Far Cry 4 review

  The Far Cry series has been known for changing immensely from game to game but Far Cry 4 breaks that formula.  I wouldn’t go so far to call it Far Cry 3.5, but it does remind me of the Call of Duty or Assassins Creed series where each game is the same but with new locations, plots, and some new mechanics.  Far Cry 4 is pretty similar to Far Cry 3. It is the same experience just within a new story and location. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing because Far Cry 3 was a good game and as the saying goes: “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it.”

 The game follows Ajay Ghale as he travels to the fictional country of Kyrat, in the Himalayas. He was tasked with honoring his mom’s dying wish to spread her ashes in a place called Lakshmana, but gets involved in an all-out Civil War. Pagan Min unjustly became dictator of Kyrat and a group of rebels calling themselves “The Golden Path” are trying to overthrow this tyrannical king. Ajay Ghale gets encompassed with this rebellion and has to choose between two Golden Path leaders, Amita and Sabal.  Amita believes in growing Kyrat to fit in a new world, and Sabal believes in sticking to Kyrat’s religious roots.  You will have to make decisions throughout the game which will affect its outcome. 

 One of my biggest complaints about the game is Ajay Ghale who is a flat character with no personality at all. It seems very unlikely that he would join this rebellion because he has no motive to do so.  Then, within a few hours, he becomes a trained killer that can take care of numerous Pagan Min militia without breaking a sweat.  The development just doesn’t make much sense. The other characters are the complete opposite of Ajay because they are filled with personality. Pagan Min is one of the best parts of the whole game.  He has the perfect attributions that make a good villain, and Troy Baker delivers a foolproof performance that drives home Pagan’s sadistic personality.  It’s too bad that he isn’t in the game more often.

 There is much more to do besides the main campaign. Kyrat is an open map that allows you to encounter one crazy moment after another. The world is filled with life from animals roaming around to shootouts between the Golden Path and Pagan Min’s militia. The back of the case states that every second is a story, and that is definitely true.  You will always encounter something new on your travels. There is an abundance of activities to partake in between story missions. You can climb radio towers which offer a platforming sequence in order to reveal more of the map.  The radio towers reveal enemy outposts to take out. Once you take out outposts more side missions will be revealed.  These missions include hostage rescues, animal hunting, convoy protection, and races. There are some other unique side missions to do such as character given quests. These sub stories include missions from a weapons dealer named Longinus and the two burnouts named Yogi and Reggie. Another unique side mission is Shangri-La which lets you discover the ancient history of Kyrat. These missions offer a new “art” style that is different from the rest of the game. It truly is one of the best, non-campaign, things you can do. That’s not even all of it; Far Cry 4 also offers an arena that lets you test your skills. Basically, it just sends a bunch of enemies your way over a certain amount of rounds. If you get tired of the side missions you could go searching for collectibles.  These include propaganda posters, journals, letters, and masks. Lastly you could just explore Kyrat and find new locations. As you can see there is a lot to do. This is both a bad and a good thing. The good thing is that you get your money’s worth, but the bad thing is that they interrupt the flow of the main story.

 A game wouldn’t be good without excellent gameplay and Far Cry 4 delivers.  There are two paths you could take: gun’s blazing or stealthy. Either path delivers a smooth combat experience.  Animals also take a big role in combat.  A rhino could attack you while you are trying to be stealthy and give away your cover, or you could lure dangerous animals towards your enemies to get the advantage.  Elephants are one of the best parts of the game because you get to ride them. What’s better than shooting rockets while on an elephant that’s tossing people around with their trunks? Another addition is the buzzer which is a mini helicopter that can be helpful in traversal and combat. Far Cry 4 offers a variety of weapons to help accomplish your goals. Round all of this up with excellent shooting mechanics, and Far Cry 4 excels with its gameplay.  It’s just crazy fun, and it all happens within breathtaking graphics.  

  Far Cry 4 offers an online component in three ways. Co-op lets you explore Kyrat with a friend but excludes the story missions.  Competitive multiplayer is different from anything else. One side only uses bow and arrows but has mystical powers, while the other relies on weaponry. Surprisingly, this works pretty well. Lastly, players get to make user generated games and there are some cool creations.

  The game offers an average story in a dense world, but the best part about Far Cry 4 is the craziness of it. You never know what will happen next.  Far Cry is rated M and is available for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Ps4, Xbox one, and PC.

Far Cry 4 gets a 9.6