My first foray into a Far Cry game was back in 2003, on the PC exclusive version by CryTek.  At the time, its combination of jaw-dropping graphics and tense gameplay hooked me like no other game before it.  While it wasn’t an open world in the sense that we think of it now, each chapter/level offered players a choice of creative approaches to combat tactics.  A mixture of stealth and blazing gunplay could always be used in varying quantities, a trademark that the franchise still retains.

Far Cry 4 represents the first time the series has appeared on Xbox One and PS4.  The story revolves around Ajay Ghale, who has become caught up in a civil war which is tearing through the fictional nation of Kyrat, located in the beautiful Himalayan mountains.  After a brief imprisonment, Ajay joins the Golden Path, a rebel group opposing the despotic Pagan Min, a charasmatic tyrant who controls the oppressive Royal Army.  From there the game slips into the familiar framework of having you explore the open world, liberating radio towers to open your map and the activities contained within.  Picking up where Far Cry 3 left off, you are tasked with hunting for skins to upgrade your equipment, and doing other assorted sidequests, while juggling attacks on enemy controlled outposts and the story missions.  Hunting the animals which are native to each area should be a priority each time you unlock a new one, simply because these will expedite your upgrades.  Holsters and loot pouches should be first on your list because…more guns and loot!

Like the Assassin’s Creed franchise, Far Cry 4 offers a sandbox which is packed with activities large and small.  Personally, I’ve always been a little critical of how many of these activities feel like filler at times, but I certainly can’t fault Ubisoft for at least putting it there as an option for those who like collectibles-oriented quests and other time consuming activities.  The exploration element feels a lot fresher in FC4 than it did when I played FC3, perhaps because the visual upgrades and tighter gameplay make the experience feel more immersive.  Far Cry 4 has a stunning graphical palette, with long draw distances and an array of weather effects.  As you make your way through slate-grey chasms, grappling from ledge to ledge, sunlight glints from the snowy peaks above.  Push your path high enough and fast-moving clouds whorl around you.  When graphics become this close to photorealistic, you can’t help but become lost in the exploration.

Ubisoft has a long history of developing shooters, especially the more tactical oriented Rainbow Six and Ghost Recon franchises, both of which are third-person games.  Far Cry 4 is a first person shooter, and while the aiming and hit detection can be a bit middling compared to games like Call of Duty, it feels like an improvement over their previous game.  By default the game is set to provide aim-assist, but anyone with even limited experience playing FPS games should turn this off.  Using it tends to subtly draw your aiming reticle naturally toward center-mass of the closest target, and actually hinders your ability to place headshots when you need to (and when things start to get hectic, you NEED to get headshots quickly).

Considering the pedigree of games like Rainbow, Ghost Recon, and Splinter Cell, it’s no surprise that Far Cry 4 encourages stealth gameplay.  In fact, it’s not just stealth that’s encouraged. Creative, innovative approaches to any mission rewards players not just with success, but with a feeling that you outsmarted the game.  Most of this is artifice, of course, since the situational tools are provided anyway in the form of rocks to throw as a distraction, exploding barrels, or caged predators that are held back by only a conveniently glowing lock that screams “SHOOT HERE”.   The first time I surveyed a seemingly hopeless opportunity to complete a mission undetected, only to set an elephant free to rampage the horde of enemies, I giggled like a schoolgirl.  Completing silent takedowns rewards you with extra XP, which you need to unlock skills.  The trees are divided into two categories, Tiger and Elephant.  Each represents a broadly connected collection of skills.  Tiger tends to lean toward more of the predatory skills such as variations on takedowns, and Elephant offers many of the defensive skills that contribute to survivability.  Most players will discover that they lean toward one or the other, depending upon their playstyle, but will no doubt sample from both trees eventually.  I suggest grabbing the perk that allows you to ride an elephant and charge enemies.  Why?  Because you can ride an elephant and charge enemies.  Nobody messes with a guy riding an elephant.

The world of Kyrat is massive in size and thankfully the game still employs a fast travel system.  Small, single rider gyro-copters are also littered around the world, and may represent the coolest new addition to the game.  It’s incredibly rewarding, being able to hop aboard one of these rigs and simply float over the breathtaking world, landing in a field to take pot-shots at Tapirs, then hopscotch to a “Karma Event” where you help Golden Path fighters stave off attacks by the Royal Army.   Land vehicles, however, still have the same clunky controls as always.  In some ways this has been amplified by the ability to shoot while you drive, meaning the fire button rather than the gas is mapped to your right trigger.  Using sticks to drive feels like a game mechanic from ten years ago.  However, one silver lining is that Ubisoft has included a new auto-drive option.  A quick click on your left stick sets the vehicle on rails to follow whatever road or path you are on until it reaches your waypoint.  While this is happening, you are free to shoot at enemies along the way.

