Crysis 2 DirectX 11 patch is out, comparison inside

[Matthew DeCarlo]

Update: As expected the Crysis 2 "DX11 Ultra Upgrade" patch and the high-resolution texture pack are now available for download. The update introduces DirectX 11 support as well as graphical improvements to both DX11 and DX9 versions of the game. For more details on the changes read our original post from last Friday below. On a relevant note, there's also a fan-made Crysis HD texture mod here.

Making good on its promise, Crytek has announced that it will finally add DirectX 11 graphics to Crysis 2. The developer plans to release three separate downloadable add-ons that improve the game's visual quality alongside patch 1.9 next Monday, June 27. To be clear, although patch 1.9 will enable DirectX 11 support, you'll have to individually download and install the "DirectX 11 Ultra Upgrade," "DX11 Tessellation Pack," and "High Res Textures."

The DirectX 11 Ultra Upgrade will deliver a host of graphical improvements and performance optimizations for both DX9 and DX11 APIs. After installing the update, folks running Crysis 2 in DX9 will gain real-time local reflections and contacts shadows. In addition to those effects, DX11 platforms will enjoy hardware tessellation, parallax occlusion mapping along with various shadow, water, particle, depth of field, and motion blur enhancements.

To enable hardware tessellation, however, DX11 players will have to download the DX11 Tessellation Pack, which contains pre-tessellated geometries. As its name indicates, the third optional download simply contains high-resolution textures for a variety of assets. Both DX9 and DX11 versions of Crysis 2 will support the snazzier textures, but it's worth noting that you'll need a graphics card with at least 1GB of VRAM and a 64-bit OS.

Patch 1.9 will also deliver nearly a dozen gameplay tweaks, including a handful multiplayer bug fixes for issues that caused incorrect stat logging and authentication problems. Another glitch prevented JAW rockets from firing through windows with broken glass. The update will also improve anti-cheat measurements as Crytek has fixed an exploit that allowed players to become immune to vote kicking. We've included the full release notes below.

Although they haven't been officially released yet, a few lucky players managed to download the updates from Crytek's test environment before the company removed the files from public view. You'll have to wait until Monday to experience the higher-quality graphics in all their splendor, but you can whet your appetite with six animated GIFs that compare the before and after effects of DX11 Tessellation courtesy of a NeoGaf forum member.

Unfortunately, for every PC gamer that is ecstatic about the DX11 update, we imagine there are two who will shrug it off with a chip on their shoulder. Many PC gamers were disappointed by Crysis 2's console-biased launch, giving the game an average Metacritic user score of 6.4 out of 10. For those of you who dismissed Crysis 2 as a console port: is the DX11 patch enough to forgive and forget, or is Crytek simply putting tinsel on a dead Christmas tree?

Crysis 2 Patch 1.9

• Added Contact Shadows
• Added DX11 benchmark level
• Added DX11 support for Crysis 2 (the following features only work when downloading the optional DX11 package here):
• - Tessellation + Displacement Mapping
• - High Quality HDR Motion Blur
• - Realistic Shadows with Variable Penumbra
• - Sprite Based Bokeh Depth of Field
• - Parallax Occlusion Mapping
• - Particles Motion Blur, Shadows and Art Updates
• - Water Rendering improvements and using Tessellation + Displacement Mapping
• Added Realtime Local Reflections
• Added support for Higher Res Textures Package
• Added various new console variables to whitelist
• Fixed bullet penetration, which had been broken by a bug introduced with the DLC 2 patch
• Fixed issue in MP where player stats weren't always saved at the end of a game
• Fixed issue in MP where player stats would sometimes randomly reset
• Fixed issue with MP time played statistic, which would sometimes be too low on leaderboards and in stats
• Fixed issue with JAW rocket not firing through window's containing broken glass
• Fixed rare issue where a user could not access MP with a valid CD key if they had previously used an invalid CD key
• Improved advanced graphics options menu
• Improved anti-cheat measurements: fixed exploit which could prevent vote kicking working against a user
• Improved multi-GPU support
• Improved Tone Mapping
• Re-added possibility to enable r_StereoSupportAMD via config file (unsupported)

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/44375-crysis-2-directx-11-patch-is-out-comparison-inside.html

 

[Lurker101]

Sounds to me like their trying to put some bells and whistles onto a rusted old bike. It's easy to forgive a console biased port, so long as it's a solid game. So what if the graphics are a little sub par. If the gameplay is great and it's not filled with more bugs than a cheap motel then most of the "console-whining" dies down pretty fast.

