Strong Stealth Mechanics
The stealth mechanics in the Far Cry series have come a long way since the first game. Far Cry 3 allowed us to take down enemies silently using a bow and arrow, silenced guns, and a trusty combat knife. This allowed players to take out enemy bases without the alarm ever being sounded, but there’s still room for improvement. Veteran Far Cry players will know the feeling of frustration when, just as you think you’ve got the drop on an enemy, someone from across the camp spots you and raises the alarm.
Given that Far Cry 5 is set in modern America rather than a remote corner of the world, it seems reasonable that the player will have more technology at hand. Ubisoft has shown how technology can be used to aid the player in the Watch Dogs games and hopefully some of that tech will be present in Far Cry 5. Rather than using your binoculars to scout an enemy camp, wouldn’t it be cool to have a small drone fly over and check it out for you? Maybe it could be possible to hack into their tech so, if you’re spotted, the alarm fails to work? Stealth can be tricky to nail in first-person games, but the past few Far Cry games have gotten it down pretty well. Here’s hoping Far Cry 5 perfects it.
Deeper Weapon Customization
While stealth is a viable option in the Far Cry series, some players prefer to go in guns blazing. Whether you prefer to go silent or have everyone within a five-mile radius know you’re here, a way to customize your weapons to suit your play style is a must. Different attachments such as grenade launchers, suppressors, and a variety of scopes should all be present and it would be great to be able to fine tune weapons with things like extended magazines, flashlights, and their rate-of-fire vs their damage.
Far Cry 3 and 4 both did a good job of allowing the player to tweak their load out, but Far Cry 5 has the opportunity to go even deeper. We want to be able to spend hours fine tuning a weapon until it’s perfect for our needs. Weapon skins could also affect gameplay. For instance, a camo skin on your rifle could make you less easy to spot, while a blood red colored shotgun could make you more intimidating to the enemy.
Improved Crafting System
The crafting system in past Far Cry games has been fun, but it is starting to feel a little bit routine. It’s a great way to encourage players to explore the map in search of a certain type of plant or animal, but it doesn’t make a great deal of sense that only, say, a rhino’s skin can upgrade your gun holsters. Why not a boar skin? Or an elephant? Can’t we use our prey’s bones to craft a makeshift knife, or even use furs to create new clothing items?
A crafting system in Far Cry 5 is definitely still a feature we want included, but it would be great if it felt a little more realistic than past games. Once you’d upgraded your main items, there was little reason to hunt again. Hunting is a big part of American culture and we’d love to see it take a more prominent role in Far Cry 5. Hunting competitions could be included and pelts and furs could be used not only to upgrade your character, but also to sell in order to boost the economy or maybe even to customize your base. No HQ is complete without a cougar rug on the floor, right?
Collectables Worth Collecting
Ubisoft games are renowned for having vast maps absolutely full of items to seek out and collect. While we appreciate that this adds extra bang for our buck, it has been noted that collectables in any game should feel worth collecting. Collecting all the flags in Assassin’s Creed gave the player no real reward (other than a Trophy/Achievement) and did nothing to tell us more about the world or its inhabitants. It can often feel monotonous hunting down trinkets for their own sake.
The recently released Horizon Zero Dawn had a great approach to collectables. Not only did they add to your understanding of the world around you but they also unlocked new gear and upgrades for players to make use of. We’d love to see Ubisoft follow suit with Far Cry 5. Instead of just tracking down documents or treasure boxes that give you a few items, why not have us track down car parts which unlock a great vehicle for us to bomb around in? How about scattering gun mods across the map that will entice those who want the ultimate load out? Having thousands of icons appearing on your map can feel overwhelming, but having a few great collectables that really feel fleshed out would be much more rewarding.
A World That Feels Alive
Past Far Cry titles have done a great job in creating an open world that feels alive and that’s something we hope Ubisoft pushes even further with Far Cry 5. Creating a world that feels alive is no easy task and requires a large mix of flora, fauna, and civilians going about their daily lives.
