Far Cry Primal

I'm a huge fan of the Far Cry series. 

Far Cry 4 scored very well with me and Far Cry 3 is probably one of the best games of all time and was highly influential. It even won the Rath Award for Game of the Year in 2012. It's a series that is respected and, despite few large-scale changes since the third entry, each game often ends up being a well crafted adventure full of mystery, villains, stealth, and just plain, flat-out fun. 

When I first heard the series was headed to 10,000 B.C. I have to admit, I was a little disappointed. Out of all the options I could think of, the time of the caveman and the sabertooth tiger seemed potentially boring. Even with my doubts however, I knew I'd be getting the game and that I'd most likely enjoy it -- but to me it still felt like a potential step backwards for the series. 

For the first time in a while, I complete misjudged a game, and based on critic reviews, I think a lot of mainstream game critics did as well. Because Far Cry Primal is awesome. Just as much so as its predecessors, if not more. 

All of these B-E-A-utiful photos
are brought to you by yours truly

Going back so far in time, the thing I was most worried about was the gameplay. Far Cry is a first person shooter, and while I've often used the recurve bow for stealth purposes, the game eventually devolves into firefights with a need for automatic weapons. Seeing as how those didn't exist in 10,000 B.C., I was curious as to what would happen with the gameplay. Would it slow down excessively? Truth be told, it doesn't slow down all that much and I ended up enjoying the melee-focused combat. Along with your trusty bow and arrow, you have a club (one handed and two handed) and a spear, both of which you can either throw or thrust. I found the club to be my least used weapon, but not because it's not effective, I just found it was a little too slow for my play style. Instead I gravitated toward the spear when things got hairy because of its incredible throw damage, complete with fantastic character hit animation, even pinning enemies to wood surfaces in certain cases. Also making a comeback are takedowns and knife (shards in this game) throws to complete the circle of Far Cry awesomeness and brutality. Bones crack, blood spurts, and enemy eyes widen when the game gets up close and personal and it's particularly savage in this installment where everyone's dressed in loin clothes and bone necklaces.

`Bout to get an arrow in the knee

New to the series in this installment is beast taming. When I first started, I thought, "Oh that's cool, but I don't think I'll use it that much." Although the game definitely forces it upon you -- walking around the world without a beast companion would lead to countless and annoying beast encounters -- it's a welcome addition that I found myself relying heavily on in certain instances. Once you tame an animal for the first time, you can access it anytime from the beast menu, where there are 18 different animals (or varieties of animals). Each has some unique qualities and stats and some are definitely more useful than others. I used the sabertooth tiger the most, but I think my favorite was the black jaguar who had a high stealth rating, thus matching my gameplay style. Another animal you acquire is the ever-so-useful owl, who you can send to fly overhead, tag enemies, drop "bombs", and even kill enemies. When attacking outposts and campfires, the owl is incredibly useful and slightly hilarious.

Seeing the world through
rose-colored glasses...

Speaking about outposts and campfires, there is a LOT to do in Primal, much like every other Far Cry game. Outside of main missions there are a copious amount of encounter side missions, collectibles, a village to upgrade, weapons and gear to upgrade, caves to explore, beasts to tame, locations to find, and alpha beasts to tame. It's rarely repetitive, and usually only so if you decide to grind through a particular mission type. Like most Far Cry games, it does all get a bit old after 20-30 hours, but I found that my interest in Primal lasted nearly as long as it did in FC3. The main culprit for the game reaching any semblance of boring stems from the fact that all unlockable skills are easy to acquire. Within 15-20 hours I had unlocked nearly everything useful to combat and beast taming, not leaving much for me to discover from a gameplay perspective for my remaining hours. As much as I enjoyed the various characters in the story (all dubbed by subtitles), I didn't find that the tale amounted to much more than: establish your society and take down the violent, opposing ones. It's engaging to a certain extent, but it pales in the shadow of FC3's incredible plot and villain (as most games do, to be fair). Primal's characters are all unique which is quite the accomplishment given the time period, though the main character you play as is another lifeless, faceless, machismo "leader" who we never learn much about, thus making it harder to care.

