Crytek is a video game and software developer and a publisher.
They have developped among others Farcry, the Crysis series, Warface, Ryse: Son of Rome, Hunt: Showdown and the CryEngine game engine.
Transition Period
In 2014 while wages at Crytek went delayed or unpaid, rumors of Crytek bankruptcy started making the rounds, which Crytek denied.[1] Lack of communication eroded trust while concerns were raised over the future of Homefront: The Revolution[2] and Ryse 2 got cancelled.[3] Crytek announced having secured capital[4] which was followed by anouncing the sale of Homefront and of Crytek UK to publisher Deep Silver.[5] The staff was downsized by about 200-250 and costs were cut.[6]
"we have two choices: either we let people go immediately and pay the remainder, or we can't pay you right now and we stick together" -Cevat Yerli, Crytek CEO[6]
The primary cause of the financial difficulties according to the CEO was the transformation of the industry, with free-to-play or games as a service - online services in general - to become the future of gaming, which they knew for a while, but they were finishing up their retail games or still had them in development. That shift required a whole different capitalization, as well as an additional talent pool and different types of spending and forecasting. This caused temporarily diminished capital resource, which Crytek had now said had been overcome.[6]
In 2015, Crytek found emergency funding from Amazon,[7][8] which spent millions on CryEngine technology used to create the Lumberyard engine, the very same which was named in the later lawsuit when Cloud Imperium games switched to Lumberyard in 2016.
In December 2016, reports of delayed and unpaid wages surfaced once again..[9][10][11][12] Crytek announced that their studios in Hungary, Bulgaria, South Korea and China would be shut down[13][14]
Then, in January 2017, Crytek found more money by selling Warface publishing rights to Russian-owned game giant My.com[15]
On 7 March 2017, Crytek sold Crytek Black Sea to Sega and The Creative Assembly.[16][17]
It was in the context of this transitional phase that the Crytek vs Cloud Imperium Games lawsuit took place and that a bond was later requested by CIG.
On 28 February 2018, Crytek announced that Cevat Yerli was stepping down as chief executive officer (CEO) of Crytek, with his brothers, Avni and Faruk Yerli, taking over the company's leadership as joint CEOs.[18]
The annual report published by Cloud Imperium Games in early 2021 revealed that Cloud Imperium Games acquired a license for CryEngine from Crytek in 2020.[19]
Crytek has released all three Crysis games Remastered, The Climb 2 for Occulus Quest 1 and 2, and is currently working on Crysis 4.
Crytek vs Cloud Imperium Games
Crytek v. Cloud Imperium Games corp and Roberts Space industries was a lawsuit brought by Crytek for copyright infringement and breach of contract.
The lawsuit was based on the General Licence Agreement (GLA) that both parties signed, and Crytek was asking for direct and indirect damages as well as a permanent injunction against further use of the CryEngine in any Star Citizen or Squadron 42 materials.[20] Crytek did not attach the General License Agreement to its complaint, which CIG later called deliberately ommiting and hiding, to which Crytek answred it had no obligation to do so and that it contained sensitive business information. The GLA was attached to the lawsuit by CIG.
The lawsuit lasted from December 12th 2017 to March 2020 and ended as a dismissal with prejudice, meaning that the claims won't be able to be raised again.[21]
Employees
Crytek staff that joined CIG at one point or another includes among others John Crewe, Todd Papy, Christopher Bolte, Steve Bender, Brian Chambers, Caleb Essex, Sean Tracy, Dan Tracy, Jason Cole and Michel Kooper.
