Far Cry actually has finished all of it: a two-decade-long span of sequels set internationally, a variety of spin-offs, and a film adaptation. The franchise even dove into the realm of anime final yr, with Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix bringing the neon-tinged, tongue-in-cheek world of Far Cry: Blood Dragon to Netflix. As proven in the trailer video above, we will now have a good time 20 years of Far Cry, revisiting the journey from Far Cry 1 in 2004 to Far Cry 6 in 2021.
The Far Cry series has turn into a fixture of Ubisoft’s lineup, shortly accumulating a protracted lineage of video games for gamers to dig via. Below, we’ll carve via this prolonged historical past, itemizing each game in release order and providing newcomers a suggestion of one of the best place to start out.
How Many Far Cry Games Are There?
Excluding remasters and ports, there are 13 Far Cry video games – 12 on residence console/PC and one on cellular units. Far Cry VR: Dive Into Insanity can also be excluded given its lack of accessibility — it can’t be performed at residence, solely at Zero Latency VR places.
Where’s the Best Place to Start?
Thanks to loads of ports on trendy consoles, Far Cry is a sequence with a ton of viable jumping-off factors. Far Cry 3, 4, 5 and 6 can all be bought on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, and contemplating every of these video games are very comparable in mechanics and design, they need to offer you a very good style of Far Cry’s method to open-world gameplay.
That being stated, Far Cry 3 and 4 are largely thought-about the strongest of the bunch and are nice entry factors for these seeking to sink their tooth into the sequence. Either possibility will present a glimpse of Far Cry at its greatest.
Every Far Cry Game in Release Order
These blurbs include gentle spoilers for every game, together with characters, settings, and story beats.
1. Far Cry (2004)
The start of the sequence, and the one entry developed by Crytek, Far Cry hit PC in 2004 and later made its solution to Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Slotting gamers into the boots of former particular forces operative Jack Carver, Far Cry takes place on a bunch of distant tropical islands swarming with trigger-happy mercenaries.
Trapped on the sunny locale’s shores after his boat is met with artillery strikes, Jack is pressured to face his pursuers and embark on an journey throughout the danger-filled archipelago, looking for a journalist he was escorting who mysteriously disappeared. Much like later video games in the sequence, Far Cry centered largely on tense gun fights, stealth, and utilizing open-ended environments to get the drop on enemies.
2. Far Cry: Instincts (2005)
In 2005, Ubisoft Montreal took over improvement duties on Far Cry, releasing a remake of the unique game titled Far Cry: Instincts. It was unique to Xbox and adopted the identical story as the unique, albeit with a contemporary coat of paint and a handful of new mechanics.
Included was a entice system, which allowed gamers to booby entice objects to catch enemies without warning, in addition to new Feral Abilities, which gave Jack thermal imaginative and prescient, a robust melee assault, elevated working velocity, and several other different game-changing perks.
3. Far Cry Instincts: Evolution (2006)
A yr later, Ubisoft launched the primary Far Cry sequel, Far Cry Instincts: Evolution. A direct follow-up to the story of Far Cry: Instincts, Evolution resumes the story of Jack Carver, who finds himself as soon as again stranded on a tropical island after an arms deal gone improper.
Framed for a homicide he didn’t commit, Jack finds himself on a mission to clear his identify, going up towards a mysterious native chieftain and his band of fierce rebels. Alongside its contemporary marketing campaign, Evolution added extra weapons and autos, in addition to a brand new slate of multiplayer maps and level-editor gadgets.
4. Far Cry Vengeance (2006)
In December 2006, Ubisoft launched its first Far Cry game on the Wii. Titled Far Cry Vengeance, it was one thing of a reimagining of Far Cry Instincts: Evolution, telling an analogous however barely altered story in which protagonist Jack Carver is arrested earlier than he could make his solution to the aforementioned arms deal.
The greatest distinction, nevertheless, isFar Cry Vengeance provided a full suite of movement controls. Using the Wiimote, gamers might purpose weapons and carry out melee assaults. The game additionally featured a split-screen versus mode, though Evolution’s on-line multiplayer and degree editor didn’t make the lower.
