Far Cry 3 Review
Far Cry 3 is an open-world first person shooter in which you follow the story of American protagonist – Jason Brody. It is the latest game in the Far Cry series, created and published by Ubisoft. Released globally in late 2012 (March 2012 in Japan) it is compatible with the PS3, Xbox 360 and is also available for the PC. Originally intended to be released in September 2012, it was delayed until November. Since its release a subsequent, stand-alone expansion was released – Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon.
The game is played from the perspective of Jason Brody and follows his struggles as he attempts to escape an island in the Pacific along with his friends. Along the way you encounter pirates, local warriors (Rakyat- who you help fight for freedom) and privateers. Main characters in the story include Citra- the leader of the Rakyat, Vaas- the insane pirate responsible for the fighting and Hoyt- a drug smuggler and slave trader. The story plays out across two islands features a two-way ending in which you choose who lives and who dies. From the beginning you are thrust into a dangerous escape and a desperate fight to learn how to survive in the jungle with the aid of Dennis- a local Rakyat who helps you throughout the story.
Far Cry 3 does many things very well. Its open-world element is like a breath of fresh air on an industry often fixated on linear stories and few side quests. This game certainly doesn’t disappoint in this section. If you aren’t playing out the story then there are many other things to be getting on with. Liberating outposts, activating radio towers and Wanted Dead quests are but a few adventures in which you can embark on. Completing these will grant you access to extra weapons and items in the shop, which can be bought for free (by activating radio towers).
Being an open-world game there are hundreds of loot chests to find which could contain anything from traffic cones to gold chains! These items can be sold for money in shops or stored in the inventory. Speaking of the inventory this game features a fantastic crating system. It allows you to create extra and larger pouches for things like ammunition, loot and medicine. The items to craft these can be obtained by hunting animals and picking plants in the jungle. The skinning of animals – although slightly gory – proves to be a nice idea in a huge world.
The skill system is another point that Far Cry 3 does very well. As you complete quests or kill enemies you are rewarded with XP. Once the XP bar fills up you gain a skill point. These points can be spent in one of 3 skill trees – Spider, Shark and Heron. These will improve various attributes such as more health or various knife takedowns. As you unlock skills your tattoo from the Rakyat grows. By the end of the game you could end up with an arm covered in a tattoo by unlocking all skill points. In addition the way in which XP is given out seems very balanced and fair. For example if you kill a Heavy soldier you gain much more XP than killing a normal soldier. Likewise if you killed someone with a standard takedown you will gain less XP than by killing them in a more interesting way.
The story itself in this game is another point on which to congratulate Ubisoft. The on-edge nature of the story keeps you constantly engaged as you fight to rescue your friends. Each mission requires you to think tactically as you have the choice between going in – all guns blazing or to take out each enemy one at a time. This is where the camouflage/cover feature of the game comes into its own. Unlike other games where cover is restricted to a few select object; Far Cry 3 allows you to evade detection behind almost all objects and in almost any bush. If you can use this to your advantage, enemies will walk right on past as you infiltrate the mission area.
As much as Far Cry 3 does many things well, there are some issues with the gameplay in general. These include the poor quality of the DLC. Although this is not an integral part of the game, if you have as I did, decide to buy it then you may feel a little cheated. As part of the DLC you unlock bonus missions in which you help local people. Unfortunately it seems as though all these mission require you to sort out some kind of affair which totally detracts from the gameplay.
In addition to this the ending of the main plot has proved controversial with many gamers but in my opinion, it leaves a lot to be desired. Not to give too much away, you are given a choice between saving your friends or staying on the island, however this twist in the plot almost makes the previous few hours of play pointless. This finale of choice, I find, is not just limited to Far Cry. It’s also a problem in games such as Mass Effect 3 by EA and Bioware. Ubisoft should really have integrated a much more exciting ending.
As far as problems go with Far Cry 3 there aren’t really anymore of significance to note. Minor problems include a few loot chests that appear to be totally in-accessible and the fact that shooting Heavies in the legs doesn’t appear to affect them.
Pros:
Cons:
Conclusion;
Overall, Far Cry 3 is a great game from Ubisoft that will constantly keep you engaged whether you are new to the series or a Far Cry fan. Its intuitive menus and skill tree as well as a beautiful open world to explore are a breath of fresh air in an otherwise linear story industry. The main story line is flanked by many side quests and other things to do. The story itself has an exciting plot although it is let down by the ending. Other than the ending there are very few problems with Far Cry 3 and I would strongly advise you get this game.
