As an anthology franchise, the Far Cry series isn’t known for following one particular narrative like other great video game franchises. Instead, each game tells its own story by putting players in various locations to interact with new characters. However, the series does bring back characters from previous games to show that they share the same universe.
As of now, the Far Cry franchise has released six mainline games along with several spin-offs and standalone expansions. Notably, the Far Cry franchise has been a commercial success for Ubisoft for two decades with most of its praise for its open-world format and power-hungry antagonists. Yet, the Far Cry games’ lack of innovation continues to be its main struggle.
Likewise, the Far Cry series is known for its theme of open-world exploration of wilderness and exotic environments and vigilante combat against ruthless dictators. At the beginning, the Far Cry series was primarily for single-player gameplay before cooperative and competitive multiplayer campaigns were added in later titles.
The Game That Started the Far Cry Series
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The first Far Cry video game was released in 2004 by German video game development company, Crytek, who used the game to test their new CryEngine system. As a result of CryEngine, Crytek could portray realistic outdoor spaces from large viewing distances, making the CryEngine one of the most popular game engines at the time.
Although the first Far Cry video game was an open-world first-person shooter, it lacked some of the popular features that its successors would have. In later Far Cry games, exploring the open-world environment was encouraged as they didn’t have linear structured missions and included side missions that the original Far Cry video game lacked.
Despite having the features of the original Far Cry game removed, it still created the gameplay formula that would become a mainstay throughout the franchise. Overall, the Far Cry franchise would become known for placing players in foreign environments to fight enemy forces with various tools and weaponry.
The Remake of Original Game With Instincts
After the first game’s success, Ubisoft released a remake of the Microsoft Windows version of the original game in 2005 called Far Cry Instincts exclusively for the Xbox. As a remake, Far Cry Instincts would have more linear missions, limiting the open-world format even more due to the Xbox’s reduced processing power, preventing a full rendering of the vast landscapes and islands.
However, Ubisoft made up for the game’s lack by introducing various multiplayer modes and weapons. Also, Ubisoft included a map editor allowing players to change landscapes in various ways that can be played with others through Xbox Live. Although players cannot add water to their maps, they can choose its accessibility by changing the heights of the landscapes.
In addition to these new features, Far Cry Instincts includes feral abilities to aid with its modified storyline and traps that can be laid out throughout the island. Furthermore, there were plans to release the game on the GameCube and PlayStation 2 consoles but were eventually canceled. Yet, these limitations didn’t stop the game from being a commercial hit among critics.
Far Cry’s Evolution, Predator, and Paradise Lost
Next, Ubisoft dropped its sequel to Instincts with Far Cry Evolution the following year on XBox in 2006. Unlike its predecessor, Evolution introduces a new single-player campaign but with a shorter runtime. Also, the game features new vehicles and weaponry and an additional multiplayer mode and expanded its map-maker options for players to utilize.
However, since Evolution isn’t backward compatible, the maps created on Instincts cannot be transferred to the Xbox 360, where Evolution was released. Alongside Evolution, Ubisoft released Far Cry Instincts: Predator on the Xbox 360 simultaneously, which follows the previous games’ storylines with enhanced graphics.
Additionally, Ubisoft released a Far Cry arcade game with Paradise Lost in 2007. To separate itself from other installments, Ubisoft added new features. Namely, the game includes light guns resembling those found in the horror game Aliens: Extermination and players can find rockets and grenades stocked in stationary turrets as power-ups.
The Nintendo Wii’s Far Cry Vengeance
Although the Xbox was Far Cry’s home console at the time, Ubisoft created a new game specifically for the Nintendo Wii. As a remake of Evolution, Far Cry Vengeance was released in 2006 with changed controls, new vehicles and weapons, and even three new levels. Unfortunately, the game received negative reviews for its graphics and AI features.
Despite Vengeance’s negative reviews among fans and critics, it still received praise for its creative controls during gameplay. In particular, Ubisoft found a clever way to use the Wii Remote and its nunchuck attachment to create a more engaging gaming experience for players.