Woolly Mammoth Tipping:
An American Pastime

Luckily, as is the case with most Far Cry games, the map of this prehistoric land is absolutely incredible. In fact, I'd even go so far as to say that it's my favorite thus far. It's much more up to the player to blaze their own path from Point A to B as roads are very loosely drawn on the HUD map. At times this can greatly frustrate when a large cliff or mountain is in your way, but usually a few minutes of looking for grapple rope points alleviates most of this stress. Once you get used to the map topography, you'll learn that most of the time you need to go up to go forward and it becomes second nature. The map is also incredibly varied with jungles, fields, snowy mountains, lakes, rivers, etc. each truly feeling different from the others. It was a game that, upon finding a few locations, my jaw would hang open at the game's immersive capabilities. Emerging to a wide, golden plain with herds of woolly mammoths grazing feels so dramatically different than escaping a cave to find yourself in a blizzard, looking down at the map from a tall peak. It's these moments in Primal that are small treasures and they're not rare...I think this would be a truly groundbreaking VR game. 

Bringing down the sun...

Primal is also a strikingly gorgeous game as Far Cry games usually are. But because of the exotic, mysterious nature of this land from thousands of years ago, there's something eerily more pretty about this one. Rock formations that are no longer realistic...animals that don't exist anymore...plants that are exaggerated in size...jagged ice formations...it's almost like you're on a different planet on times and it's quite exciting. One of my first memories from the game is as follows: I left my village at night, with the moon full and bright in the sky. I walked into a forest, vicious animal noises surrounding me, and began up a steep hill to my marked objective. The large, leafy trees hung above me and the moonlight filtered through their foliage, each branch creating a separate beam of light that twisted and shifted as I moved closer. That's it. Just a simple interaction with the world and its beauty; that's been a moment that has really come to define Primal for me. The game's graphics are only a small portion of it too as the striking color palette (filled with yellows, greens, and blues) and overall aforementioned environment design all combine to a truly prehistoric and memorable location. 

"Cannnn you feel the loooooove tonight?"

Primal also has a lot more going for it, as well as a few things against it, that I'll finish listing in the Pros and Cons portion. The conclusion to all of this praise is that Far Cry Primal is an excellent addition to the series and that's coming from someone who was nervous about the direction they were taking. Would I want them to keep future games in 10,000 B.C.? No. I don't think there's enough past this one game to justify it. But I applaud Ubisoft for taking a huge risk with one of their premiere series and being able to make one hell of a game out of it. Because of some great design choices and tweaks to the classic Far Cry gameplay, Primal emerges as a highly unique first person experience in a crowded market. 

Who knew that moving so far back could help a series move forward? 

Even still, Ubisoft: please give us a fully fleshed out Far Cry: Blood Dragon 2!

CONS:

• Lacks a truly engaging story mainly due to a boring player character and any type of twisting plot
• A few instances where trying to get to specific areas on the map are a pain. Most of the time this is because of the vertical nature of the world -- I felt like I was running "around" formations more than I'd have liked
• Some "beasts" that you tame are useless
• Foraging for upgrade supplies can get old quickly...this is the main area where Far Cry needs to evolve
• As most games do, it gets a tad old after 30+ hours as you near the end
• Best unlocks come too early. There isn't much left to "discover" after 15-20 hours
• There were a few times that the jump and ledge mechanics didn't seem to be working properly
• Too much is assigned to the "Square" button (on PS4)

PROS:

• Awesome, brutal, but gorgeous setting that worked better than I ever thought it would. Granted there isn't much competition, but this is the best Prehistoric game ever made
• Great, often funny and entertaining, cast of side characters that are surprisingly memorable
• Fantastic combat and gameplay...again, something that ended up better than I had predicted. The choices for weapons are well thought out and each has their own attributes/feeling. The bow and arrows are fantastic and play great too while the spear is uber lethal and a blast to play with (and pin people to trees with)
• Far Cry has always been a brutal series, but it's almost more so with the prehistoric setting. The sound effects are golden and taking down an enemy has some oddly satisfying gurgles and crunches accompanied with it
• Speaking of sound, the original score for Primal is amazing. I wouldn't be surprised if it wins a Rath Award at the end of the year as it really can change the mood of the game on a dime
• Beast taming is awesome and having a "pal" can be a blast. The owl, black jaguar, and Bloodtooth Sabre are the best of the bunch
• Well designed and beautiful open world. The geography is stunning, the plant life is extraordinary, the colors are mesmerizing and the overall graphics are truly next gen. Such a treat to play around in this well-thought-out environment that genuinely feels different depending on where you are in the world
• Lots to do with quite a bit of variety. The main missions are solid and some of the side quests/missions are fun
• RPG elements may have their faults (see above) but are still appreciated
• Bonus points for risks taken and it paying off!
• Destined to be one of the more unique experiences of the year, Far Cry Primal takes the best parts of Far Cry, transports you back to 10,000 B.C., and the result is yet another fun entry in a series that has become a personal favorite of mine. Can't wait to see where it goes next

Rath's Review Score: 9/10