Employing the voice talent of Troy Baker (The Last of Us, Bioshock Infinite), who plays Pagan Min, is a real coup for Ubisoft.  This guy is one of the best in the business.  He transforms Min’s character into one of the most charismatic maniacs since Chrisoph Waltz’s turn as Hans Landa in Inglorious Basterds.   Another solid actor, Naveen Andrews, perhaps most well known as Sayeed on the television show Lost, plays Sabal, the Golden Path leader who brings Ajay into the fold.  Unfortunately, the performance by James A. Woods, who plays Ajay, is not quite as sterling.  I found that he came off as a bit mopey and reticent in just about everything he did, delivering lines with all the gusto of a soap actor.  Thankfully, the bulk of the chat time goes to the former two actors, as well as the rest of the supporting cast.  It’s a small criticism, but having a distinctive voice is paramount to creating a memorable character, the way Mark Meer and Jennifer Hale did with Shepard in the Mass Effect Series.

Far Cry 4 also features drop in/drop out co-op for two players available anywhere in the game world.  The only restriction is that the host is not permitted to engage in any story related quests in co-op.  Side missions, escorts, hostage rescues, radio tower liberation, and outpost assaults are all fair game.  While Far Cry 4 is an enjoyable game when played solo, the dynamics of having a friend join you change the experience in many ways.  The host always plays as Ajay, and the guest player assumes the role of Hurk, the loud, brash, redneck character from the single player game who bears striking similarity to characters that actor Danny McBride is fond of playing.  The guest player brings all his/her weapons and upgrades with them, and can work along with you to unlock towers and outposts.

One thing Ubisoft has done with Far Cry 4 is to create a vibrant world that comes alive mainly because the ebb and flow of a civil conflict is well represented by the events that unfold spontaneously.  Random events take the form of a skirmish you may be required to assist with, a courier that must be intercepted before getting away with sensitive documents, or a convoy that must be stopped and/or destroyed.  These tend to take place without warning, and lend themselves well to the co-op experience.  Unscripted events, shared by two players, can go in many directions, most of them immensely entertaining.

It’s fair to say that Ubisoft is confident in the appeal of their co-op gameplay.   Owners of the game have access to “Keys to Kyrat” tokens, which enable them to “send” one to a friend who does not own the game, allowing them a free 2 hour trial, in co-op, of Far Cry 4.  This is one of the more ingenious marketing strategies I’ve seen in gaming.  With much of the online world invested in social media and the notion that we are all connected in some way through sharing, this new model, if successful abounds in potential.  Ask any game fan and they’ll tell you that even mediocre games are made better through co-operative play.  The idea that a game publisher would put selected demos in the hands of purchasers taps into that most effective of sales pitches:  the friend recommendation.  It’s precisely how the advertising infrastructure of sites like Facebook evolved.  A friend telling you about a game is one thing; that same friend inviting you to a two hour demo, in co-op, is infinitely more effective.

Admittedly, I was not a fan of Far Cry 3’s versus multiplayer, so I was curious to see what kind of changes they had made in Far Cry 4.  My experiences consisted of laggy gameplay with sub-par shooting mechanics that contributed to a lackluster experience.  To say that I was pleasantly surprised by the versus play in Far Cry 4 is an understatement.  Set against a sort of meta-game that sheds light on a struggle between Pagan Min’s elite guard, the Rakshasa, and rebels from the Golden Path, versus play has an asymmetrical design that works well.  If I could compare it to anything, I would say it resembles “Spies vs Mercs”, the 3 vs 3 multiplayer featured in Splinter Cell games (also, by no coincidence, developed by Ubisoft).

As members of the Rakshasa, you have at your disposal a vast array of unique attacks and special weapon types that encourage innovative approaches to combat.  Most of these center around stealth, which is always on when you are moving crouched, becoming translucent to the point of near invisibility.  Because you are weak and not well armed, you must use your wits to get the best of any situation.  Summoning animals and swarms of bees might be one way, and using your exceptional mobility is another.  The Golden Path faction, however, is a more meat and potatoes class.  You have access to vehicles and high powered weapons, so brute force is usually a solid option.  I found that my strategies were a bit more limited using Golden Path, as this faction didn’t have as much room for tactical creativity.  But since you switch sides halfway through the matches, game balance does eventually establish itself.

The greatest flaw I found in Far Cry 4 was that with such a huge open world, and an endless array of side missions, the game can get repetitive.  Unlocking the game world involves the same tasks that you find in many Ubisoft games.  Liberating towers can be fun the first 2 or 3 times you do it, but after that it becomes more of an annoyance.  Attacking outposts can suffer from the same problem, as each one is nearly identical to the other, except with more alarms and tougher enemies.  Taking a stealthy approach does keep you engaged more, mainly because it requires a tactical plan.  In a game world filled with powerful weapons, an upgraded bow can actually be one of the more effective ones you get your hands on.  Unfortunately, skipping this process isn’t really an option, since doing the higher level story missions tend to require you to get upgrades from the side quests.

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