Continuing the trend of attaching popular, award-winning Science Fiction authors to major videogame tie-in novels, Del Rey has announced that Peter Watts, author of Blindsight, will publish a novel tied to the Crysis series of computer games. It will be titled Crysis: Legion
From Suvudu:
In CRYSIS: LEGION, terrifying armored alien invaders stalk the streets of New York, while a nightmare plague strikes down its human population with brutal speed. The city is in chaos, its streets and skyline in smashed and flaming ruin. Nothing can stand against the invaders, leaving New Yorkers with a stark choice – flee or die. Just to survive in this inferno will require technology and armor beyond anything any modern soldier has ever seen. One man will inherit that means to survive. His mission: shake off death, carry the fight to the aliens and drive them back.
ABOUT THE GAME:
The world has been ravaged by a series of climatic disasters and society is on the verge of total breakdown. Now the aliens have returned, with a full invasion force bent on nothing less than the total annihilation of mankind, starting by trying to rip the heart out of Earth’s most iconic city.In New York, terrifying alien invaders stalk the streets and a nightmare plague strikes down the city’s myriad inhabitants with brutal epidemic speed. The city’s systems are in chaos, its streets and skyline are smashed and in flaming ruin. This is New York City like you’ve never seen it before.
Neither paramilitary law enforcement nor the might of the US military machine can stand against the invaders, and all who choose not to flee are dead men walking. Just to survive in this maelstrom of death will require technology beyond anything any modern soldier has ever seen. One man will inherit that means to survive.
One supersoldier, wielding the combat enhancement technology of the future with Nanosuit 2, will make the last stand to save humanity from destruction in the urban jungle that is New York City.
Unfortunately, Watts might be best known these days for his altercation with a border agent on the US-Canada border. More importantly, though, he’s a Hugo- and Locus-award winning writer and brings a high pedigree to the Crysis franchise. Incidentally, British novelist Richard Morgan is also closely tied to the development of Crysis 2 as a consultant. One has to wonder if Morgan didn’t have a hand in getting Watts signed up for the tie-in novel. It’s very refreshing to see EA and Crytek taking the franchise seriously and making a strong push to legitimize it as a universe by tying such prominent names to the project. Will it work? Time will tell, but it’s certainly looking promising.
Now, how to get Morgan to work on the next Deus Ex game….
Watts actually worked as a consultant on the original CRYSIS game in 2007, so has a pre-existing relationship with CryTek and the franchise. My guess is that if they asked Morgan he turned them down due to his work on THE COLD COMMANDS and its sequel.
Correction: Watts has been working as a writer on CRYSIS 2, not the original. Interesting to see what he did on C2 compared to Morgan.