The last time we saw Far Cry 6, Anton Castillo placed a live grenade in his son’s anxious hands. He held the grenade over a group of protestors, shaking and hesitant, but his father, the el Presidente, stood overhead glaring at the young man. The glare said: “let it go.” After that striking image, Far Cry 6 returns with a second trailer.
Now there are pet crocodiles and a Macarena gun. What was once poignant commentary is now nonsensical shenanigans. On its own, the gameplay trailer promises some wacky and fun gameplay moments. A number of these moments stood out for their ludicrousy, revealing the type of game Far Cry 6 is, a chaotic sandbox.
5. Do It Yourself Vehicles
First-person driving is the traditional traversal device of Far Cry. These bumpy rides usually result in a cracked window or a smoking engine due to their loose yet forgivable controls. Sometimes bad controls heighten the ridiculous tone of Far Cry. Equally, as ridiculous were some of Far Cry’s non-traditional transportation options like an elephant or a machine gun-ready semi-truck. With this vast history, it’s no surprise that Far Cry 6 returns to vehicular gameplay.
Far Cry 6 is capitalizing on Far Cry 5’s vehicle customization options. The trailer breezed through a series of customized vehicles including one with a battering ram and thrusters. Ubisoft is playing into the makeshift army trope to breed all sorts of crazy contraptions. Every vehicle was handmade and adherent to a diverse set of tastes. Far Cry 6 goes beyond just four wheels though, we see glimpses of tanks, planes, boats, and even horses. Fans should gear up for a Just Cause experience where every vehicle is accessible no matter how unrealistic.
4. Makeshift Weapons
In Far Cry 6, ragtag rebels band together to overthrow an oppressive government. A group with minimal resources must adapt to its surroundings and use everything to its advantage. The “do it yourself” vehicles are subject to this strategy and so is the weaponry. Even though Far Cry touts stealthy gameplay, most enemy encounters end with chaotic gunfights. In a world where violence reigns, rebels must prepare for the worst.
That’s why they have a vast array of weaponry built from scraps. From a player perspective, we get a unique set of firepower to experiment with. Sardine cans, batteries, or motorcycle engines are taped onto weapon parts to create a fully functional gun. It sounds ridiculous but it matches that Far Cry flavor. Killing enemies with Macarena CDs seems natural at this point.
3. Deadly Backpacks
After sardine gun shenanigans, Ubisoft pulls out three weaponized backpacks from its bottomless hat. Video games often conceal powerful attacks behind a cooldown or a set of objectives. Consider the alt-fire functionality in Returnal or the killstreaks from Call of Duty. These primo backpacks give off the same energy thanks to their devastating amount of power. When all odds are stacked against the rebellion, these weaponized backpacks can even the playing field.
One backpack functions as a flamethrower, a device Far Cry is all too familiar with. Historically, Far Cry fire animations are shockingly realistic. It’ll spread across grasslands, burning down trees and cottages alike. Far Cry 6’s flamethrower is sure to devastate battlefields given that Ubisoft can further enhance their already stellar fire animations.
Next up is the jet pack, a new venture for Far Cry games. The trailer doesn’t show the player soaring through the sky but hovering slightly above the ground. The thrusters emit a circle of fire on the ground below, burning up any enemy caught in its radius. Lastly, one backpack launches a barrage of missiles onto soldiers and tanks alike. Contemplate the missile capability of Boba Fett’s jetpack but on steroids. Hopefully, these backpacks only scratch the surface of Ubisoft’s barrel and there’s more absurdity to come.
2. Infiltration and Sabotage
Whereas most of the gameplay trailer focused on bombastic combat, Far Cry 6 does offer a more strategic approach to combat. The world of Far Cry 6 is overrun by Castillo’s men making rebellious actions rather difficult. That’s why the rebellion carved out secret passageways in the mountains. The player must follow a sketched-out map to uncover these secret albeit handy passages.
Outside of secret passages, the player can hide among the most fortified of cities. Simply hide the RPG in your pants and the soldiers won’t bat an eye. Once inside the city, players can bribe guards, sabotage equipment, and uncover confidential transmissions. Out of everything shown from Far Cry 6 thus far, this is the most guerilla, a welcoming sight for a game that supposedly embraces such tactics.
1. Cute Companions
Far Cry has utilized a gun for hire mechanic for some time now from the vicious grizzly bear to the veteran sniper. These companions can create cover fire, send down airstrikes, or retrieve weapons. Far Cry 6 continues this trend, but with some creative and rather cute companions. The first of these is a pet crocodile that responds to whistle commands.
The second one, though, is the true MVP, a wheelchair-bound dachshund. Despite the differing thoughts on Far Cry 6, this dog, named Chorizo, remains a unifying force. The internet has banded together to protect Chorizo with their lives. The small dog has spikes protruding from its wheelchair and a deceivingly adorable face. It’s difficult to imagine Chorizo on the battlefield, but he’ll surely turn into a menacing force. Far Cry 6 may throw a slurry of companions at the player, but it’s going to be difficult to replace this hot dog.
These details may look promising, but Far Cry 6 still brings some nagging concerns. First of which, is the tonal dissonance that may come across when comparing the two trailers. We’re curious how the serious storyline will compare to the more absurd aspect of gameplay. The last concern originates from the regurgitation of content the series is known for. Far Cry has a tendency of releasing the same game over and over again and Far Cry 6 looks like more of the same. We’ll find out when Far Cry 6 releases for all platforms on October 7, 2021.
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