Far Cry 5 review: The best open-world shooter on Xbox One

Far Weep as a series has never really taken itself besides seriously. It'southward a sandbox adventure series known for truly psychotic villains, Hollywood-style over-the-top action, with guerrilla-style stealth combat. Far Cry five fully embraces what the series does best with a confidence lacking in previous titles.

Only put, this is 1 of the best open up world games you lot can mayhap play on Xbox One today. Hither is our Far Cry 5 review.

Let's non beat around the bush, Far Cry five is an utterly stunning title on Xbox One X, joining other recent Ubisoft efforts like Assassin's Creed Origins as one of the all-time looking games for the panel. The game is enhanced with UHD scaling resolutions on the X, at 30 FPS with HDR support. Sadly, there are no graphics tweaks, such equally a 60 FPS performance mode, but possibly they could get in in a later update.

In Far Cry 5, Ubisoft has proven itself to be a principal of the arts and crafts once once again.

Gear up in a fictional county in the U.Due south. land of Montana, Far Cry v takes place across a huge expanse of country, with several distinct areas that draw environments in the American north westward. Huge grain farms and rolling hills, gigantic mountains that you tin can travel to, and deep, verdant forests that y'all could get lost in, where it not for the game'southward compass and map systems.

Far Cry 5 packs tons of details into its open world, cutting out the sense of re-create and paste that some other titles autumn prey to. I was wandering through a serene forest, when I happened upon some friendly NPCs dancing, while one played a rendition of traditional American folk song "Where did you lot slumber terminal night?" on guitar, bathed in the glow of a HDR campfire. They weren't for a quest, they were just at that place to add flavour and believability to Far Cry 5'due south rural world.

Speaking of music, Far Cry v warps folk and state tones with all sorts of genres for its soundtrack. The fusion shouldn't piece of work just it somehow does, evoking tension during gainsay scenes, and dread equally you stalk through 1 of the cult'southward corpse-filled bunkers. The musicians on Far Cry five are a huge cornerstone for this game'south unique graphic symbol.

Ubisoft are known for creating gorgeous vistas and expansive open worlds, and in Far Cry 5, the company has proven itself to exist a master of the craft once over again.

Story & Narrative (Spoiler complimentary)

Far Cry could be described every bit a series of "what if?" stories, often exploring real-world locations and regional politics. Far Weep five is no different.

Drawing on inspiration from real-world cults like ISIS and The People's Temple, Far Cry 5's "Eden'southward Gate" warps established religious doctrine to cocky-fulfil an apocalyptic vision. Joseph Seed, a preacher otherwise known equally "The Father" has clustered a huge post-obit owing to a combination of his uncanny charisma, and control of a narcotic known equally "Bliss."

I'm confident Seed and his "family unit" volition be remembered as some of the serial' all-fourth dimension peachy villains.

The game starts when Far Cry v's silent and customizable protagonist, a rookie Sheriff deputy, joins a Federal agent to enact an arrest warrant for Joseph Seed, on charges of kidnapping.

Far Cry five has one of the all-time introductions in the serial, if not the all-time. Inbound Eden's Gate's compound is a tense affair, as violent fanatics encircle the rookie deputy and his colleagues similar a pack of wolves. As you might expect, things go south, fast, as the rookie deputy and their team unwittingly fulfils Joseph Seed's apocalyptic "prophecy." It becomes readily apparent that Eden'due south Gate has command of the unabridged valley, including the local police and communications services. With all communications and road access cut off, it'southward on you to begin dismantling the cult and its sizable militia, which has taken root in Hope County similar a fanatical cancer.

Greg Bryk's portrayal of Joseph Seed is utterly bone-chilling, and I'm confident Seed and his "family unit" will be remembered every bit some of the series' all-time great villains. Not merely considering of the game's confident writing, but also some systemic changes Ubisoft has made.

Similarly to other Ubisoft-style open up globe games, the player must work their way through the game's open up-world regions, performing missions that unlock story quests, unlocking Seed's lieutenants. Once they have been dealt with, you lot can go afterward the big evil himself. The difference is, Far Weep 5 has far fewer supporting antagonists than usual, allowing for a much greater degree of grapheme development. This makes impactful scenes far more evocative and memorable, as you'll have a greater understanding of your enemies motivations and evil deeds.

The main plot is full of depravity, exploring the full spectrum of evil humanity is capable of, simply some of the game's side quests are a little sillier and low-cal-hearted exploring stereotypes of countryside life. I did 1 quest revolving around crop-circles, cattle mutilation and "aliens," and and so went straight into a Seed family torture chamber right later. As a result, the tone of the game tin come across as erratic depending on the society in which you do missions, simply the trade off is a huge amount of variety. I've found myself laughing outloud at some of the game's dialogue and humour, and at other times, jaw on the flooring in daze at some of the game'due south more horrific scenes.

The primary story can take anywhere between 20 and 50 hours to complete, depending on the extent to which y'all explore Hope County and its side objectives. It'south a wild, memorable ride that volition take a seat equally one of the series' best. And seriously, without spoiling, Far Weep 5 has an catastrophe you won't soon forget.