Unfortunately, this isn't one of those games. So a few extra bloom effects and cheap 3D tricks aren't going to cut it.

 

[yRaz]

Too little too late Crytec. Sorry, but you dropped the ball on this one. The game still isn't worth $60 and they have to balls to charge for DLC too. I was thinking of buying it on steam when the price came down but that's not happening now.

Maybe it would have been a good idea to show 1080p images of it, those small pictures don't do it any justice, you can't tell that much of a difference between the 2. Perhaps there is a reason for the low resolution images?

 

[Guest]

1.8 patch
1.6 Catalyst
1.6 CAP1's
Crossfired 6950's...

Still flickers. Here's to 1.9 fixing it even tho there is no mention of it in the release notes.

*fingers crossed*

 

[yRaz]

Guest said:
1.8 patch
1.6 Catalyst
1.6 CAP1's
Crossfired 6950's...

Still flickers. Here's to 1.9 fixing it even tho there is no mention of it in the release notes.

*fingers crossed*

"• Improved multi-GPU support"

It's third to the bottom of the list. I don't have a multi GPU setup but a title like crysis not only should have it as a standard feature, but it NEEDS it. It'd be kind of dumb for them to put a DX 11 patch out without support for the hardware to run it.

 

[howzz1854]

i actually had quite a good time with the game before i went online and saw all the negative whine about the sequel. to me it played and looked great. the new update will be a welcome addition to me.

 

[TomSEA]

I was pretty hacked off when I started playing the game. Probably put 90 minutes into it before realizing what a lame console port it was. Then I heard there was going to be a DX11 patch and decided to wait until then to pick it up again.

I'm not angry at CryTek, but certainly disappointed. I hate to bring it up, but CryTek was off-the-charts furious at the massive amounts of illegal downloads they experienced with Crysis (2nd most pirated game ever behind Spore) and stated afterwards that as a result, they weren't going to focus on developing games based on the PC first, consoles second any longer. It was going to be the other way around. So this console port game we received is not a total surprise, I was just hoping for better.

At any rate, I'll take the DX11 patch and finish the game. No more pre-orders from CryTek though. I've learned my lesson.

 

[yukka]

Crytek brought out Crysis and it was so future proof that it wouldn't run on decent settings on a lot of machines and looked terrible on anything that wasn't significantly more powerful than any previous recommended specs for other games at the time. Alot of people used that excuse to download it to "test" on their hardware.

Now they do the opposite and get torn to pieces as well as having a leak of the full game before release. I am glad they brought out the DX11 patch - its an incentive that might cause me to buy it sometime. Probably after I buy Battlefield 3 which will force me to enroll on "Origin" anyway. And once it is on a sale.

 

[yukka]

I meant that Crytek did the opposite by bringing out a game that anyone can play pretty much and promising a DX11 patch that would require stronger specs.

 

[gwailo247]

yukka said:
A lot of people used that excuse to download it to "test" on their hardware.

As long as the presumption is that anybody wishing to return a computer game for any reason is a pirate, then I could care less how butt hurt any developer gets, or whines about food being taken from the mouths of their children. If they choose to alienate themselves from the PC gaming crowd, so be it.

There will always be some company somewhere who will still cater to the PC market. Considering that groups of talented individuals can put out professional quality mods for existing games that completely revamp the game play experience and the visuals, and then distribute it for free, I'm not worried about the future of PC gaming.

 

[jetkami]

Do you you also play alot of console games?. For true PC Gamers this game sucked!

 

[princeton]

Parallax Occlusion Mapping

That should have been there since day ****ing one. Anyway it's a dead game that isn't worth playing so it's not like anyone will care about this patch. DX11 can't save this game.

 

[princeton]

There will always be some company somewhere who will still cater to the PC market. Considering that groups of talented individuals can put out professional quality mods for existing games that completely revamp the game play experience and the visuals, and then distribute it for free, I'm not worried about the future of PC gaming.

We have valve and GSC, all we need is them to make great games with great replayability. Look at how many people play counter strike and TF2. Then we have GSC to make the stalker games.