The game is played from the perspective of Jason Brody and follows his struggles as he attempts to escape an island in the Pacific along with his friends. Along the way you encounter pirates, local warriors (Rakyat- who you help fight for freedom) and privateers. Main characters in the story include Citra- the leader of the Rakyat, Vaas- the insane pirate responsible for the fighting and Hoyt- a drug smuggler and slave trader. The story plays out across two islands features a two-way ending in which you choose who lives and who dies. From the beginning you are thrust into a dangerous escape and a desperate fight to learn how to survive in the jungle with the aid of Dennis- a local Rakyat who helps you throughout the story.
Far Cry 3 does many things very well. Its open-world element is like a breath of fresh air on an industry often fixated on linear stories and few side quests. This game certainly doesn’t disappoint in this section. If you aren’t playing out the story then there are many other things to be getting on with. Liberating outposts, activating radio towers and Wanted Dead quests are but a few adventures in which you can embark on. Completing these will grant you access to extra weapons and items in the shop, which can be bought for free (by activating radio towers).
Being an open-world game there are hundreds of loot chests to find which could contain anything from traffic cones to gold chains! These items can be sold for money in shops or stored in the inventory. Speaking of the inventory this game features a fantastic crating system. It allows you to create extra and larger pouches for things like ammunition, loot and medicine. The items to craft these can be obtained by hunting animals and picking plants in the jungle. The skinning of animals – although slightly gory – proves to be a nice idea in a huge world.
The skill system is another point that Far Cry 3 does very well. As you complete quests or kill enemies you are rewarded with XP. Once the XP bar fills up you gain a skill point. These points can be spent in one of 3 skill trees – Spider, Shark and Heron. These will improve various attributes such as more health or various knife takedowns. As you unlock skills your tattoo from the Rakyat grows. By the end of the game you could end up with an arm covered in a tattoo by unlocking all skill points. In addition the way in which XP is given out seems very balanced and fair. For example if you kill a Heavy soldier you gain much more XP than killing a normal soldier. Likewise if you killed someone with a standard takedown you will gain less XP than by killing them in a more interesting way.
The story itself in this game is another point on which to congratulate Ubisoft. The on-edge nature of the story keeps you constantly engaged as you fight to rescue your friends. Each mission requires you to think tactically as you have the choice between going in – all guns blazing or to take out each enemy one at a time. This is where the camouflage/cover feature of the game comes into its own. Unlike other games where cover is restricted to a few select object; Far Cry 3 allows you to evade detection behind almost all objects and in almost any bush. If you can use this to your advantage, enemies will walk right on past as you infiltrate the mission area.
As much as Far Cry 3 does many things well, there are some issues with the gameplay in general. These include the poor quality of the DLC. Although this is not an integral part of the game, if you have as I did, decide to buy it then you may feel a little cheated. As part of the DLC you unlock bonus missions in which you help local people. Unfortunately it seems as though all these mission require you to sort out some kind of affair which totally detracts from the gameplay.
In addition to this the ending of the main plot has proved controversial with many gamers but in my opinion, it leaves a lot to be desired. Not to give too much away, you are given a choice between saving your friends or staying on the island, however this twist in the plot almost makes the previous few hours of play pointless. This finale of choice, I find, is not just limited to Far Cry. It’s also a problem in games such as Mass Effect 3 by EA and Bioware. Ubisoft should really have integrated a much more exciting ending.
As far as problems go with Far Cry 3 there aren’t really anymore of significance to note. Minor problems include a few loot chests that appear to be totally in-accessible and the fact that shooting Heavies in the legs doesn’t appear to affect them.
Pros:
- An open world with seemingly endless adventure possibilities.
- Loads of side quests to keep you busy between missions.
- The shop is an intuitive place to sell and buy items.
- A crafting system that’s a nice addition to increase inventory space.
- Obtaining items from the environment lets you engage with the world.
- Sensible XP amounts for completing objectives or killing enemies in various ways.
- Very easy to use and expansive skill tree that does not make Jason completely overpowered.
- Beautiful graphics
- Vehicle damage effects that include the destruction of the environment.
- Engaging story keeping you hooked almost all the way through.
- Fantastic cover system.
Cons:
- Lacklustre DLC missions.
- Controversial finale that leaves much to be desired.
- Some in-accessible loot chests.
- Occasional issues with damaging enemies.
Conclusion;
Overall, Far Cry 3 is a great game from Ubisoft that will constantly keep you engaged whether you are new to the series or a Far Cry fan. Its intuitive menus and skill tree as well as a beautiful open world to explore are a breath of fresh air in an otherwise linear story industry. The main story line is flanked by many side quests and other things to do. The story itself has an exciting plot although it is let down by the ending. Other than the ending there are very few problems with Far Cry 3 and I would strongly advise you get this game.