The Dunia Engine in Far Cry 2
After four years of releasing various gaming content, Ubisoft would finally drop Far Cry 2 on various gaming consoles in 2008. What’s more? Gameloft would release a top-down shooter for mobile phones alongside the game. In this open-world shooter, players can enjoy competitive gameplay for teams or individuals.
During the years-long production, Ubisoft wanted more realism added to the gaming experience than the original Far Cry game could offer. To accomplish this goal, Ubisoft centered its narrative and tone around Dashiell Hammett’s novel Red Harvest and Joseph Conrad’s novella Heart of Darkness. With these two pieces of literature, Ubisoft centered the game’s theme on how far people will go to survive horrific trauma.
Furthermore, Far Cry 2 moves from the CryEngine to their Dunia gaming engine which provides real-time elements for the environment and enemies. With these new features, Far Cry 2 was a success among critics, selling around three million copies worldwide. Also, Far Cry 2 was highly praised for its open-world gameplay but received harsh criticism for its AI and technicians.
Far Cry 3 Arguably the Best Game in the Series
In most circles, Far Cry 3 is either the best game in the series or the greatest game of all time. Released in November 2012, Far Cry 3 received critical acclaim for its world designs, gameplay, and characters with most of its praise for its main villain, Vaas, who is also considered the best video game ever because of his charisma and psychopathic tendencies to put it lightly.
Specifically, the realism adapted in Far Cry 3 also created memorable gameplay for players as it intensified the action scenes throughout the game. For instance, healing in the game isn’t as simple as pushing a single button, and then everything is better. Instead, Far Cry 3 makes the best use of its first-person view by giving us a direct view of the player characters’ injuries in graphic detail.
Moreover, Ubisoft made the creative decision to do away with the standard level within Far Cry 3 by placing objects and enemies in random places to give the illusion of realism. To avoid repetition, Far Cry consists of 250 plus various enemy encounters and includes a system that remembers each encounter after extended gameplay.
The Strange 1980s-Inspired Game of Blood Dragon
Alongside the game, Ubisoft would follow up with a standalone expansion in 2013 called Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon. As a stand-alone expansion, Far Cry Blood Dragon would be the eighth installment of the series with a wacky premise that stands out from the pack – a 1980s action film mixed with a retro-futuristic parody taking place in an open-world environment.
Equally important, the gameplay within Blood Dragon follows the same formula as Far Cry 3 except numerous systems from the main game were simplified or taken away. Also, by seeing the title, players can find aid in a massive dinosaur with laser eyes that can be lured to attack the enemy.
With the trend of releasing downloadable gaming content at the time, Ubisoft finished Blood Dragon in around six months to market to newcomers to the Far Cry series. Heavily inspired by 1980s films Terminator and The Wrath, Ubisoft wanted their game to organically reflect a 1980s action film, with Jason Eisener, the director of Hobo with a Shotgun, as the game’s formal advisor.
In the end, Blood Dragon would have mixed relations as most loved its 1980s influence with divided arguments over the game’s humor. Ultimately, Blood Dragon was a commercial success receiving mostly positive reviews from critics. Even with the success of Blood Dragon, any plans for future sequels were scrapped.
Far Cry’s Crossover Game Trials of the Blood Dragon
In 2016, Ubisoft would break free from first-person shooters into platforms with their Far Cry game, Trials of the Blood Dragon. For the first time, Ubisoft would add a crossover element to the game by tying the games of Blood Dragon and the racing game, Trials.
Trials of the Blood Dragon was a complete surprise as Ubisoft would announce and release a trial version game at their E3 2016 press converse. What’s more? By completing the trial version’s challenges, players could unlock the free game. Despite Ubisoft giving out a free game, the mixed reviews around Trials of the Blood Dragon were abundant.
New Direction for Far Cry Series with a Fourth Game
With all the praise surrounding Far Cry 3, of course, Ubisoft would make the next main game of the franchise, Far Cry 4, in 2014. Its gameplay follows the same format as its predecessors by incorporating open-world exploration and combat as players must battle dangerous enemies and wildlife using various weapons.
