Far Cry 6 allows players to join the revolution and takedown Gus Fring from Breaking bad.

In tapping actor Giancarlo Esposito to play Yara’s “El Presidente”, Anton Castillo, Ubisoft may have given its Far Cry series the scariest villain yet.

And that’s no mean feat considering Castillo is up against the psycho Vaas (played by another Breaking Bad alumni, Michael Mando), fellow dictator/king Pagan Min and cult leader Joseph Seed. Esposito’s turn as Gus Fring in Breaking Bad, as well as Moff Gideon in The Mandalorian, makes him a great choice for the brutal leader of the thinly-veiled analogy for Cuba, the island nation of Yara.

As with the previous games, Far Cry 6 is all about exploring, and engaging the enemy either head-on for some first-person shooter mayhem or picking them off stealthily. Most of the time, despite best intentions, the missions end up with the hail of bullets, fire, and explosions.

Far Cry 6 seems a bit of a muddle compared to Far Cry 5. I’m wondering if they are following the inverse of Star Trek movies in that the odd-numbered instalments are the better ones.

Having played through very similar plots in four Just Cause games, I’m not sure that a Latin American setting for a Far Cry game was the right choice, to be honest. Ubisoft, itself, has already included a similar setting in Ghost Recon: Wildlands.

Already embattled with controversy, Ubisoft was likely looking for the least controversial setting for the game. Who cares about killing the soldiers of a merciless dictator?

Perhaps most of the Hanoi Jane entertainment media if they’d twigged that the game was about democracy-loving freedom fighters versus an evil communist dictator.

But here we are, treading the familiar waters of a repressed Latino society ruled by an evil leader exploiting his subjects. Thankfully, the rebels have one man (or woman) army Dani Rojas on their side to cause havoc wherever there’s a military presence on the island.

Or not.

Just like staying put and enjoying the crab rangoon in Far Cry 4, and refusing to handcuff Joseph Seed in Far Cry 5 whisks players away to an early roll of the credits, Far Cry 6 has a similar quick ending. About two hours into the game Dani is invited to join the rebellion.

There’s also a boat which, if you get in and head off in the general direction of Miami, you get treated to a relaxing ending on the beach listen to how the Yarran military managed to quell the rebellion. Loading up the save allowsplayers to continue by the boat and make the right choice this time.

Far Cry 6 has players travelling across the massive island nation of Yara in a bid to unite the various rebel factions against Anton Castillo’s dictatorship. The game is packed with vehicles including hovercraft, planes, helicopters, and a few exotic surprises.

As with previous Far Cry games, the game is mission-based, offering players a selection of mission threads. As is the Ubisoft way, Far Cry 6 throws the gameplay book at players with an almost overwhelming number of things to do. Away from missions, there are installations and checkpoints to liberate.

The game features a cross-play system, via Ubisoft Connect, that allows progress to be saved in the cloud and resumed across platforms. It doesn’t work quite as easily as it does with Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (whereby you booted up the game and your save was there for you be it PC or Xbox).

Far Cry 6 requires players to manually upload their save at the end of every session if they want to continue elsewhere and manually download it on the other platform. A bit clumsy, but better than nothing. It was this feature that enabled me to test the game across several different devices.

My review was intended to be on Xbox Series X, but AMD ANZ sent over a PC code as well to test on their Radeon RX 6900 XT GPU. I also had an AMD-powered ASUS laptop, the RTX 3090-equipped review rig, my trusty Xbox One X, and my semi-retired OG Xbox One to try the game on.

I started with the Xbox One. Interestingly, the Xbox version hadsome different DLC included which meant every time switched platforms I needed to change equipment and amigo. A little odd. The game was very playable with no problems. I’d say that the game is running at about 30 frames-per-second at 1080p on the OG XB1.

I was pleasantly surprised with the high quality of the game on the Xbox One X in 1080p. I found Assassin’s Creed Valhalla virtually unplayable on the XB1X (I didn’t even both try it on the OG XB1)compared to the Xbox Series X and PC versions. The Xbox One X gameplay is faultlessly smooth. Yara’s lush vegetation looked inviting and the sunsets beautiful. Players opting to play on the Xbox Series X are getting the full Far Cry 6 experience.

Moving on to the Xbox Series X in 4K HDR. Ubisoft’s decision to leave out ray-tracing on the top-end consoles is a bit of a disappointment as this is one of their big selling points. Still, the Xbox Series X maintains a decent framerate running at 4K. There’s an optional HD texture pack that can be downloaded to crispen the visuals.

The PC version has all the knobs and whistles if you have a powerful enough rig. That means high-endPC owners will get to play the game with ray-traced shadows and reflections. For some added bling, there’s also an optional HD texture pack, but this requires a GPU with an eye-watering 11GB of RAM.

