Ubisoft is going through a bit of a rough patch right now. With Ubisoft’s 2022 slate not quite living up to the company’s high sales expectations, the publisher has decided to undergo some internal shake-ups, with the biggest news being the cancelation of three unannounced games and yetanother delay forSkull and Bones, which seems doomed by now. But while the company can continue to wash its slate clean, its biggest properties are where the money is, andFar Cryis in desperate need of reinvention.
Debuting in 2004,Far Cryhas been one ofUbisoft’s best-selling franchisesfor almost two decades now, rivaled only by the juggernaut that is theAssassin’s Creedfranchise. But whileAssassin’s Creedhas changed and adapted over the years, with one major shift occurring with the release ofAssassin’s Creed Originsin 2017, theFar Cryseries has stayed largely the same for about a decade, and it’s about time Ubisoft changed that.
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Why Ubisoft Should Reinvent Far Cry Grames
The firstFar Crygame may not have been the biggest seller of the franchise, but it was a solid starting point, with players being encouraged to explore the game’s island in a non-linear fashion.Far Cry 2took this to the next level, introducing a slew of side activities that could be tackled at any stage. ButFar Cry 3is where the franchise really cemented its grip on the open-world FPS genre. Giving players a whole island to explore, with outposts to take down, weapons to unlock, items to craft, and side quests galore,Far Cry 3revolutionized the open-world FPSin 2012, but the franchise has barely moved forward since.
It’s been almost 11 years since one ofthe bestFar Crygameswas released in the form ofFar Cry 3, and despite three mainline entries launching since then, and several spinoffs, theFar Cryformula has remained pretty much unchanged. Players are still dropped into an open world and given free rein over the map, with outposts that require taking down, items that need crafting, and tons of NPCs with plenty of side quests that need completing. The only things that really changed are each open world’s setting and the size of the map. For a while, this formula was Ubisoft’s signature mark on the industry, and quickly became the reason why fans picked up its open-world titles. But over the last few years, the general perception of these games has shifted, and fans are desperate for something new.
Almost the exact same thing happened withtheAssassin’s Creedfranchise. The first 2007 game was a pretty big hit for Ubisoft, and the 2009 sequel improved on its predecessor in some pretty major ways, creating a formula that would be largely unchanged for years.Assassin’s Creed 2,Brotherhood,Revelations, Assassin’s Creed 3, andBlack Flagall share the same essential DNA, and though each entry brought its own unique setting, protagonist, and some new features to the table, they were all largely the same game just repeated for five years straight.
In 2015, however, Ubisoft took theAssassin’s Creedfranchise back to the drawing board in an attempt to reinvent the franchise. The end product wasAssassin’s Creed Origins, a game that still retained the essence and core narrative of the original series, but flipped its gameplay on its head. Instead of an emphasis on stealth and counter-attack combat,Assassin’s Creed Originsemphasized hack-and-slash gameplay while also introducing a deep loot system. This formula has then carried over to everyAssassin’s Creedreleased since. While this reinvention has been pretty divisive, it has kept the franchise fresh and relevant, and there’s no real alternative forFar Cryat this point. If Ubisoft wants to keep theFar Cryfranchise alive, then it needs to do something drastic with it.