Although Far Cry 4 is a first-person shooter, it takes elements from role-playing games such as side missions and branching storylines for a better gaming experience. In addition to these features, Far Cry 4 brought back the map editor and multiplayer modes for competitive and cooperative gameplay.
Originally, Far Cry 4 was planned to be a direct sequel of the previous game that would take place in the same setting and bring back characters, including Vaas, from Far Cry 3. However, the development team decided to go a different route as they didn’t want to rehash the previous game but wanted to make a brand new game with different characters and a new setting.
By making a new game, the development team experimented with various ideas to make Far Cry 4 revitalize the series. That’s why, the outposts in the game became larger and players had more options in customizing weapons. Also, since players enjoyed exploring the open-world format of Far Cry 3, more resources and quests were added to allow players to interact more with the environment.
Take a Blast to the Past with Far Cry Primal
In 2016, Ubisoft released a spin-off game as the tenth installment of the series with Far Cry Primal. To break away from the first-person shooter format that the Far Cry series would be known for, Primal is mostly an action-adventure game.
Moreover, Primal takes place during prehistoric times to separate itself from other Far Cry games, as it focuses on everyday survival rather than trying to take down a foreign threat. Furthermore, players must rely more on primitive weapons than modern firearms and they can even summon wild animals as companions during battle.
Overall, Primal received mostly positive reviews for its concept, world design, and its new animal-taming mechanic. Any criticism Primal received targeted its lack of innovation regarding its story and limiting its weapon choices. With Far Cry Primal’s success, Ubisoft released a survival mode to increase the game’s difficulty following its launch.
The Controversy Surrounding Far Cry 5
Two years after Primal, Ubisoft returned to the main series by releasing Far Cry 5 in 2018. Like previous installments, exploration and combat drive the gameplay of Far Cry 5. In this game, players must battle dangerous enemy soldiers and wildlife using various weapons to liberate the fictional region of Hope Country from the tyrannic rule of a doomsday cult.
The development of Far Cry 5 was an extensive process as Ubisoft had explored several different locations before finally settling in America. Alongside its setting choices, Far Cry 5 took inspiration from various and popular socio-political events such as the September 11 attacks and the Cold War to capture and create the despondent social climate within the game.
Far Cry 5 was a success as it mostly received positive reviews for its open-world design and gameplay. However, controversy arose as the game was announced during a heightened period of political conflicts, leading to criticisms of its story and certain characters. Yet, despite the controversy, Far Cry 5 became the fastest-selling game of the franchise, selling over 10 million copies in 2020.
Before Far Cry 5’s launch, Ubisoft would release three stand-alone stories of downloadable content focusing on the game’s secondary characters. These standalone stories are titled Hours of Darkness taking place during the Vietnam War, Lost on Mars which is a sci-fi story taking place on Mars, and Dead Living Zombies where players will have to fight against the undead.
A New Dawn in Far Cry’s Apocalyptic World
During the early development stages, Ubisoft wanted to branch out with an apocalyptic game in the series. By working with other Ubisoft companies worldwide and using their Dunia 2 engine, they created their highly-desired post-apocalyptic game with New Dawn. To avoid the bleak tones of post-apocalyptic games, Ubisoft instead wanted a world that was vibrant in color to separate itself.
Briefly, New Dawn is the spin-off sequel of Far Cry 5, which was released in 2019 as the 12th installment of the series. Set seventeen years later, New Dawn follows the ending of the previous game which saw a nuclear exchange, the Collapse, destroy the fictional Hope County. In the game, players must help survivors rebuild their community and defeat rival bandits.
Most of the gameplay elements from previous games are featured in New Dawn such as its open-world format, capturing outposts, and the cooperative and competitive multiplayer modes. However, to improve the gaming experience, the player character is highly customizable as players can choose their gender and ethnicity.
Since New Dawn is a sequel to Far Cry 5, the fictional Hope County returns to the game. However, New Dawn uses a reimagined version of Hope County as nuclear war has reshaped the landscape providing new available areas to explore while other areas are inaccessible. What’s more? Mutated animals, a sky with a bright aurora, and colorful flowers dominate the landscapes as a result of the radiation.
