The realm of modern-day gaming and its advanced derivatives of open-world and first-person shooter mechanics have derived from the Far Cry franchise, making French video game publisher Ubisoft hold a strong grip in the gaming Industry. The introspection of the solely integrated storyline, functional locations, and characters are catalysts for Ubisoft to incorporate extensive features to this series that have added a new dimension to the open-world gaming that attracts the affirmative attention of game enthusiasts from various parts of the globe.
The present-day Far Cry offers a variety of side missions that are solely designed to increase engagement and reduce fatigue of the main mission, but how players perceive these aspects depends on their interest. In my opinion, major games in this franchise, including the main sequels are similar in terms of gameplay design and mechanics.
That enables game enthusiasts to experience open-world gameplay and witness the scenic beauty of different landmarks, including Far Cry 3’s fictional Rook Islands and Far Cry 5’s Hope Country, a fictional region of Montana, United States. In this article, I will provide information about each game of this franchise according to its release date in chronological order, which will clarify the changes that the franchise has gone through over the years.
Initial Far Cry
The inception of the series and the initial Far Cry game developed by Crytek. The first game of this franchiser was released in 2004, and it was further available on PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360. The story of this game begins with protagonist Jack Carver, a former member of the special forces who searches for journalist Valerie Constantine, who escorted him to the islands but went missing after the boat was shattered by mercenaries. The whole plot of the initial Far Cry game takes place on remote tropical islands, and like the later Far Cry series, it thoroughly focuses on stealth and intense gun fights along, enabling players to utilize open-ended environments to navigate enemies.
Far Cry Instincts
Far Cry Instincts, developed and published by Ubisoft in 2005, adheres to the concept of first-person shooter, which still remains unchanged among recent Far Cry titles. This game was published by Ubisoft for Xbox, and after that, it was available to Microsoft Windows users. The storyline of this series underwent modification to elevate its attractiveness among game enthusiasts, and later on, new multiplayer modes, feral abilities, and weapons were added. This series adhere to the same story with new gameplay mechanics, including feral vision, feral speed, feral jump, feral strength, and many other abilities.
The consecutive sequence of this game was Far Cry Instincts: Evolution, which was released for Xbox in 2006 and restarted the story, which is surrounded by Jack Carver. Far Cry Instincts: Evolution also added new parameters to the previous games of this franchise, including multiplayer maps, new weapons, and vehicles that aid small and precise changes in stealth and combat mechanics.
Far Cry Vengeance
In 2006, Far Cry Vengeance was developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. This game is a remake of Far Cry Instincts: Evolution. The story of this part commences with Jack Carver, the main protagonist, who approaches a bar through a woman named Kade, who asks him to meet her later. Hoverer, this did not happen since Jack was arrested before he could meet Kade. In the context of gameplay mechanics, this series offers players the ability to take advantage of effective motion control that eases the process of performing melee attacks on enemies.
Far Cry 2
After the release of the preliminary Far Cry series, Ubisoft Montreal focused on developing Far Cry 2, which portrays a fictional African country that underwent a civil war that was impelled by Jackal, a weapon dealer who aggravated the conflict. This part features open-ended gameplay that enables players to kill enemies in front of them. It also provides an option for a gun for hire to find and kill the main antagonist, recognized as Jackal.
In my opinion, this part was a major step for Ubisoft that has altered the way that gamers want to interact with a vast open world that comprises many unknowns that the players are unfolding after completing each and every mission and side quest. The buddy system is a new addition to this series that brings advantages while encountering a large volume of enamines.
Far Cry 3
The modern gameplay mechanics of every Far Cry game have been inherited from Far Cry 3, which is another pivotal first-person open-world game by Ubisoft. This series was launched in 2012 for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, along with Microsoft Windows. The game is set in a fictional tropical Asia Pacific location known as Rook Islands. In Far Cry 3, Jason Brody is the main protagonist, who is on a skydiving trip and accidentally lands on the fictional pirate-occupied Rook Islands.
The main antagonist of this series is Vaas, who abducts Jason and his friends to sell them into slavery. The entire story revolves around this particular game, which attracts positive attention among gaming enthusiasts. Surprisingly, this shapes the destiny of modern-day Far Cry games, which consist of features like experience and skill trees.
Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon
The Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon consists of various story missions and side missions, and in this game, a player can complete missions according to their own convenience. The game represented post-apocalyptic 2007 when the world was suffering the repercussions of nuclear war. Ubisoft describes the game as an 80s VHS vision of the future that enables players to kill the bad guys and save the world. In terms of graphics and gameplay mechanics, there is not much change in this game in relation to the previously launched Far Cry 3.
Far Cry 4
In the year, 2014 Ubisoft published Far Cry 4, which is another first-person shooter game and is the successor of Far Cry 3. As this series is the next crucial instalment of the franchise, it has ultimately upsurged the reputation and recognition of Ubisoft, which always tends to make some changes in gameplay mechanics and storyline. The story begins with Ajay Ghale, a young Kyrati American who is caught in a civil war between Kyrat’s Royal Army, controlled by dictatorial King Pagan Min, and a rebel movement recognized as Golden Path.