Gameplay

Far Cry five is more of an evolution rather than revolution of the series' signature mechanics. It's a first-person shooter, and contains many of the typical Far Cry / Ubisoft-style gameplay tropes we've come up to expect. There are outposts to analyse, raid, and ultimately liberate. At that place are convoys to sabotage, destroy, and loot. And there are climbing puzzles to traverse and conquer. Still, each aspect of the game has been polished and refined, and Ubisoft has thankfully done away with some of the franchise's most annoying aspects.

The gunplay in Far Cry v is tremendous, and feels every bit tight and tactical as ever. Y'all can play stealthily, hiding in the dense undergrowth, or get all guns blazing with a flamethrower, burning enemies (and, well, everything) to a crisp. It'due south even so a little odd how gore-averse Ubisoft is, considering how horrific some of the game'southward imagery is. Equally a result, sniper rifle shots, explosives, and shotgun blasts might not feel as satisfying as they do in games like Wolfenstein 2, but given the sheer mayhem that can unfold at the driblet of a lid in Far Cry 5'due south open world, gore systems would probably plow the game into a ridiculous blood bath, shifting the tone of the game.

Indeed, Far Cry five features fighter planes, attack helicopters, gun-mounted trucks, and all other sorts of vehicles with which to sew chaos and destruction. The series' signature fire spreading systems return as well, making conflicts immersive and atmospheric.

Beyond more than conventional vehicles, Far Cry 5'due south militiamen accept constructed a host of customized vehicles nearly Mad Max-style, featuring tractors emblazoned with weaponized farm equipment, and armored juggernauts equipped with guns. Your combat options feel virtually limitless equally a issue, and you can fifty-fifty call upon a roster of unlockable NPC back up characters and combat pets to help you in battle. Or hey, y'all can bring a friend in for some 2-player co-op activity also (although, they won't get campaign progress, which is kinda lame).

Far Cry v refines some of the serial' most annoying aspects as well, doing away with the Assassinator's Creed-style exploration towers. Instead, you will talk to friendly townsfolk you have rescued, find annotated maps, and explore in the old fashioned manner to observe quests. Additionally, Far Cry v does away with the minimap, which might seem frustrating at start (specially while driving manually), simply information technology keeps your optics on the game's gorgeous world as a effect. You'll become more acquainted with the country itself, rather than the apartment topographical circle in the bottom corner, trading convenience for immersion. And I think that'due south wonderful.

Far Cry 5 is truly open up world, allowing players to roam to any of the game's three sizable areas as they see fit. You lot'll build up resistance movements from the local townsfolk in each surface area, triggering story events that lead upwards to battles with Joseph Seed'southward three lieutenants: Faith, John, and Jacob. Across the game's primary storyline fix-pieces, you lot'll encounter a broad variety of side characters, optional quests, and mini-games, including an awesome line-fishing organization. The game'southward beast behaviour

Exploring a Far Cry world has never been more than rewarding, putting a stop to the sense of meniality that all-too-often ofttimes accompanies open world games.

Far Cry v'due south 3D map view is pretty awesome, too, offering fast-travel locations and locational data.

My only criticisms are small nitpicks that only stand up out because the rest of the game is and then wonderfully realized. It'due south annoying how the aforementioned button for looting an enemy and swapping to his weapon are placed on the same button, as you'll often drop equipment without meaning to. Likewise, at present that quest leads come from talking to NPCs, information technology can be frustrating when they suddenly freak out at the sight of an approaching hawkeye or enemy on the horizon, running abroad mid-chat. Additionally, those typical open world glitches are back besides, with enemies sometimes glitching through the floor, or wandering around robotically into walls or rocks.

Finally, the game'southward crafting systems nonetheless feel tacked on too, allowing you to insta-craft bombs and homeopathic "boosters" in the field, from gathered resources. There was an opportunity here to add more survival systems, or perhaps deeper crafting and customization systems, to complement the scrappy makeshift militia warfare taking place in the background. But hey, we tin't accept everything.

Conclusion

Ultimately, Far Cry 5 is a relentlessly fun, aggressively varied open world shooter that will keep you hooked for dozens and dozens of hours. The game's earth has never felt more alive, brimming with animal ecosystems, serene lakes, and verdant forests, with spectacular scenery that'southward simply begging to exist screenshotted.

This is Ubisoft's best open globe game since, well, Assassin's Creed Origins, which came out simply a few months ago. Ubisoft as a company really seems to be delivering on the promise of "open world," shifting abroad from the genre'southward most dull features, while shining a spotlight on the genre's best.

Pros:

Incredible and explosive shooter gameplay.
Hypnotic villains you won't presently forget.
Confident writing making for a stunning story.
Some of the best visuals on Xbox One to appointment.
Fishing mechanics. Aye. These are important.

Cons:

Pretty much nothing.
Would like to see graphics settings (60 FPS mode) for Xbox One X.

I would have liked to have seen Far Cry 5 change things upwards a little bit more, like Assassinator'due south Creed Origins did, but at this poi,nt I'one thousand truly scraping the barrel of things to complain about. Far Cry 5 is a comprehend-to-cover classic, fans of Far Cry, or open up world sandbox games in general, cannot ignore. Buy this.

Far Cry 5 is available on March 27, 2022 for Xbox One, PC and PlayStation 4 for $59.99.

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This review was conducted on Xbox One X at 4K, using a copy provided past Ubisoft.

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