Fight the Power in Far Cry 6
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Similar to Far Cry 5, the creation of Far Cry 6 was extensive as the development team researched various revolutions, primarily the Cuban Revolution, to make the game’s narrative. Overall, Far Cry 6 was made to be political as it covers the rise of fascism, the costs of imperialism, and the push for free and fair elections as a response to the controversy surrounding Far Cry 5.
Moreover, the developers wanted a more engaging gameplay by including various ways for players to approach the game. Furthermore, Far Cry 6 was the first game to feature cutscenes from a third-person perspective. By including this new cutscene perspective, players experience the story from a different angle as some cutscenes may not have the player character present.
Furthermore, Far Cry 6 incorporates various elements from previous games by returning to a tropical setting and bringing back voiced protagonists. Despite these features, the game received mixed reviews as Far Cry 6 received praise for its small improvements to the gameplay, but was criticized for its lack of innovation with its story.
Perks From Far Cry 6’s Season Pass
Alongside Far Cry 6’s season pass, Ubisoft released downloadable content including three expansion packs where players can play popular antagonists of previous Far Cry games. Namely, the antagonists that players follow are Vaas from Far Cry 3, Pagin Min from Far Cry 4, and lastly, Joseph Seed from Far Cry 5 and New Dawn.
Also, players received an updated version of Blood Dragon and other free content including Rambo-inspired and Stranger Things crossover gameplay missions. Lastly, Ubisoft dropped a separate paid expansion called Lost Between Worlds on December 6, 2022, which follows Dani, the player character, who’s suddenly lost in a space between worlds after discovering an alien spaceship and artificial intelligence with the name FAI.
The Far Cry Series Leads to Television
Unsurprisingly, the Far Cry franchise’s success with its video games would spread into television with various content released. In 2008, Uwe Boll, a popular director known for his video game-to-film adaptations, released the direct-to-video film, Far Cry, which unfortunately received mostly negative reviews from critics.
Despite the film’s negative reviews, a webseries was created in 2012 acting as a prequel to Far Cry 3. This four-part series follows Far Cry 3‘s main antagonist, Vaas, as he sadistically tortures Christopher Mints-Plasse, who played the iconic McLovin character from 2007’s comedy film, Superbad.
Of course, Ubisoft would try to make a Far Cry movie if reports of releasing said movie under their own movie studio are any indication. Alongside a Far Cry movie, Ubisoft would release Raving Rabbids and Watch Dog films altogether. However, no news surrounding the movie since its original pitch back in 2013 has come forward, so it’s safe to say that a Far Cry movie by Ubisoft Motion Pictures isn’t likely to happen.
It wouldn’t be until 2018 that another Far Cry movie would be released. The short film, Inside Eden’s Gate, would be released on March 5th of the same year to be a tie-in prequel leading to Far Cry 5 by following three filmmakers who go to Eden’s Gate to get answers about the Project worked upon by Joseph Seed and his family, who are the main antagonists in the Far Cry 5 game.
The Looper Board Game Far Cry Beyond
Although the Far Cry franchise is known for its video games even board gamers can have fun with their own board game titled, Far Cry Beyond. This tabletop game takes players back to the 1980s, where they must help six random heroes dismantle a sadistic Soviet organization.
What’s more? Beyond introduces players to a new board game style called a looper, which, unlike other traditional board games, allows players to restart games over from an unlocked checkpoint with tools found in the game. Due to this gaming style, players can take advantage of its replayability as they go through this open-world game and its various branching paths.
What’s Next for Ubisoft and the Far Cry Series
The last news surrounding the Far Cry franchise was an update of Far Cry 6. Following the update, rumors of two new projects being developed became louder, specifically a Far Cry sequel and a multiplayer spin-off game. Yet, Ubisoft hasn’t confirmed anything, so fans will have to wait. Still, Ubisoft has various Far Cry series content to keep fans’ attention in the meantime.
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