The game is set in the fictional Himalayan region of Kyrat. Apart from that, the gameplay focuses on open-world exploration and combat, which provides scope for players to battle against enemy soldiers and wildlife by using a variety of weapons.
The skill tree of Far Cry 4 also evolved from Far Cry 3. In this series, the skill tree is comprised of two segments: one is The Tiger, and another one is The Elephant. After completing each emission and side quest, the players have unlocked skills, which reside in the two segments in which the tiger has allowed them to improve their offensive skills. On the other hand, the Elephant increases the defensive ability of the players.
This turns out to be a major move by Ubisoft that allows game enthusiasts to exploit the stealth, defensive, and skilled-oriented gameplay experience of this series. In addition, grappling hooks, elephants, and helicopters are the new facets of this game that improve combat mechanics.
Far Cry Primal
The subsequent series of Far Cry called Far Cry Primal emerged in the year 2016, and it is the 10th installment in this series. Established in prehistoric times, this series highlights the story of Takkar, who will become the leader of the tribe by using his special ability to tame animals. This series was released globally for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Windows users. The game acknowledged positive reviews from critics who admired the concept, world design, and the animal taming option.
Far Cry 5
After two years of long waiting, Ubisoft announced Far Cry 5 in 2018, which was developed by Ubisoft Toronto and Ubisoft Montreal. This series adds a new avenue to the Far Cry series with its dynamism and compiling story, which is solely crafted set in Hope County, a fictional location in Montana, United States. The main protagonist of this series is Joseph Seed, called Father, named by the doomsday cult (Project at Eden’s Gate) that follows his command.
The cult group, which is supervised and commanded by Joseph Seed, is highly trained with an ample arsenal of weapons to dominate non-believers who are not following the distorted ideology of Joseph Seed about God. Father, portrayed by “Greg Bryk”, surrounds the story. Joseph’s seed from the initial story mission of Far Cry highlights his beliefs towards God, and according to him, he has been chosen by God to protect the people of Hope from a global catastrophe, the Collapse, and to this end, has set a cult the Project at Eden’s Gate. He initiated this to fulfil his mission of leading the people of salvation.
The main protagonist of this series is a Junior Deputy called Rook, who is a member of the task force sent to restrict Joseph Seed from spreading hate. The game portrays antagonist Joseph Seed, who, alongside his family members, including Jacob Seed, John Seed, and Faith Seed, wage war against people in Hope County. Like other games in this franchise, this series has set a positive tone for the entire franchise, offering robust Guns for Hire features, a compiling storyline, open-world dynamics, and gameplay mechanics.
Far Cry New Dawn
This part is a sequel to Far Cry, which is set in Hope County, shattered by a nuclear explosion recognized as the Collapse. The survivors who had taken shelter underground in the Hope Country 17 years after the nuclear explosion rebuilt society and emerged afterwards.
Far Cry New Dawn displays post-apocalyptic Hope County, where most of the major landmarks had been destroyed due to the nuclear explosion; that’s why forests occupy the entire land, which makes this game visually distinctive in comparison to other games in this franchise. In terms of weapons, this series includes Saw Launcher and provides update options for each weapon to three different levels. Apart from that, the gameplay mechanics of this series is almost similar to that of Far Cry 5.
Far Cry 6
After shifting away from the post-apocalypse world, Ubisoft decided to move back to the conventional entry for Far Cry 6, which is set on a fictional Caribbean Island known as Yara. The protagonist of this part is Dani Rojas, who is native to the fictional island Yara and is attempting to collapse Castillo and his regime, which propelled a dictatorship. Like other games of this franchise, this part offers various kinds of weapons but back-mounted rocket launchers, which is a new addition to this game.
Far Cry series and its popularity
Over two decades, the popularity of first-person shooter games that come up with open-world inclusiveness has been growing rapidly, which subsequently upspring the demand for games that meet these two criteria among gamers. In this aspect, this series of Ubisoft has done well to shape destiny for modern-day gaming that is visually appealing and consists of side quests and lucrative gameplay design.
FAQ
1. What are the key themes of the Far Cry series?
The realm of modern-day gaming and its advanced derivatives of open world and first-person shooting have derived from the Far Cry franchise, making French video game publisher Ubisoft hold a strong grip in the gaming Industry. The introspection of the solely integrated storyline, functional locations, and characters are catalysts for Ubisoft to incorporate extensive features to this game series that have added a new dimension to the open-world gaming that attracts the affirmative attention of game enthusiasts from various parts of the globe.
2. What are the features of modern Far Cry Games?
The present-day Far Cry offers a variety of side missions that are solely designed to increase engagement and reduce fatigue of the main mission, but how players perceive these aspects depends on their interest.
3. Are the recent Far Cry titles getting positive Feedback?
It depends on person to person as some gaming enthusiasts opt for more grounded storytelling along with character development. Recent titles of this game, however, drift the focus of the players from the actual mission.
