Far Cry developer signs with EA

German developer Crytek has entered into a strategic partnership with publisher Electronic Arts which will see it building a new game franchise for the PC, based on entirely new intellectual property.

The Crytek team recently finished work on the well-received PC first person shooter Far Cry, which was published by Ubisoft; however, the company's deal with Ubisoft was for one game only.

Although the new game which is being created for EA will not be the sequel to Far Cry which the team mentioned at ECTS last year - and indeed, it's not clear whether that is still even on the cards - it's expected that it will use at least some of the technology from the graphically stunning CRY engine.

"Bringing original intellectual property to the interactive entertainment market is a key focus for EA," according to EA Partners Europe vice president Frank Sagnier. "EAP's partnership agreement with Crytek is a testament to our commitment to nurturing creative development and we are delighted to be working with one of the brightest talents in Europe to create what we believe will be an innovative gaming experience."

For his part, Crytek president Cevat Yerli is also understandably happy with the new partnership. "We are looking forward to this partnership with EA," he commented. "Our advanced technology and creativity, together with EA's production support, marketing and sales, means that we have a great opportunity to being an original gaming experience to our consumers, as well as grow our business."