CRYENGINE

GREAT!! I did allot of reading about this package, at first it was on reviews like this one here on Steam.... There are allot of un-greatful mis-guided brats running around posting up things like "CRAP!!!1!" when you read into it this would reflect their understanding of what they are purchasing. Whilst it is a powerfull state of the art robust development tool it is not a $2.50 everythings done for you, you just choose where the walls go and pick a splash screen, RPG Maker OMG MADE 5 GAMES THIS WEEKEND didnt-actually-make-a-game-game-maker.....sorry there's nothing wrong with people using those programs, they are great gateways to finding passion for Games Development, however time and time again people have given this bad reviews based on the fact it's difficult to use. Its difficult to use compared to a toaster and easy compared other development suites, think about what you would like to get out of this. It will be time consuming, you will spend allot of time on the CryDev site flicking through the countless bits of documents surrounding the ins and outs of how too and how NOT too. Another bum wrap I noted is just that, people complained that there isn't any documentation on how to use this thing.... in-correct there is plenty to read and plenty to help you through. I have found everything I have needed so far (extreme beginer user) It has a powefull easy-to-use sandbox that from what I can see can be used my people like me who are very basic and down the line becomes very powerful and precise. The process to export and playtest a level you are working on is about 7 clicks or something. ALSO THERE IS ALLOT OF INFORMATION AND DOCUMENTATION ON THIS PRODUCT ITS JUST NOT STAPLED TO YOUR THICK HEAD FOR YOU. In summary, DO BUY THIS IF - You are aware that you are purchasing access to tools and an engine which is quite amazing with a great level of support ( if you know how to type into a ♥♥♥♥ing google-esk search bar) and understand you will not knock out a unique AAA game over the weekend. It's really quite great I've learnt allot reading allot of documents and peicing bits and peices together. DON'T BUY THIS IF - a) You are upset by what you have read because I've personally offended you. b) You lack the ability to accept / find that this package has multiple arms including the documentation which is on a website f) You expect to launch it, wave a wand and laugh with GabeN next weekend about how easy the games industry is to master u) You intend to spend 0.1 hrs using then trash it with a review k) You are your mothers brother u) You have the expectation that you will download the ability to code games at the same time you download this utility h) You don't have spare time / patience to hone a skill or persue a career and or hobbie. All seriousness its $9, try it out I've found it quite enjoyable so far.

I can recommend this engine if you want to create a first or third person shooter that heavily relies on features as seen in the Crysis Game Series. Disclaimer: I am a programmer, so my view on the Engine is very code based. Creating other things soon comes down to [b]massive trial and error[/b] due to [b]lack of documentation[/b] and not having the source code of the engine available. There are just too many little hacks for fps games inside the engine you can't get rid of it without massive workarounds which would just not be needed with some minor changes in the core engine code. To give some examples: [list] [*]Why do I need to load a player model into an Actor implementation if I want to use Actor physics entity? (And specify the capsule anyway?) Workaround: Load the default Player Model with all its Meshes and Textures and make it invisible, so you can use the Actor Physics Entity. [*]The feet alignment system always expects the gravity on -z, when walking on a wall or on the ceiling the feet gets flipped 90 or 180 degrees... [/list] We've used the CRYENGINE to create a first person puzzle game at our University, a quick impression can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omAnp2eHSwE There are of course some great features in this engine (the renderer of course), but the engine was built from ground up with the intention to create first or third person shooters (on an open island) and without the ability to change this intention this is hardly any good general engine. [b]The other side is the absolutely amazing WYSIWYG Sandbox Editor.[/b] If you just want to create levels for the integrated shooter, or get a grip on Level Design this might be just the tool for you. [b]I personally do not want to work with this engine again as long as its so focused on one genre without the ability to change that.[/b]

If you want to get CryEngine go here: https://www.cryengine.com/ It's version 5. Version 3(the one steam has.) is subscription based, version 5 is free.