The game looks good, with some beautiful environmental effects. Behind this next-gen veneer is a graphics engine in need of an upgrade. The character models are good, but we should be moving towards more realistic-looking people rather than the still very good but not quite there character models we have been enjoying up until now.

Whilst many outlets choose to get all excited about Ubisoft’s HR management, they overlooked a very real reason to get all triggered and upset. The game features cockfighting. The usually unassuming and apologetic Ubisoft seems to have taken a leaf out of Rockstar’s “couldn’t give a sh*t” book.

Players can partake in Tekken-style poultry combat the likes of which will chill any card-carrying PETA member to the bone. However, for a game that lets you shoot dogs in the face, the cockfighting is pretty tame and tongue-in-cheek. But if you are one to get easily offended, I wouldn’t let that stop you.

I’m all for games being packed with things to do. I know there are lots of reviewers that moan about Ubisoft games being “too long”, something that I completely disagree with. But Far Cry 6 does seem to be a bit disjointed. Whilst Far Cry 5 kept me engaged, Far Cry 6 seems to lack narrative discipline. It feels a bit disjointed like Far Cry 4 and Far Cry New Dawn.

The game has an extensive weapons modding mechanic via workbenches found in HQs. The only thing is once I’d got a decent silenced rifle and sidearm, I was pretty much sorted. Same with the special backpack weapons. The first one I got, that allowed me to fire rockets, was the only one I needed. I felt I should be swapping them out, but didn’t see the point.

Far Cry 6 does offer players the same over-the-top gameplay that has been a hallmark of the series since Far Cry 3, at least. The huge sandbox environment encroaches players to find their own story carve their own path in amongst the set missions and activities.

Players that prefer a more structured gameplay experience may find Far Cry 6’s undisciplined experience. Indeed, it’s a game that I found played better in short bursts, similar to Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed games.

The game scales and runs well across all of the Xbox consoles from the OG Xbox One to the Xbox Series X. High-spec PC owners get the cream with the definitive version of the game.

The game does offer great value for money, an intriguing if throwaway plot, and all the tools to cause as much mayhem across the nation of Yara as you want. It’s awell-presented, polished presentation set in a beautiful setting with engaging, if unfocused, gameplay.

The post Far Cry 6 (PC / Xbox Series X) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

Today, Ubisoft announced Far Cry 6 will release on October 7th, 2012 worldwide on consoles and PC.

Set in Yara, a tropical paradise frozen in time in the heart of the Caribbean, players will experience the adrenaline rush and chaos of guerrilla combat as they join the revolution to liberate Yaran people from the oppressive rule of dictator Antón Castillo and his teenage son Diego – brought to life by Giancarlo Esposito (The Mandalorian, Breaking Bad) and Anthony Gonzalez (Coco).

As local Yaran and military dropout Dani Rojas, players will be swept up in the guerrilla movement as the brutality of Antón’s rule reaches new heights and the fire of revolution ignites across the country.

Players will be able to choose to play Dani as a woman or a man, and will join forces with a colorful cast of characters, including Clara Garcia, the leader of revolutionary group Libertad, or Juan Cortez, a jaded ex-KGB spy and guerrilla master as they fight their way to take down the tyrant.

To succeed against the overwhelming power of Antón’s army, players will embrace the “resolver” spirit, a philosophy of resourcefulness found across Yara, making use of everything and whatever they have to inflict chaos on the regime.

Fueled by the creativity of “resolver” mastermind Juan Cortez, Far Cry 6 features a broad and unexpected arsenal of customisable “resolver” weapons and tools. From a motorcycle engine powered minigun to a homing missile throwing backpack, pushing the “resolver” spirit to the limit will grant Dani the power of an entire guerrilla army.

Far Cry 6 gives players unprecedented freedom to experience the game the way they want by supporting their playstyle, whether they prefer a stealthy or forceful approach. In addition to resolver options, players will be able to pick traditional weapons and use new ways to traverse the world such as horses, tanks and crazy DIY vehicles.

They will also be able to pair up with all-new animal companions like Chorizo, the adorable wiener dog no soldier can ignore or Guapo, Juan’s soldier-hungry pet crocodile.

In solo or two-player co-op, players will explore a vast and contrasted open world, from lush jungles to decaying cities. With Antón’s army controlling the air, roads, and seas, players will operate from hidden guerrilla camps across the country, gathering soldiers and resources while planning their next move. Players will have to navigate the world and approach situations like true guerrilla fighters to make sure every strike against the regime hits hard.

Fans who pre-order Far Cry 6 will get access to the “Libertad Pack” which includes the “Libertad Outfit” for Chorizo and the state-of-the-art “Discos Locos”, a weaponised disc launcher that will make enemies dance on their own graves. Fans who purchase Far Cry 6 on Xbox One or PlayStation 4 will be able to upgrade their version to next gen at no additional cost on the Xbox Series X | S and the PlayStation 5.