"• Improved multi-GPU support"

It's third to the bottom of the list. I don't have a multi GPU setup but a title like crysis not only should have it as a standard feature, but it NEEDS it. It'd be kind of dumb for them to put a DX 11 patch out without support for the hardware to run it.

The game doesn't look good enough to warrant using 2 GPUs

 

[blimp01]

parallax occlusion mapping, from crysis 1 looked horrible, hopefully the command to disable it will work

 

[red1776]

The game doesn't look good enough to warrant using 2 GPUs

Remember 'fake DX10' in the first Crysis?.....I'm just sayin.

 

[princeton]

blimp01 said:
parallax occlusion mapping, from crysis 1 looked horrible, hopefully the command to disable it will work

Well do me a favor. Go outside and look at a ground covered in rocks. Now tell me which one of these looks more like the ground covered in rocks.

http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/3618/rusepom2gr4.jpg

If you said POM disabled you may want to invest in a good pair of glasses and or contact lenses.

Now that picture is cropped and contains some jagged edges. Here's a better example.

http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/1685/unbenanntfz1.jpg

Could you please inform us all on how that looks inferior to when the ground is flattened?

 

[Cota]

Too late! already deleted it on my soon list, 60 dollars for some good campaign and a mediocre multiplayer inst worth it! Besides i still have to give it back to my 11yo bro who didnt like it...

 

[princeton]

Too late! already deleted it on my soon list, 60 dollars for some good campaign and a mediocre multiplayer inst worth it! Besides i still have to give it back to my 11yo bro who didnt like it...

Pardon? It wasn't as bad as cod but cmon man, it was no stalker, half life, bioshock. It was...ok, it got predictable and repetitive at times. It certainly wasn't awful though.

*sigh* One thing console gamers have. They can return, resell or rent games if they turn out to be crap.

 

[Panda218]

howzz1854 said:
i actually had quite a good time with the game before i went online and saw all the negative whine about the sequel. to me it played and looked great. the new update will be a welcome addition to me.

Agreed, I don't understand why people are QQing so hard. The first Crysis wasn't the best thing ever, but it was fun just like Crysis 2. I'm looking forward to testing out my RIG with the new update.

 

[Guest]

i have 1.2 patch installed
Will i need to instal every patch between 1.2 & 1.9 or i can directly install 1.9 patch and dx11?

 

[Guest]

^^^beat it pirate. if you had a legit copy, you'd be running it with patch 1.8 right now and wouldn't be asking how the cycle goes.

 

[Guest]

"• Improved multi-GPU support"

It's third to the bottom of the list. I don't have a multi GPU setup but a title like crysis not only should have it as a standard feature, but it NEEDS it. It'd be kind of dumb for them to put a DX 11 patch out without support for the hardware to run it.


How do you get flickering fix out of that?

 

[Guest]

The game doesn't look good enough to warrant using 2 GPUs

Then you've never played the game.

 

[princeton]

Guest said:
The game doesn't look good enough to warrant using 2 GPUs

Then you've never played the game.

Played it 5 minutes ago on the level "dead man walking" The shadows are exceptionally low quality and when you start the level the floorlamps cause the most over the top bloom I've ever seen in a video game. Not to mention the awful foliage growing on the sides of the skyscrapers. It's very surprising because the first game had amazing foliage, I guess they fired their vegetation artist/team.

Nice try trying to make me look foolish but if you're going to make a claim like that then make sure that I've made enough false statements to warrant the belief that I never played Crysis 2.

Oh and for the record this was at 1920x1200 with all settings in the advanced graphic options set to extreme.

Guest said:
^^^beat it pirate. if you had a legit copy, you'd be running it with patch 1.8 right now and wouldn't be asking how the cycle goes.

Sure he could. Don't accuse him of piracy if you don't know the facts. I was on version 1.2 for some time because I launched it from the Crysis2.exe instead of the Crysis2Launcher.exe.

The Crysis2.exe doesn't try to update the game, the launcher one does. Here's an idea, you beat it. Hit the road, get out of here.

 

[Guest]

Don't need to try to make you look bad. The sites server you're posting on can do it for me...

https://www.techspot.com/review/379-crysis-2-performance/page4.html

I have two 6950 2GB's with a native res of 1920x1080 Extreme setting and Vsync ON. You look at that pretty little link there and tell me if 38fps avg is good or not.