ArcheAge does use CryENGINE 3, XLGames confirms.
According to an article by ThisIsGame (a reputable South Korean videogame news site), ArcheAge does in fact use CryENGINE 3. We had speculated on the meaning of XLGames’ appearance in one of Crytek’s CryENGINE 3 promotional videos a few weeks ago. Now we know for sure that our favorite MMO does, in fact, make use of parts of the updated engine.
Since its original unveiling, ArcheAge had always billed itself as the premier CryENGINE 2 MMO. Now that XLGames has upgraded to the newer engine, ArcheAge’s claim to graphics fame continues to endure.
It doesn’t seem that XLGames had any difficulties switching from CryENGINE 2 to CryENGINE 3. The two engines are incredibly similar. For now ArcheAge’s CryENGINE 3 code is limited to graphics, animation, and physics. Networking and other miscellaneous subroutines remain unchanged.
XLGames won’t put the CryENGINE 3 label on ArcheAge until Open Beta.
CryENGINE 3 Showcase Video Includes ArcheAge
We’re not exactly sure why ArcheAge is in the following CryENGINE 3 showcase video. Our favorite MMO was definitely built using CryENGINE 2, but perhaps the two engines were similar enough that XLGames switched over? If that hypothesis is correct, it can only mean good things.
The ArcheAge footage starts around 2:00, but the entire video is actually pretty interesting to watch.