Game Review: Far Cry 6
Far Cry 6, a first-person shooter open world video game, was released by Ubisoft for console and personal computer gamers alike on Oct. 7. The player is a guerrilla named Dani whose mission is to recruit others to join the revolution against dictator Anton Castillo and his son, who was destined to follow in his father’s bloody footsteps.
I played the second, fourth, and fifth installment of the series on an Xbox (360 and 1). In Far Cry 2, which released in 2008, the player is a mercenary sent to an unnamed African country to assassinate a notorious arms dealer named Jackal whilst battling a severe case of malaria. Far Cry 4 came out in 2014, and in this game, the player assumes the role of Ajay Ghale, a Kyrati-American who is on a quest to spread his late mother’s ashes in a war-torn country. Far Cry 5 came out in 2018, and in this, the player is a junior deputy who fights to liberate areas in Hope County, Montana from a radical cult lead by Joseph Seed and his siblings. Far Cry has always been about liberation in some manner.
This is the first game in the series to allow the player to select their gender, which is a huge step in the right direction given that the community of female gamers has grown exponentially over the past several years. The representation of women in video games has improved over time, though alienation still occurs when portrayed as “damsels in distress” or “bikini babes.” There were a number of female leads in Far Cry 6 who were portrayed in a respectful manner, including the leader of the revolution, Clara Garcia.
The rendering of Antón Castillo, portrayed by Giancarlo Esposito, an actor commonly recognized as Gustavo Fring from the television series “Breaking Bad,” was embarrassing. The YouTube clip below was released prior to the game itself, demonstrating the awkward facial movements that contrast greatly with Esposito’s distinct demeanor.
Anton Castillo appears at 1:36.
Far Cry 2 was a challenge due to the player’s constant need for medical injections to suppress his malaria. Far Cry 4 was set in a country based on Nepal, parts of which included the breathtaking Himalayan Mountains. Far Cry 5 was an interesting concept with a good story line and developed characters. Far Cry 6 lacked in each of these areas.
Far Cry 6 featured twenty levels, each more difficult than the last. As the player completes the story, they unlock new enemies until those enemies simply become much more easily alerted and stronger. Once the player gets to level ten or so, taking out a handful of enemies alerts tanks, helicopters, and Special Forces, making the game nearly impossible in some instances. While some Far Cry fanatics (like myself) prefer to take out bases inconspicuously, the range for bows is significantly reduced. If the non-playable characters, or NPCs, were at all challenging, it would seriously inhibit the player’s progress. It is not a challenging kind of impossible; it is an unbearable kind of impossible.
To add to the game’s poor character graphics, I experienced three major combat glitches. The random snag that was the greatest nuisance on my gameplay was my inability to crouch without sliding into it. The entertaining combat glitches occurred either when I shot an enemy while they were driving, which launched them from their car without reason, or when I blew up an enemy’s vehicle, causing it to spin uncontrollably above the ground for approximately thirty seconds. A few other glitches occurred that inhibited gameplay, making the experience less pleasurable overall.
As previously mentioned, this is the first time I have played Far Cry on PlayStation. My Xbox cronies testify that their games weren’t nearly as glitchy as mine and I’ve never had this issue with Far Cry in the past. While I wonder if it could be a platform discrepancy, Reddit user stigest shared the capture below where El Tigre’s face texture clips onto Jonrón’s character model. There are plenty more glitches, and I am sure there will be many updates to patch them. Unfortunately, compared to previous games in this series and other new open world first-person shooter games, Far Cry 6 has fallen short.
Overall, the story is weak. 21Kiloton’s review rips into the story, citing its hasty beginning. The story begins with the player hanging out on a terrace with their friends when one throws a bottle at the soldiers below for no reason and is shot in the face. The player’s second friend is shot on the boat shortly after meeting Castillo in the clip above, which somehow leads the player to fight Clara’s war to reclaim Yara despite Dani’s initial instinct to flee.
After having waited for Far Cry 6 for years, buying it for $59.99 upon release, I cannot help but be disappointed with my purchase.
