I think both engines are
capable of beating it, and I think that Crysis 2 with the MaLDoHD mod (along with the DX11/texture pack) DOES beat Crysis.
I'm still utterly amazed at how good Crysis looks, especially modded to the extent that it now is.....a stroll through some of the custom maps like Hunter's Life, Jungle Rumble, and Before Apophys gives you an idea at just how amazing this game was for something released in
2007. And it STILL looks better than 99% of what's being released today - - years later. I think Crysis was the epitome of the "clean" style of PC graphics.
http://earthmachine.home.mchsi.com/apop1.jpg
That said, I think CryEngine3 does a better job at reflective surfaces - especially glass. I think the lighting is also more natural, and it seems like other things like depth-of-field, and especially how things appear at long draw distance look better in CryEngine3.
Battlefield 3 is littered with low-poly, terrible looking models and a lot of awful textures. I really like the dramatic lighting, though.....some of the scenes are downright beautiful. I would like to see what this game would look like with some real attention to detail, because I think it could look fantastic. Its just a shame this game is really just about the MP. I love the MP - it's a lot of fun, but the SP campaign is where they should have really shown off their tech, and they completely dropped the ball.