Strange that it counts the Number of hours spent in the GameSDK rather than the Editor, but whatever. I have around 300+ hours in the editor. The engine is really REALLY powerful, that being said its not for the faint of heart to develop on. If you have a solid programmer or two though you can make the most AMAZING looking game, and the animation system allows for extremely powerful and smooth gameplay animations. Honestly, after using Cryengine for a while I would never be able to go back to Unreal 4, Cryengine is just so supperior to build things quickly, and make it look amazing with very little extra work. The gameplay building aspect of it could be easier, but thankfully they are working hard on the documentation and have make big strides recently. When 3.7 comes out there will be almost no reason at all to use UE4 or Unity anymore. This engine performs amazing as well, I have a full very filled scene at 3 million to 4 million polygons with 3500 drawcalls, and I am getting 89-110 FPS solid on a single 980. I have had upwards of 9 Million running smooth before. There is just no comparison for power. Usability? Thats another story.

[b]Plug and play gold - 10/10[/b] CRYENGINE is the most technically advanced engine in game development, yet it is remarkably easy to manipulate. The objects and terrain have predictable properties, the advanced lighting effects are self contained and easy to toggle, and it supports both DX11 and Mantle. As a disclaimer I have not used Unreal 4, but it would have to be very good indeed to warrant switching.

Cryengine is a good tool for game artists, especially in comparison with most modern engines. If you can get past the learnng curve, and agree to some of the engines more finicky demands and requirments, it's a massively rewardng piece of software. A word to the wise to those thining of dabbling in the engine though. Be prepared to learn and think for yourself as the engine doesn't have the same kind of community and support network that Unreal/Unity provide. Most of the information you will need is contained within the extensive documentation, but it's up to the artist to make of it what they will. I see many people try it out and then publicly denounce the engine, threatening to jump ship to another, as if Crytek cared. The developers of this engine aren't about fostering an indie community around their engine, it's not homegrown. This is a piece of highend software that is only really used for high-end production. Although using the Cryengine is not withouts it's challenges, it can bring the most out of your work it a relatively short space of time when the user grasps the fundamentals.

This is engine is old, get Cryengine 5, its better and free: https://www.cryengine.com/

[EDIT] Originally I did not recommend this software due to lack of flexibility and lack of documentation. However I did not give up and entered into the LUA Scripting and C++ Programming section of the engine and it surpised me on how flexible the engine suddenly became. So I edit this review with the mindset that if you have previous programming experience and stick through it along the learning curve this engine might really surprise you. As for lack of documentation, there are some sites on the Internet which although obscure, are very informative. I made this custom google search for those who have queries regarding the API, so just enter the terms here (example "entity sound") : https://www.google.com.mt/cse/publicurl?cx=017013921599352745160:llms9o4nwxu [ORIGINAL] It's a good engine but still hugely lacks documentation and support for newcomers. The process is not at all streamlined and you are going to have a hard time trying to create anything other than an FPS. Also, import pipelines for popular 3d model types are still non-existent and trying to import custom models requires substantial effort and work.

I do not know why people here on steam are complaining about this game engine. CRYENGINE is an awesome engine with a learning curve that people will realize how powerful it can be. I highly recommend everyone to subscribe this engine, if you are really determined to create CRYENGINE games, before making any reaction how bad it is. There are plenty of tutorials available at crydev.net and video lessons like YouTube, etc. I understand the only drawback for using this game engine would be the lack of programming knowledge. CRYENGINE supports C++, Lua, and Python programming languages. However with the improvement of CRYENGINE's flowgraph system, it actually makes gaming development more understandable and fun. I personally like how the documentation explains the new AI flowgraph behavior scripting system that allows AI characters to behave or interact. Because it generally uses the updated Modular Behavior Tree (MBT) system, it is considered a great learning experience to understand how AI behaviors work, along scripting with Lua and flowgraph. The terrain generator tool is also awesome. Developing real-time terrain geometry has never been so much fun, unlike UDK's terrain generating system. The terrain generator is simple to use, painting terrain grounds, flora, and trees without any hesitation . UDK terrain generator system does not have those simple features as CRYENGINE does. I had purchased all CRYENGINE's PacktPub books in eBook format and they are all great reference books for game developers who are interested in knowing more about the CRYENGINE. I personally believe that CRYENGINE is the best engine for creating real-time open environments. UDK, on the other hand, is only good for creating closed-end environments. However, CRYENGINE can also develop closed-end environments, but renders beautifully with high level of detail. Before subscribing to CRYENGINE, you must have a mid-to-high end GPU graphics card, like NVIDIA GeForce GTX or AMD Radeons to experience CRYENGINE'S real-time performance. It should work fine on PCs with intel i5/i7 or AMD FX processors with 8GB ram or above. BIG TIP: SAVE OFTEN!