Ubisoft's approach to the majority of their gaming franchises lately is an interesting case study and the Far Cry series is at the heart of it. In many, many of Ubisoft's games they have open worlds and lots to do, with some pieces being more interesting than the rest. And while the Assassin's Creed series got a much needed overhaul several years ago (to great success IMO), many other series remain untouched in gameplay.
Far Cry in particular is perhaps the biggest culprit, seeing very minimal changes since I would argue Far Cry 2 (2008), but most certainly Far Cry 3 (2012). Far Cry 3 remains the pinnacle of the series because of how damn impressive it was that year. Truth be told, going back and playing it now would probably be disappointing as small tweaks, new hardware, etc. have come along, but in terms of outshining the competition, Far Cry no longer dwarfs it like it once did.
In my Far Cry 5 review - which I believe I overrated now that I've distanced myself from that game for a few years - I expressed my tiredness with the series I love, but am worried for. The last line of that review explains:
"Personally, Far Cry 5 feels like the last game in the series that could get away with some sort of substantial overhaul because by the time the next one comes out, it'll quickly fade to old news unless it reinvents.
Only time will tell..."
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| I like long horse rides on the beach... |
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| Game giving me serious travel FOMO right now |
I'm obviously very late on this review as I tend to be in the back half deluge of yearly games, but one of the best ways I've seen Far Cry 6 be described by another reviewer is "creatively bankrupt". In gaming, there can be such thing as having fun and being kind of bored at the same time. And in terms of sequels Far Cry 6 is about as rinse as repeat as it gets. Big open world with probably too much to do? Check. Menacing villain? Check. Typical gunplay + vehicles? Check. None of these descriptions are bad, but in a lot of ways this series feels as if it's going through the motions in terms of checking these boxes. Why not introduce some unique multiplayer elements? Or RPG elements? Or some sort of version of the woefully underutilized Nemesis system?
What's more annoying is it feels like Far Cry 6 might actually be a step back for the series in some ways. The gameplay feels more limited this time around thanks to some of the series' coolest moves being locked to certain clothing you wear. If you're wearing different gear, you can't do X move. This simultaneously removed skill trees that probably needed a shake up, but not like this. Why not carry over AC Valhalla's huge skills tree approach? Or why not evolve and introduce some sort of grappling hook device? And why only limit me to 3 weapons and a side arm when I can clearly go into the menu and switch out weapons whenever? It's an annoying extra step --> why can't I just pause the game using a huge weapon wheel and select one? Or why not over emphasize on gun customization? It's part of what keeps Call of Duty's so addicting! There's just so much that I wish Far Cry would try that it's frustrating to see their time spent on activities that are useless and worse, not explained to the player. Example? It took me forever to figure out why I could/should loot metal, oil, parts, etc. around the world. And that's not to mention how awful the loot system is by holding square to pick something up with your crosshairs having to be overly precise on the item. Can we please move on from button mashing looting and hold a button as the player rolls around?
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| Casino Royale? Is that you? |
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| Literal moment that a compadre of mine delivered my car to me... and ran over (and killed) a horse in the process |
On next gen systems, the map is quite gorgeous and does a lot to overcome the blandness of NPCs, cars, weapons, etc. It won't be the best looking game on your PS5 or XSX, but the upgrade is obvious, particularly thanks to the exotic locale. In addition to Giancarlo Esposito, we've also got some great voicework by the majority of the cast and - per usual with Ubisoft - the female lead you can choose to play as.
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| Yara definitely looks gorgeous... |
Part of me feels weird writing such a short gaming review as they're usually some of my longest. Being 3 games behind doesn't help, but Far Cry 6 barely changing from its predecessors is the biggest reason. And this time I'm being harsher on the final score (here's 4's, Primal's and 5's scores here) because it's obvious to me that, while I still enjoy this series, it truly is "creatively bankrupt" and I believe at some point Ubisoft is going to be very oblivious to when disgruntled gamers finally hang up their wingsuits, guns, and machetes for good.
CONS
- Barely makes any changes to the formula. This franchise has hardly changed in over 10 YEARS!
- What's worse is that many changes (i.e. sending people on missions, looting, outposts/home bases, clothing) isn't explained well and leaves the player guessing
- And as someone who made it through the first 10-15 hours w/o understanding a few of these things, they clearly don't matter
- There are better FPS out there and the game mechanics are growing stale. Pieces of each have been done better in past iterations
- Looting is awful and time consuming. I shouldn't have to exactly line up the cursor and hold square
PROS
- One can't deny that Far Cry is still fun as hell most of the time. It's very "open" in the open world sense and it always feels pretty immersive
- Phenomenal, tropical map of Yara (Cuba) that has good variety, verticality, and views
- Stunning graphically on next gen. Not top-tier, but good nonetheless
- Story around the revolucion! is compelling thanks to:
- Amazing voice acting from female Dani
- Giancarlo Esposito's villain (the best villain since Vaas)
- Unique cast of side characters
- There's a certain spirit to the game that gels well with everything else and pushes it quite a bit further than it has any right to be
Rath's Review Score | 7/10
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