Additionally, the standalone Ubicollectibles 26-cm tall figurine “Lions of Yara”, which showcases Antón Castillo, the President and leader of Yara, and his teenage son Diego, is now available for pre-orders on the Ubisoft Store. It includes a unique code that unlocks a weapon charm in Far Cry 6, the “The Lion of Yara.”

Far Cry 6 will release on Xbox Series X | S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Amazon Luna and for Windows PC exclusively on both the Epic Games Store and the Ubisoft Store. The game will also be available on Ubisoft+, Ubisoft’s subscription service.

Development for Far Cry 6 is being led by Ubisoft Toronto.

The post THE GUERRILLA REVOLUTION IGNITES appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

“Our country is like this grenade… you must clutch our people nice and tight or we all go boom.” – Antón Castillo.

Today during Ubisoft Forward, Ubisoft announced that Far Cry 6 is currently in development and will release February 18th, 2021 on Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Stadia, and the Epic Games Store and Ubisoft Store on Windows PC, as well as on UPLAY+, Ubisoft’s subscription service.

With performances from renowned actor and Emmy Award Nominee Giancarlo Esposito (Better Call Saul, The Boys, The Mandalorian) joined by Anthony Gonzalez (Coco), a score created by film and television composer Pedro Bromfman (Narcos), and an opening sequence directed by Emmy Award winner Patrick Clair (Westworld, True Detective), Far Cry 6 brings in Hollywood-calibre talent to bolster the narrative experience.

Developed by Ubisoft Toronto, Far Cry 6 plunges players into the heart of a modern-day guerrilla revolution set in Yara, a tropical paradise frozen in time. President Antón Castillo (Esposito) vows to restore his country to its former glory while grooming his son Diego (Gonzalez) to follow in his footsteps. Yet paradise has a price, and enriching his country means subjugating those who don’t adhere to his vision. In this island nation in turmoil, players will experience the adrenaline and chaos of guerrilla combat as they are swept up in a revolutionary movement to take down a tyrant.

“Powerful and complex antagonists are part of Far Cry’s DNA, so right from the beginning we knew we had to raise the bar for who these characters could be and how they would come to life,” said Navid Khavari, Narrative Director, Ubisoft Toronto. “Working with such an amazing roster of talent, including the one and only Giancarlo Esposito, and seeing how they embody our antagonists as terrifying but also deeply complex human characters has been an unbelievable experience that I can’t wait to share with our fans.”

Players will be able to play as either male or female Dani Rojas, a local Yaran swept up in a revolution against Antón Castillo. As Dani, players will become a guerrilla fighter and explore and unite an entire island nation, from lush jungles to Yara’s capital city Esperanza. To succeed against the overwhelming power of Anton’s regime, players will need to be resourceful as they employ an arsenal of unique new weapons, vehicles and Fangs For Hire like Chorizo, the cutest wiener dog on wheels.

Ubisoft also announced that Gold, Ultimate and Collector’s Editions for Far Cry 6 will be available for pre-order.

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The post Paradise has a Price – Far Cry 6 appeared first on Shane the Gamer.

This direct sequel to last year’s Far Cry 5 came out of the blue when announced at the 2018 Game Awards in December 2018. Set some seventeen years after the events at the end of the last game, Far Cry New Dawn uses almost the same map as its predecessor, and we get to catch up with some familiar characters.

It’s impossible to explain the premise of the game without spoiling the end of Far Cry 5. So, forgive me. If you’ve not finished Far Cry 5 you may want to stop reading, now.

Still here?

OK.

Far Cry New Dawn follows the events of the canonical ending of Far Cry 5 which concludes with the protagonist and Joseph Seed in a nuclear bunker as nuclear bombs decimate the US.

Seventeen years later and the survivors of Hope County are slowly rebuilding their society, founding the settlement of Prosperity. For a post-apocalyptic setting, the valley is remarkably colourful, full of flowers and vegetation. Trees are rejuvenating and things seem to be improving in the valley.

Then the Highwaymen arrive, lead by the sadistic twins, Mickey and Lou.

Carmina Rye, Nick and Kim Rye’s daughter, whose birth you aided in the Far Cry 5 mission, “Special Delivery”, asks the leaders of another group of survivors, led by Thomas Rush and the player character, the Captain. With the fate of Hope County on the line it’s up to players to rebuilt and defeat the twins.

Having barely just finished Far Cry 5, my first thoughts on Far Cry New Dawn were that is was a bit too soon. Ubisoft games tend to be a bit of an overindulgence, overpacked with side-missions, collectables and other activities. Whilst I’m a massive fan of both Far Cry and Assassin’s Creed, both franchises can easily give you the gaming equivalent of indigestion by the time you’ve slogged your way though them, no matter how enjoyable the experience.

