Ubisoft didn't wait too much to counterattack the Crytek team, so they decided to launch a new game from Far Cry franchise. Ubisoft Montreal with almost thirty people in their team started the work for Far Cry 2 two years ago. At Leipzig they presented a pre-alpha demo including all the major features of the game on a virtual one square kilometer perimeter. Pumped up with new technology and an aggressive A.I., the game seemed definitely the most comprehensive from the whole convention.

From the beginning Ubisoft wanted to create a game without loading screens. So Far Cry 2 has no loading screens, the whole 50 square kilometers being streamed along the gameplay. The whole area is alive. And I'm talking about the day and night cycle, weather cycle and the enemy A.I.. 

Every natural cycle has a big influence on A.I. behavior. For example in the night if an enemy turns on a fire camp, in the morning he will come to turn it off. The weather cycle can change the virtual biosphere of the game. A storm with wind speed of over 160 km/h can bend trees and wipe off branches and leaves.

The graphical engine can create trees fully dynamic and interactive. You can actually shoot with pixel accuracy every branch and leaf and leave bullet marks. Plants and grass are created like in real life, every plant representing a single entity. They didn't use packages of plant texture to fill the environment over and over again, that's why you will find a wide variety along your way. Grass, like trees, is dynamic and reacts to every wind blow or foot press. Every entity or vehicle in the game leaves a mark on the ground, so if you know this you can find the enemy much faster. Same goes for them.

The A.I. really pushes the boundaries of the genre. Every entity is alive. They eat, sleep, fight, guard the perimeter, etc. Their behavior is always different so you won't find the guard always in the same place. If you attack one of their nests, or you are spotted, they will begin to chase you immediately. They will search for the nearby vehicles and jump into any of them. If only one could find a vehicle he will stop and wait for the nearest comrade to take him into the truck. He can also decide if he will shoot or continue to drive the vehicle. In general they will shoot your vehicle in order to destroy it. Don't thing that the vehicle will explode like in a Hollywood movie. First the vehicle will stop functioning pushing you to get off and fight. While the enemy reaches you, the vehicle will burst into flames throwing lots of debris. Fire is another important element of the game. You can burn almost anything. You can fire up the grass to create a smoke barrier against the enemy, but also fire up the trees. 

At this moment there are 12 to 14 bodies to play with. When you choose your desired character the others will join the game and begin to complete their own missions. You can meet them along the game and you can receive missions from them. Depending on how frequently you meet them and how you complete their missions, they can build a relationship with you. As "close" as it gets the relationship, as harder becomes to help them stay alive. 

In the pre-alpha version the arsenal is half to be completed. Weapons can jam, so you have to reload them or to change them after a while.

The grenade launcher can be used as a bouncer. Because the grenade does not fuse as it gets out from the launcher, you can shoot the grenade into the ground to create a bounce effect. Of course the action is not hundred percent safe, and the grenade might explode when in contact with the ground, but with some exercise you can do it finally.

The game will be released next year and will be the secret weapon against Microsoft's Crysis.