TheCrysisseries has amassed a huge fanbase that applauds its intense gunplay and surprisingly gripping storyline. With the third entry,Crysis 3, releasing in early 2013 and wrapping up the trilogy in a nice bow, many assumed that the story had been concluded. In the past year however, theCrysistrilogy was remasteredfor modern platforms, bringing the acclaimed shooters to stronger hardware and with added visual refinements. Many had speculated that these new releases were to prep players for a potential fourth game sometime in the future.
Fans held their breath, but Crytek made the surprise announcement yesterday thatCrysis 4is indeed on the way. Information is slim at the moment, and the game is likely years away, but just the prospect of a new installment in theCrysisfranchise has been met with a great deal of excitement. Naturally, to prepare for this upcoming fourth game, many gamers will be interested to check out the prior titles, either again or for the first time. While you should enjoy these games firsthand, for convenience, here is a rundown of the general plot of theCrysisseries.
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The Ceph Threat
TheCrysisfranchise is far more than just a pretty face, with a shocking amount of lore to support itsapocalyptic science fiction storyline. The story actually begins half a billion years ago, when a menacing alien race known as the Ceph successfully colonize the M33 galaxy, and begin producing seeding ships to spread to other worlds. Flash forward to 65 million years ago and three of these ships enter our solar system. One lands on Jupiter, the other on Mars, and the final ship collides with Earth, causing a cataclysmic event that wipes out the dinosaurs.
The Ceph remains mostly dormant, awakening periodically to observe the advancement of life on Earth. Human beings prove to be interesting to the Ceph, so they study our species and begin to learn about our habits and social structures. Many centuries later, a researcher named Jacob Hargreave discovers the first signs ofalien Ceph technologyin Siberia. Around the same time, an explosion known as the Tunguska Event (an actual historical disaster) devastated a large area of land in Russia. Hargreave, along with other colleagues, travels to this location to investigate.
Most of what happened in this expedition is unknown, however most of the crew were killed, with only Hargreave among others being the survivors. Hargreave was found byBritishforces setup in the region, and ended up in possession of alien technology to better prepare for the threat that the Ceph pose to society. Advance the clock all the way to 2016, and the Nanosuit has been created. Although a powerful piece of armor, there are concerns about the consequences of extended use, specifically symbiosis and affecting the user’s mental state.
Crysis
Leading into thefirstCrysisgame, the United States has been launching offensives against crime syndicates in South America. While there, a team of three army rangers discover an anomaly called the “spike tower,” which seemed to have turned an entire village into fanatics. This tower was later confirmed to be Ceph technology, in the alien species attempt to gain control over the human race. North Korea then begins to notice odd signals coming from an island off the Lingshan archipelago. North Korea evacuates the island, as a distress signal from Dr. Rosenthal’s daughter, Helena, is sent to the United States.
The following week,United Statesforces deploy a five man Nanosuit team to save Dr. Rosenthal’s research team and recon the island. The team, led by a man named Prophet, search the island while contending with Ceph attackers. Two of the team members are killed, only leaving the members Psycho, Nomad and Prophet (the leader) alive.
While on the island, Prophet is taken prisoner by the Ceph, leaving Nomad to save Helena. He eventually finds her, flees the island while it is nuked in an attempt to destroy the aliens. This proves futile, as the Ceph counterattack on the human fleet, destroying their ships and leaving Helena, Nomad and Psycho no choice but to return to the island after hearing a distress signal from Prophet.
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Crysis 2
Three years after the events of the first game,Crysis 2takes place in New York City, plagued by an unknown virus in 2023. The player controls a marine named Alcatraz, who after being found almost dead, is given a Nanosuit by Prophet before he seemingly commits suicide. He is tasked by Prophet to track down a scientist named Nathan Gould, something much easier said than done with Ceph forces roaming around the city.
Eventually, after many intense battles and catastrophic destruction done to the city, Alcatraz does succeed in locating Nathan Gould. Alcatraz and Gould then team up with an undercover CIA agent named Tara Strickland, as well as Jacob Hargreave, the founder of Crynet and the creator of theNanosuit. After further struggle, Alcatraz eventually enters the Ceph core in New York and wipes out all the alien threats in the city. In the process, Alcatraz is in critical condition and sees a memory pattern of Prophet, whose DNA is revealed to be merged with Alcatraz.
Crysis 3
The closing chapter of theCrysistrilogykicks off in 2047, in a post apocalyptic New York encased in a giant nanodome. Prophet returns on a mission against CELL, the agents of Crynet, after he discovers the truth behind why they built the quarantined nanodomes. While Prophet was gone, CELL used Ceph technology to create unlimited energy, and created a monopoly on the world’s power supply. Those who could not pay for this energy were enslaved by debt to CELL. The source for this power supply, called System X, is located in New York. Prophet joins a resistance group to destroy System X and free the world from CELL.
With the help of Psycho, Prophet disables System X, but it turns out this machine was designed to contain the Alpha Ceph while draining its energy. The Alpha Ceph escapes, creating awormholeto its home world, with the intent of returning to terraform the planet and ultimately destroy all living life on its surface. Prophet unlocks the true abilities of his suit after disabling a neural block, and suffice it to say, is able to overcome the Ceph in the end. The trilogy concludes with Prophet on the same island where the events of the originalCrysistook place 27 years prior. He throws away his dog tags, relinquishing his past.
Crysis: Remastered Trilogyis available on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