In 2014, Cloud Imperium Games wasn't legally allowed to poach Crytek staff, however after Crytek failed to pay their staff for 2,5 months some of their staff left to look for other jobs,[22] some of whom went to Cloud Imperium Games of their own accord.[23][24][25]
Quotes
- "I got the feeling that there were quite a few Wing Commander fans at Crytek, and they were all just excited to help out.” -Chris Roberts[26]
- "Witout Crytek's help and support and engine we wouldn't be here." -Chris Roberts[27]
See also
External Links
References
- ↑ Crysis developer Crytek denies "verge of bankruptcy" claim. But reports indicate staff have gone unpaid. Eurogamer, 23 Jun 2014
- ↑ Crytek UK exodus sparks concern over Homefront: The Revolution. High turnover, unpaid wages and of a lack of trust in management. Eurogamer, 24 Jun 2014
- ↑ Crytek's Ryse 2 canned as financial struggle spreads to Shanghai. More tales of unpaid wages. Eurogamer, 26 Jun 2014
- ↑ Crytek secures capital as it finally comes clean about its financial issues, Venturebeat, July 25, 2014
- ↑ Deep Silver parent company buys Homefront from Crytek. Hunt development shifted from Austin to Frankfurt. Crytek UK becomes Deep Silver Dambuster Studios. Eurogamer, 30 Jul 2014
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "The transformation was painful. We paid the price". Crytek boss Cevat Yerli on unpaid wages, Ryse 2 and the future. Eurogamer, 8 Aug 2014
- ↑ Amazon licensing deal may have saved Crytek - report. Sources say the German developer received as much as $70 million for CryEngine licensing agreement, gamesindustry.biz, April 7, 2015
- ↑ Crytek makes a deal with Amazon - report. Allegedly received $50-70m in the partnership. Eurogamer, 6 Apr 2015
- ↑ Crytek employees say they’re not being paid, again. Complaints recall crisis publisher faced in 2014. Polygon, Dec 10, 2016
- ↑ Crysis Developer Allegedly Hasn't Paid Some Employees for 6 Months, Gamespot, December 12, 2016
- ↑ Source: Crytek is sinking, wages are unpaid, talent leaving on a daily basis, KitGuru, December 10, 2016
- ↑ Crytek once again in crisis. Staff suffer delayed wages, future of company in doubt. Eurogamer, 13 Dec 2016
- ↑ Crytek closing five studios, will refocus on ‘premium IPs’ and CryEngine. Only Frankfurt and Kiev studios will remain. Polygon, Dec 20, 2016
- ↑ Crytek breaks silence, closes multiple studios. "Undergoing such transitions is far from easy…" Eurogamer, 20 Dec 2016
- ↑ Russian publishing giant picks up Crytek's FPS Warface. Transition begins next month. Eurogamer, 18 Jan 2017
- ↑ Crytek sells off Black Sea studio to Sega, Total War creators. Say hello to Creative Assembly Sofia. Polygon, Mar 7, 2017
- ↑ Crytek Black Sea now a part of Total War developer Creative Assembly. Sofia not. Eurogamer, 7 Mar 2017
- ↑ Controversial Crytek boss Cevat Yerli steps down. Victory costs. Eurogamer, 28 Feb 2018
- ↑ "[...] we also purchased a perpetual worldwide license for use of the CryEngine [...]", Cloud Imperium Financials for 2020, Dec 21, 2021
- ↑ Crytek GmbH v. Cloud Imperium Games Corp., 2:17-cv-08937, (C.D. Cal. Dec 12, 2017) ECF No. 1
- ↑ Crytek GmbH v. Cloud Imperium Games Corp., 2:17-cv-08937, (C.D. Cal. Mar 24, 2020) ECF No. 127
- ↑ Crytek USA Studio Head, Senior Staff Quit After Salary Issues – Report, Gamingbolt, 31st, Jul. 2014
- ↑ Crytek GmbH v. Cloud Imperium Games Corp., 2:17-cv-08937, (C.D. Cal. Mar 29, 2019) ECF No. 57
- ↑ Crytek UK exodus sparks concern over Homefront: The Revolution, Eurogamer, 24 Jun 2014
- ↑ Sandi Roberts Interview Part Two...Her Thoughts on Star Citizen, Inforunners, YouTube,
- ↑ Star Citizen: "We'll compete with any AAA game out there", gamesindustry.biz, Dec. 13, 2012
- ↑ Citizencon 2013, Chris Roberts
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