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I’m testing out a new format for my video reviews for this Far Cry 3 review. The “Quick Review” – where I attempt to wrap up my thoughts and recommendations about a game in two minutes or less. If you prefer to read reviews, I’ve provided written commentary below.
Far Cry 3 was a solid game, but I felt it needed a lot more substance to be worthy of all the praise reviewers have given it.
While the world is very expansive and beautiful, the developers give you little incentive to explore it fully since all the significant items, weapons and rewards are either crafted or given to you for liberating enemy camps and radio towers. Hunting animals is fun, but it does not take long or require a great deal of exploration to find the animals you need to craft the best gear. There is also no significant loot to find out in the world. These issues all work in concert to hamper the enjoyment of exploration.
The action is fast paced and I really loved the freedom the game grants you to attack enemies how you see fit. That said, the shooting mechanics are inconsistent and enemies are, at times, too good at sniffing out your hiding spots–even when you are using stealth tactics.
The story is Far Cry 3’s greatest let-down. It tries to be gripping and deep to give meaning to all the killing you’ll be forced to do. However, the writing borders on terrible, thus killing any sense of purpose you might have found for your killing sprees. The main antagonist’s dialog is the one part that is well written and extremely well acted. However, he does very little to save this horribly corny story.
Ubisoft created a great proof of concept that needed more fleshing out to make Far Cry 3 worthy to wear the 9.0 badges everyone’s been so casual at passing out.