Far Cry: New Dawn is the latest game in the series and because it is set after nuclear bombs have destroyed the world, things get a bit strange. Weird creatures roam the world, like deer with bright pink antlers or glow-in-the-dark critters. But another weird element of this nuclear apocalypse actually feels inspired by something first found in the original Far Cry on the Xbox.
Spoilers ahead. I’m going to be talking about the later parts of Far Cry New Dawn and the original Far Cry game.
In Far Cry: New Dawn players eventually find their way up North, where Joseph Seed is hiding away with a strange and powerful tree. This tree produces fruit that, when eaten, grants some folks special powers. These powers include strong punches, invisibility, extra speed, and double jumps.
Previous Far Cry games, like Far Cry 5, have included ways to temporarily give your character increased abilities. But giving your character a selection of powers that can be used permanently throughout the game reminded me a lot of the Xbox port of the original game.
Far Cry Instincts was a modified port of the first game in the franchise. It ditched the huge maps found in the original PC version for more linear worlds and also changed the storyline to include new superhuman abilities called “Feral Powers”.
These Feral Powers change the way the game is played and gave Far Cry Instincts a different feel than its PC counterpart. Jack Carver, the protagonist of Far Cry Instincts, can jump farther and higher, move faster, punch harder and track enemies better.
These powers would return in the sequel to Instincts, Far Cry Instincts Evolution. This story had Carver encountering other folks who had his same Feral powers. The campaign for Evolution was much shorter than Instincts and was more an expansion than a full-on new game.
Far Cry New Dawn gives the player similar powers, including a really fun double jump. Like Instincts, these powers change up how you interact with the world. For example, after taking down an outpost I returned with my new powers and suddenly things were much easier. I could sneak around better, get over tall walls without a ladder or door and I could quickly take down elite enemies silently.
While previous games have given players ways to power up, these were usually short term and not as powerful as the Feral powers of Instincts or Eden powers found in New Dawn.
One could argue that in the recent Far Cry games players eventually have so many abilities and weapons that you are already a fairly powerful warrior. While I agree the games tend to overpower the player, I also love becoming some superpowered hunter who can just destroy entire armies and outposts easily.
I have no idea what the future holds for Far Cry. I know some fans prefer more grounded games, while other fans like myself are into the weirder Far Cry adventures. Personally, I would love to see more games in the franchise build on the idea of giving the main character special powers.
Maybe it’s time for Jack Carver to return? What if Far Cry 6 returns to the tropical islands of the first game and gives Carver some new Feral abilities? Unlikely, but maybe a future spin-off like Primal or New Dawn will give us another taste of being a super-powered killer in the world of Far Cry.
Comments