Putting another 80 hours into a Far Cry game, whilst still buzzing on successfully finishing the last one, did seem a little onerous. At the same time, I thought it would be nice to find out how (or if) Hope Country survived a nuclear war.

Hot off Metro Exodus, and with memories of Fallout 76 still fresh in my mind, I’m starting to feel a bit of a veteran when it comes to this post-apocalyptic survival malarkey. When it comes to nuclear wastelands, New Dawn is, without a doubt, the prettiest.

Graphically, there’s no difference from the last game. Despite its “spin-off” status is still a very polished product. Far Cry 5 on a 4K TV, was stunning. It’ll come as no surprise if I say New Dawn looks pretty special aswell.

Just as Far Cry Primal repurposed the Far Cry 4 map, New Dawn reuses the Hope County map from Far Cry 5. And why not. It makes sense, with the amount of effort that goes into building these immersive worlds, to reuse game assets in this way, especially as we are revisiting the same location years later.

Whilst the trees, seventeen years after the nuclear holocaust, still look a bit worse for wear, beautiful flowers are growing everywhere. It’s also interesting to see the roads and buildings from Far Cry 5 all beat up and in ruins.

Mickey and Lou’s Highwaymen take over from the New Eden cultists as the game’s bad guys. Very much cut from the Mad Max school of post-apocalyptic ne’er-do-wells, the Highwaymen attack on sight. Hope County is littered with facilities over-run by the Highwaymen, waiting for you to go clear house.

The Far Cry games have always been about scavenging and crafting, well, since number two, anyway. But this time, with New Dawn, the franchise adds a bit more RPG spice into the mix.

The game uses a four-level system for equipment and enemies. You start with access to level one stuff, progressing through to level three and then elite gear. Everything from vehicles to medi-pack efficiency relies on players upgrading the facilities in the Prosperity hub. Upgrading facilities requires ethanol, which is controlled by the highwaymen. Hijacking tankers and liberating fortresses grant players with the ethanol needed to progress though the increasingly difficult story missions. It’s no good going into a level three mission with level two weapons, unless you enjoy shooting bullet-sponge enemies.

Each time a fortress is liberated, players have the opportunity to salvage it for a bit more ethanol. The fortress will then be re-occupied by Highwaymen of a higher level. Not only are the enemies harder, but there are more alarms to disable, so players are going to need to be even more stealthy. All the fortresses can be liberated up to three times, each time getting harder but rewarding more ethanol.

The level mechanic and the need for ethanol makes for a tighter and more curated game experience. New Dawn is a smaller-scale game than Far Cry 5, but I found myself undertaking more of the content as I went, rather than steaming through the main story and mopping up afterwards. This is because just relying on perks (which you gain this time round aswell), isn’t going to get you through the game.

About those perks, as before, there are hideaways dotted around the map filled with salvage, Far Cry Credits (more on that, below) and magazines each worth one perk point. Called “pepper stashes” in Far Cry 5, they are known as treasure hunts.

The game does have a pay-to-win aspect that you can safely ignore. You can spend real money to buy the in-game currency, Far Cry Credits, which you can then use to buy crafting packs. Not once did I feel the need to pay real money in the game. Unless you are so lazy that you can’t be bothered to actually find salvage for crafting (in which case why bother playing the game). I have no idea why the developers bothered to taint the game in this manner.

In order to upgrade facilities to the next level, you need to first upgrade the actual settlement of Prosperity to the next level. You do so by located specialists and upgrading a certain amount of your facilities. Upgrading Prosperity unlocks the next level tier.

If you want better weapons you need to upgrade the weapons facilities, same with vehicles, medicine, explosives, cartography and even training for your sidekicks. Yep, as with Far Cry 5, you can have someone along for the ride to help you out in the field, from an all ground up baby Carmina to a geriatric sniper, as well as a few familiar faces, you are not alone in Hope County.

As with Far Cry 5, New Dawn can be played co-op, bringing a friend along for the fun. New to this game are expeditions. These missions take players out of Hope County to other locations in the US. Players must locate GPS-tracked packages from within Highwaymen strongholds and escape to the extraction point. Successful missions are rewarded with salvage and perk points.

Far Cry New Dawn may recycle a fair bit from Far Cry 5, but it’s very much its own game, rather than just more of the same. It’s smaller scale perhaps necessitates tighter gameplay, but the knock-on effect is a game that’s a lot less overwhelming than the usual Ubisoft action / adventure game (I’m looking at you as well, Assassin’s Creed, as gorgeous as you are).

Despite only just coming off Far Cry 5, I really enjoyed Far Cry New Dawn. In some ways, I enjoyed it even more with it’s more structured gameplay. It would be good to see some of these new game mechanics in the next chapter of the Far Cry franchise.

The post Far Cry: New Dawn (PlayStation 4) Review appeared first on Shane the Gamer.