Crytek has announced plans to reveal the nature of their updates to proprietary game engine CryEngine in the upcoming GDC in San Francisco. They have immediately outed that the engine now natively supports Linux.
Crytek will also use the event to show off their latest games. Visitors will get to play two new modes from online FPS Warface, Tower Raid and Capture. They will also be showing of The Collectables, a military strategy game for iOS and Android.
As we know, Crytek has a preoccupation with power and graphics, and this has reflected in CryEngine, but I think they have implemented this in a way that benefits everybody. See, CryEngine has support for every platform conceivable, including Windows, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and the Wii U. Native Linux support may not be a priority for AAAs like EA and Activision (esp with Steam), but it’s the sort of thing companies like Crytek would love to meddle in.
CryEngine stopped getting numbered updates last year, to differentiate it from prior versions, and also to indicate that future iteration would no longer require numbering as they would streamline the process.
If things continue as they are, would CryEngine eventually go on to support Mac? Apple still does not seem interested in supporting gamers in a serious way on their PCs, but CryTek seems to be the kind that would attempt to add in support, just to show off their engine’s capabilities. In any case, it will be interesting to see who would bite and use CryEngine for any native Linux ports, or even original games.
