focus on the core gameplay elements that fans enjoyed so much.
^ above: The original Far Cry was a favorite for many PC gamers
The developers explained that after the original Far Cry as well as TV series such as Lost and Survivor, the tropical island setting was no longer seen as exotic. So after a suggestion by their art director, Alex Amanico, they decided that Africa would be the perfect setting (Yay for us!).
To ensure that they were on the right track and could produce the best possible product, Ubisoft Montreal sent a team of the developers over to Kenya to rough it in the wild as well as take sound samples and footage. I have added a link to their developer diaries at the end of the feature. Be sure to check out what nonsense they got up to in Africa.
The entire theme of the story behind Far Cry 2 was influenced by a few different sources of media. While the original Far Cry was almost a take on “The Island of Dr. Moreau” and Crysis took a look at the ideas behind “The War of the Worlds”, Far Cry 2 has taken it’s influences from stories that have more of a personal effect on the characters rather than an external source.
The story and dialogue were penned by Susan O’Connor who is a veteran in the game industry and was responsible for games like Gears of War as well as Bioshock. Vietnam War veteran Malcolm Clark was also brought in as an adviser for the team to keep an authentic and realistic feel. He has also worked on many films and is an Academy Award winner in this respect.
Inspiration was taken from books such as Joseph Conrad’s The Heart of Darkness as well as movies such as the 1961 Japanese film, Yojimbo, Apocalypse Now, Red Harvest and Fist Full of Dollars.
All of these stories have one thing in common. They are all about characters who are on their own and will require the manipulation of the local factions for them to achieve their goals of vengeance or duty. The developers pushed the fact that they did not want the character to feel like that of James Bond, who has lots of supplied gadgetry and support from a rich benefactors. In Far Cry 2 it’s you and you alone and it will be up to the player to make friends and play the local factions against each other to succeed and take down the warlords that seek nothing but to profit from the suffering of others.
Click Page 2 to read our interview with the Far Cry 2 developers >>
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Last Updated: October 9, 2008
GeeB
October 9, 2008 at 12:09
WOW…. Cannot wait for this one…. It sounds and looks absolutely amazing!
janrik
October 9, 2008 at 12:12
What version did you guys play on?
PC, 360 or PS3.
So far most of the previews have been 360 builds….
koldFU5iON
October 9, 2008 at 12:23
v.nice article dude still jealous I couldn’t join you then we’d have seen who would have truly been top dog 😉
Tracy
October 9, 2008 at 12:29
Wow, Very nice article!!
yeah I am excited for this game!! YAY for Us!!
Silent Wonderer
October 9, 2008 at 12:31
This game looks legendary, just pre-ordered mine for R529 with free shipping from BGRonline. Can’t wait.
Nick
October 9, 2008 at 12:31
Everything we did was on 360.
V@mp
October 9, 2008 at 12:44
Can’t wait!
Werner
October 9, 2008 at 12:50
With all the games coming out over the next 2 months, Far Cry 2 was close to the bottom of my list… but after reading the article it has become a must have.
Damn… credit card here we come 🙂
DarkOcean
October 9, 2008 at 13:27
“Multiplayer” Dart Gun FTW 😈
Nick
October 9, 2008 at 13:32
Dammit dude. Between your Dartgun, RPG and Flamethrower I didnt know which one was worse!! 😯
baba
October 9, 2008 at 14:24
Great article Nick!
There goes my credit card:
Far Cry 2
LBP
GOW2
R2
Mirrors Edge
…
…
Denouncer
October 9, 2008 at 14:31
Very nice write up. Rage did it for me, but you added the cherry on the top. I’ve already made space for my copy of Far Cry 2.
David
October 9, 2008 at 15:15
Dudes I actually Also met one of the developers, Clint Hocking At rage and he caught me trying to play parts of the game that I wasn’t supposed to play Ha ha
but It ended well. I was lucky enough to play some of Far Cry 2 at rage but It definitely made a Massive impression on me and IT IS JUST SIMPLY AN AMAZING GAME.
RivaZA
October 9, 2008 at 16:10
If there is one game that I get this year it will be this one.
Oh man I can’t wait for it.
heroface
October 23, 2008 at 18:17
nick! can we tunnel into the mountainside like in crysis, i’m at my work computer now can you email me at jason.bourgeois@ live.co.uk