Recently, Ubisoft revealed that it would be releasing 5 triple-A games by March 2021, with three of those being previously delayed games likeWatch Dogs Legionand the other two remaining unconfirmed by the publisher. However, rumors and leaks point to these games beingAssassin’s Creed RagnarokandFar Cry 6.
WithFar Cry 6leakedand all but officially confirmed, it seems safe to say that fans are excited to see the franchise on, presumably, the PS5 and Xbox Series X. There’s little doubt that early success on the consoles could be big for Ubisoft itself, but for that to happen,Far Cry 6needs to stick the landing. Here’s how that can happen.
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Far Cry 6 Villains
Ubisoft once perfect the open world action-adventure formula with its past games, namely by focusing on an interesting and eccentric villain to push it forward. An attempt at this can be seen in every game, although arguably, none are able to live up toFar Cry 3’s Vaas Montenegro.Far Cry 4’s Pagan Min andFar Cry 5’s Joseph Seed are still good sources from whichFar Cry 6can learn, but aside from Vaas, perhaps Ubisoft should look closely at Seed andNew Dawn’s Mickey and Lou.
Seed created a legacy, put his family first, and had conviction in his beliefs (that turned out to be right). This idea that his insanity was actually based in something took Seed to a new level, leading fans to be happy with his surprising return inNew Dawn. This added a new layer to the character, perhaps giving him more depth than others, and is something Ubisoft should replicate. The antagonists ofNew Dawn, Mickey and Lou, were the opposite though. They really had no depth and committed evil for evil’s sake; in other words, theFar Cry 6villainshould take more after Joseph Seed than Mickey and Lou, replicating success and learning from mistakes.
Far Cry 6 Location
Another detail in this formula is an exotic location, as each game has included a location that was intriguing, seemingly realistic, and incredibly dangerous.Far Cry New Dawnwas a spin-off likeFar Cry Primal, which explains the post-apocalyptic setting, but it’s not something that should be expected inFar Cry 6.Instead of something “out there,” a groundedlocation forFar Cry 6would work wonders.
After all,Far Cry 5didn’t have a definition “exotic” location, it made a location exotic. Many were surprised when they learned it was Montana, but eventually, it was a clear choice. The cult of Joseph Seed took a seemingly common and okay location and molded it into Ubisoft’s formula, and soFar Cry 6should mimic this. In other words, instead of choosing something incredibly exotic, a real-world location with a twist is all it really needs.
Far Cry 5 and New Dawn
Perhaps the biggest lessonFar Cry 6can learn from its predecessors,Far Cry 5andNew Dawn, is the overall structure, but a middle ground.Far Cry 5had a great story, intriguing gameplay, but the overall design of the missions was enough to turn off some players. Essentially, players would need to complete side activities in specific regions until their character was kidnapped and something would happen causing their release. This was repetitive, and while not overall damaging, it was detracting.
On the other hand,New Dawnpresented a straightforward story structure that came to be expected of the series, yet it’s overarching story, perhaps because of Mickey and Lou, was not that invigorating. As the old idiom goes, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.“Far Cry 6should take the best of both worlds, combining the classic story structure found inNew Dawnand older games, but ensure that the story is on-par withFar Cry 5as well. Overall, ifFar Cry 6manages to nail these things, it’ll be a strong next-generation start for the franchise.