When going deep into the wild, we want to see the food chain in action with predators going after prey and Flora should grow in abundance, untouched by mankind. When heading towards town, this wildlife should give way to busy pedestrians driving to work, heavy traffic, cats sat upon rooftops, and people talking too loudly on their phones about their busy lives. Each element should react to one another accordingly and all hell should break loose were the player to say, release a caged mountain lion being transported through town. Past games have been set in remote locations where nature is king but that’s not the case this time. We look forward to seeing how Ubisoft balances the tension between the wild and urban locations in Far Cry 5.
Fun Vehicles
Past titles have been no stranger to allowing players to hop into a vehicle in order to make a quick getaway. Far Cry 4 even allowed us to take to the sky in cool little gyro-copters that allowed players to more easily traverse the mountainous terrain they found themselves exploring. Far Cry: Primal did away with vehicles, given that it was set in the stone age, but Far Cry 5 will no doubt feature plenty of vehicles for us to make use of.
Given that Far Cry 5 will feature urban areas as well as wilderness, it makes sense that we should get to see a wide variety of vehicles on offer to us. Off-road cars such as 4x4s and jeeps will be essential for getting through the wild without getting stuck, but we could also see the introduction of sport cars in the urban environments. There could be drag races for us to compete in in the streets and off-road challenges for us to win in the forests and fields. Boats will no doubt make a return, but what about the beloved gyro-copter? It’s possible that Ubisoft may not feel it is needed this time around but we’d love to see something equally interesting replace it. Maybe a small plane or dirt bikes?
Memorable Support Characters
While the Far Cry games are well known for their engaging villains, the same can’t be said of the support characters. Supporting characters in past games have paled in comparison to the villains and the main character. Ubisoft has proven that it can create great characters, we just hope they do so for Far Cry 5.
We love to hate the baddies of Far Cry, but what about giving us allies we can really root for? We’d love to see a character, or characters, who make us really want to see the bad guy get taken down. Give us an NPC who’s so badass they want to make us fight harder, or a town full of friends we’d do anything to protect. Show us how the villain is tormenting these people and make us care enough about them for it to illicit an emotional response.
Meaningful Player Choices
Past Far Cry titles have included player choice at certain key moments in the game’s story, but it rarely felt particularly satisfying. Usually it just changed the ending you got and wasn’t really worked into the rest of the game. The best kind of player choice makes the player feel as though they’ve had an effect on the world they’re in and that things are unfolding differently due to their actions.
Choices should appear throughout the game, not just at the end, and should alter the game accordingly. Games that do a good job in letting the player feel like they’ve had an effect should leave players wanting to start a new game as soon as the credits roll to see how the gameplay and story differs when choosing a different path. For instance, Far Cry 5 could allow players to choose who they join as allies and this in turn could unlock different rewards such as weapon types and upgrades that alter how the gameplay unfolds.
Another Great Villain
Far Cry 3 set the bar when it comes to a great antagonist. The villain Vaas was as insane as he was intimidating and he felt like a constant presence throughout the game. Finally taking him down felt like a victory that was earned and it showed just how far the player had come. Far Cry 4 once again gave us a great villain with Pagan Min. He may seem charming and stylish, but he’s every bit as capable of violence as Vaas.
Given what we’ve seen of Far Cry 5, it looks like Ubisoft is once again setting us up for another great villain. From what we’ve learned so far, Far Cry 5’s antagonist comes in the shape of Joseph Seed, a preacher who believes he is destined to lead the people of Hope County to salvation. He has established a military cult called Eden’s Gate and it’ll be up to the player to take him down. Cult leaders are known for being incredibly charismatic but also violent and unpredictable. Ubisoft could have a lot of fun crafting Seed’s character and we hope he’s every bit as memorable as Vaas and Pagan Min.
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