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Far Cry 3
The opening cinematic of Far Cry 3 is a
definitely a wow moment for 2012 and it's almost like you are watching a
Hollywood blockbuster
movie. The opening premise behind Far Cry 3 is that you (Jason Brody),
your brothers and a group of friends have gone on a tropical holiday in
the South Pacific and the introduction of the game shows you partying, sky
diving and basically have the time of your life.
Unfortunately this ends
quite abruptly as the developers tricked you into thinking that you were
watching a movie but rather, it was a recording on your Smartphone.
The problem is that you have been kidnapped by a gang of ruthless
pirates and the only way you'll ever get home is if your family will pay
the ransom.
Things do start to look up when you discover that your
brother was in the military and together, you escape their encampment
only to find hell in paradise. Another interesting element of the Far
Cry 3 story is that the villain Vaas is probably the most realistic and
hideously evil antagonist that has ever graced a game. He's more than
just badass!
Needless to say the beautiful idyllic beaches of the South Pacific are
definitely rotten to the core in Far Cry 3 and your holiday has turned into a
nightmare. Without spoiling the story, early on in the game you part
company with your brother and after a desperate chase through the
jungles, you are found by a local called Dennis.
Dennis becomes your Yoda
as he teaches you how to walk the path of the Warrior and how you can rescue your
family and friends through calling upon ancient hunting powers. However apart
from you rescuing your family, you soon realise that you are caught in a
war between a local tribe called the Raykat and the pirates. Obviously you choose the side
of the tribe to get your bloody revenge. Another interesting element of
the game is that you can craft medical, hunting and combat bonuses
through collecting plants and mixing them together via syringes.
The main mission objective in this
first-person shooter is of course to find your family and friends again,
however Far Cry 3 is an enormous open-world game and there's plenty of side quests
and missions to embark on. The thing with Far Cry 3 is that by engaging
in the side quests, it assists in boosting your abilities and increases
the amount of weaponry available for Brody.
Even some of the mundane
missions like hunting boars or taking out one of the pirates who has
insulted a local tribe is a joy because
of the realism involved in the game. I remember my first hunt in Far Cry
3 seemed quite innocent as I had to kill 2 boars and collect a handful
of plants.
Killing the boars with my knife and
skinning them for accessories was an easy task, however when I entered
the water to collect a plant, I was given the most scariest fright since
Half Life. As I dived into the peaceful river and collected the plant, I
was suddenly attacked by a crocodile which scared the living daylights
out of me. The realism here was unparalleled in any game I've played in
2012.
It was at this moment that Far Cry 3 had me hook, line and sinker.
However, crocodiles are the least of worries, especially when it comes to
sharks and tigers. When you do kill an animal, you can make items from
their body such as bags to hold or more items or you can sell their
"parts" for money. There's plenty to find in Far Cry, although some of the
items are quite strange like recipes for cocaine or other odd
assortments like dog tags that fortunately can be
sold for a dollar or two. However when you loot your enemies or chests,
it's diamonds or cash that you really want.
As Dennis and his tribal colleagues teach
you more about your powers, missions become quite diverse in the game as
you attempt to enbale radio towers in the game, reclaim enemy bases for
your faction and of course, engage in the pirates from skirmishes to
full out warfare. Given that, exploring Far Cry 3 is a treat and the
level design is amazing. As you explore the island, you'll discover
ancient ruins and some amazing sights that almost makes it appear that
you are part of some grass roots travel documentary... except you've got
snakes... pirates and other nasties.
Far Cry 3 is also not your regular Joe Blow
first person shooter and if you approach the game like an action hero on
steroids, things can easily take a turn for the worse. Stealth and
hunting is the key to the game as you transform yourself into the
ultimate predator as you sneak into encampments and complete a variety
of medium to difficult objectives.
This is where Far Cry excels with the
amount of freedom given to the player and whether you want to complete a
mission from the notice boards or from an NPC or if you just want to
explore, this first person shooter truly gives you one of the best
open-world experiences.
Combat is another highlight of Far Cry 3
and can be performed in a variety ways. Whether you are using
traditional weapons such as sniper rifles or shotguns, Far Cry gives the
user a variety of tools and weapons to do the job. For a first person
shooter, it's amazing at how much I used the knife to take down my
enemies and there's also some great cinematics with your takedowns.
As mentioned earlier, Brody relies on the
training of the natives to assist with him in becoming a warrior. By
completing missions and objectives, Brody is awarded XP that allows him
to unlock a variety of new abilities which in turn tattoos him with
special abilities. For example by training deep breath, this allows you
to stay underwater longer or death from above takedowns allows you to
perform a deadly finishing manoeuvre from the skies (e.g. zip lines). It's quite a cool catch. And then you have the action
parts from zip lines, wing suits and driving lots and lots of vehicles!
Far Cry also boasts a great standalone
co-op mode that allows four players to search for a nefarious cruise
ship captain who sold them and their passengers to pirates for a large
sum of money. These 6-playable levels can even be played via
split-screen which works like a treat on a 50" plasma.
The great thing about the co-op mode is
that it's another unique story of the Far Cry universe. Then you have
your "traditional" multiplayer modes that allows you to fine tune your
Far Cry skills with unlockables and some what of a levelling system.
Although not as refined as the single-player game, it's still a fun
experience where you can spend a great deal of time.
Graphics/Audio
Graphically, Far Cry 3 is visual treat on
the PS3 with some amazing level design that really mimics the South
Pacific. To compliment the great backgrounds, especially the water
effects are the characters themselves that are highly detailed and
almost look real. Lighting is also a visual treat.
The only downside to the game is that at
times, the frame rates does suffer for this visual eye candy. The voice
acting of the game is quite professional and they really get into the
headspace of the characters that the actors play. Brody is a real mess
at the start of the game before he turns into a true hero. Sound effects
boom through surround sound and the musical score and background
ambience creates one of the best experiences of 2012.
Final Level
So here we are again with another instalment from the Far Cry universe
that definitely goes beyond the previous games. With a relatable
protagonist, a story that truly draws you in from the very first moments
of the game, Far Cry 3 also contains a very sturdy game engine that
almost makes it the perfect game. It just flows so well from the first
to the last level... and the vehicles are just awesome. What a way to end 2012! |