5. Far Cry 2
Two years later, Ubisoft Montreal shifted the Far Cry sequence away from its supernatural origins, choosing a grittier, extra grounded Far Cry 2. The sequel took the franchise to an unspecified nation in Africa, casting gamers as a gun-for-hire despatched to search out and kill an arms supplier often known as the Jackal.
Arriving throughout an ongoing civil warfare, the protagonist shortly realizes catching the Jackal would require enjoying each side of the battle, prompting them to take advantage of the facility wrestle to shut in on their goal. Far Cry 2 was a significant change of tempo for the franchise, specializing in brutal fight and difficult ethical selections inside a totally open world. Among the brand new mechanics was a buddy system, the place gamers might crew with AI companions who would help them on missions.
6. Far Cry 2 Mobile (2008)
A tie-in to the console release of the sequel, developer Gameloft launched a mobile adaptation of Far Cry 2 in the months following the bottom game’s launch. It was a unfastened retelling of the occasions reframed as a top-down, 2D shooter.
Much like the unique game, gamers arrive in Africa to take down the Jackal, occurring missions and teaming with AI companions. Due to technical restraints, the cellular port of Far Cry 2 doesn’t characteristic an open world, specializing in linear ranges and hubs you possibly can discover between contracts.
7. Far Cry 3 (2012)
Four years after Far Cry 2, Ubisoft returned for the franchise’s most defining entry to date: Far Cry 3. Following new protagonist Jason Brody, the game begins with a vacation from hell, as Jason and his group of associates' skydiving journey lands them on a distant island occupied by a military of pirates.
Kidnapped by their chief, the eccentric however ruthless Vaas (performed by Better Call Saul’s Michael Mando), Jason manages to flee and be a part of up with a neighborhood insurgent militia opposing Vaas and his males. With his associates nonetheless captured, Jason begins an journey to search out them and escape the island in one piece, all of the whereas being relentlessly pursued by Vaas.
Far Cry 3 was, in lots of methods, a turning level for the franchise, introducing a number of parts that went on to turn into staples of the sequence. From radio towers that reveal the map and enemy outposts the participant can liberate, to the introduction of a sinister lead villain that lives to chew the surroundings, Far Cry 3 was the muse of the Far Cry formulation as we all know it right now.
8. Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon (2013)
A yr on from the release of Far Cry 3, Ubisoft launched a standalone spin-off titled Blood Dragon. Taking the sequence in a brand new, neon-infused path, Blood Dragon was a tongue-in-cheek parody of tacky ‘80s sci-fi action flicks, casting players as a one-liner spitting cyborg badass known as Sergeant Rex Colt.
Sent on a revenge mission to kill his former commander, Colonel Sloan, the game drops Colt into an open-world dystopian future, where he uses his arsenal of futuristic weaponry to carve a war path through cyborgs, robot sharks, and dragons that can shoot lasers from their eyes. Blood Dragon was the first of several Far Cry spin-offs which took the series to imaginative new settings. It even went on to inspire an anime series called Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix.
9. Far Cry 4 (2014)
A year after Blood Dragon, Ubisoft released Far Cry 4, the next major installment in the franchise. Set in the snowy Himalayan mountains, players are cast as Ajay. Traveling to the fictional country of Kyrat to scatter his mother’s ashes, Ajay’s journey is lower brief after his bus is raided by Pagan Min, a ruthless however immaculately dressed dictator who has a particular curiosity in Ajay and his mission.
Returning to Pagan Min’s palace, Ajay manages to flee, fleeing into the countryside of Kyrat and becoming a member of the rebels in combating back towards their oppressor. As his battle towards Pagan Min rages on, Ajay uncovers extra about his heritage, slowly studying his mom’s previous might be straight linked to the warfare that devastates the nation.
Far Cry 4 largely constructed off the muse established in Far Cry 3, including marketing campaign co-op, rideable elephants, a grappling hook, and a helicopter that might be used to lift hell from above.
10. Far Cry Primal (2016)
A spin-off from the mainline video games, Far Cry Primal adopted in the footsteps of Blood Dragon and reframed Far Cry in a wildly totally different setting, taking gamers to the prehistoric age. Centring on a hunter named Takkar, the story begins with the protagonist’s looking occasion being worn out by a sabertooth tiger, leaving him to stroll the valley alone.
