Far Cry 5: Far Cry 5 UK release date, news and trailers

Far Cry 5 transports the open-world series to modern day America, bringing Far Cry’s formula of shooting, exploring, crafting and more shooting to a setting that’s ripe for satire. How far Ubisoft goes to mapping its tale of a militaristic doomsday cult onto reality remains to be seen, but Far Cry 5 could prove to be the most political entry in the series yet.

Our sister site Alphr has reviewed the game, and called it “a bombastic but unfocused open world”:

Far Cry has long been a series with a certain knowingness about the violent delights it offers, amping up the gunplay to levels that hover around the hyperbolic.

Unlike a game like Spec Ops: The Line, however, it never goes so far as to make the player feel uncomfortable with the slaughter they commit – choosing instead to have its cake and eat it too, with a lightly satirical approach that simultaneously invites the player to kick back and shoot up some bad guys.

“This approach skips along unhindered in Far Cry 5, which makes for a mildly enjoyable romp, but is a real failing when you have a story that touches on themes of gun violence, social unease and religious extremism. The writing simply does not do these topics justice, and instead of examining dark realities it opts for vague, over the top gestures with little substance. The game is an amusing way to spend a few hours, but it is a missed opportunity to explore what could have been potent subject matter.”

You can read the full review here.

Far Cry 5: When will it be released?

Far Cry 5 will be released on 27 March 2018, for Xbox One, PS4 and PC.

Far Cry 5: What’s it about?

Instead of placing you in exotic tropical vistas or the Himalayas, Far Cry 5 is set in fictional Hope County in modern-day Montana in the US. It’s a literal far cry from its predecessors, but it’s still the same first-person shooter you know and love.

You play a junior deputy sheriff, going up against a doomsday cult that’s moved into town. This band of apocalyptic naer-do-wells is called Eden’s Gate, and they’re headed up by Joseph Seed; a charismatic leader with a penchant for aviators. 

It’s your duty to liberate the residents and restore order using ordered debate and strongly worded letters. Not really. You’ll be shooting stuff. 

Far Cry 5: Characters

Far Cry 5 features a number of ‘guns for hire’, which are special characters that can be hired as companions. Each has various abilities, from sniping to air-borne bombing to…being a dog. Here are three you’ll meet early on into your journey:

• Nick Rye, a pilot who drops bombs from his planes and fires rapid off machine gun artillery. 
• Boomer, a companion dog who can pull off some stealthy takedowns.
• Grace Armstrong, a long-range sniper who gives obvious coverage from far away. 

You can see them in action courtesy of a extended preview from IGN. 

Far Cry 5: Gameplay

As hinted above, there are various approaches to missions in Far Cry 5: from picking people off with a sniper rifle, to running in guns-blazing with the help of Nick’s bombs. An additional element of the game will be resistance points. These will be gained by completing side quests in different regions of Hope County. You’ll come face to face with other leaders of the cult. As you gain enough resistance points by defeating the other cult leaders and completing smaller side quests, you’ll unlock the final boss battle, and will go up against Joseph.

Far Cry 5: Co-op 

Far Cry 5 will have a major co-operative element, with pretty much the whole game open to jolly cooperation. As soon as you finish the tutorial, you’ll immediately have the chance to play through the game with up to four friends online, giving you the ability to share health packs as well as ammo and retain any items, guns and money you pick up.