Determined to reunite with the opposite members of his clan, he units forth on a deadly journey, clashing with two rival tribes searching for to eradicate Takkar and his allies. Taking away the fashionable expertise of earlier Far Cry video games and limiting gamers to golf equipment, bows, and different primitive weaponry, Far Cry Primal pressured gamers to survive deadly animals, hazardous environments, and fierce rival tribes.
11. Far Cry 5 (2018)
With Primal in the rearview mirror, Ubisoft moved on to the following mainline entry in the Far Cry sequence, Far Cry 5. Moving the franchise to rural Montana, the franchise's fifth entry unleashed gamers in the fictional wilderness of Hope County, enjoying as a anonymous police deputy monitoring an extremist cult often known as Eden’s Gate.
Beginning with a participant and a small squad of sheriffs trying to arrest the cult’s chief – the sadistic zealot Joseph Seed – their mission descends into chaos after Seed’s followers free him and depart the participant stranded in the wilderness. Vowing to rescue their allies and produce Seed and his lieutenants to justice, the gamers start a journey throughout Hope County, slowly studying extra concerning the cult’s leaders and the sinister, world-ending plot they’re concocting.
Far Cry 5 launched a number of new concepts to the Far Cry formulation, with gamers now in a position to totally customise their character, full a non-linear major marketing campaign, and, most significantly, recruit a pleasant grizzly bear named Cheeseburger.
12. Far Cry New Dawn (2019)
A direct sequel to Far Cry 5, New Dawn hit consoles in 2019, envisioning an apocalyptic version of Hope County after it was struck by nuclear bombs through the earlier game's climax. Set seventeen years later, the game follows a player-created captain who, alongside different Hope County survivors, belongs to a settlement often known as Prosperity.
As New Dawn begins, Prosperity finds its existence threatened by a bunch often known as the Highway Men, who search to take over Hope County and eradicate its varied factions. Searching for a method to fight back towards their new enemies, the captain ventures throughout Hope County, ultimately making contact with a robust hidden settlement led by the person who destroyed the world: Joseph Seed.
Much like Blood Dragon and Primal, New Dawn was a reframing of Far Cry’s formulation, this time dropping the game right into a post-apocalyptic setting. It included new, mutated foes; the addition of supernatural skills; and a mode known as Expeditions, which allowed gamers to go to different elements of the U.S. to finish contracts.
13. Far Cry 6 (2021)
Two years later, Ubisoft moved away from the post-apocalypse and returned for a extra conventional mainline entry in Far Cry 6. Taking the franchise to the fictional Caribbean Island of Yara, gamers assume the position of Dani, a civilian trying to flee the nation resulting from a fierce civil warfare ravaging its shores.
Securing an escape route with their household by way of boat, Dani’s plans are thwarted after the ship is boarded by ruthless dictator Anton Castillo (performed by Breaking Bad’s Giancaro Esposito), who’s looking for his teenage son, Diego, among the many refugees. Enraged at his son’s defiance, Anton sinks the ship, killing Dani’s household and setting the protagonist on a warfare path. Enlisting with the resistance and combating towards Anton’s regime, Dani joins the warfare, conquering Anton’s forces in a bid to confront the person himself.
Much like earlier video games, Far Cry 6 constructed on the Far Cry basis, including customizable autos, DIY tremendous weapons, a brand new gear system, and back mounted rocket launchers.
What’s Next For Far Cry?
As for what’s subsequent for Far Cry, there are presently no future initiatives confirmed. And, in Nov 2023, Far Cry 6 officially received its last patch after Ubisoft introduced it might now not be updating the game. However, early rumors recommend extra Far Cry is probably going on the way in which. In early 2023, two new Far Cry initiatives have been reportedly in improvement, in accordance with Insider Gaming and Kotaku: a normal sequel and a multiplayer spin-off. That being stated, Ubisoft has but to disclose something official, so till the writer is prepared, we'll have to attend and see the place Far Cry heads subsequent.
For extra lists like this, take a look at Assassin's Creed Games in Order, Wolfenstein Games in Order, GTA Games in Order and far more.
Callum Williams is a freelance media author with years of expertise as a game critic, information reporter, guides author and options author.