Given the size and scope of the game, it’s perhaps unsurprising that I encountered a few graphical glitches in the world (some dodgy shadows, and some NPCs hilariously clipping in and out of buildings), but those aside, Far Cry is the best looking open world game ever, and one of the best looking games in any genre full stop.

 

The lush jungle, dark temples and clear seas just look stunning, and wherever you are, whether it be creeping stealthily through the undergrowth, driving at pace on the dirt roads, or soaring in the skies on a hand glider, this game always puts something out there to surprise and delight the player at every corner. Perhaps my one complaint is that whilst animation and design on the main cast is brilliant, the pirates and Rakyat tribe do all look pretty similar. Still, given just how good the performances of the main cast are, that’s OK, because the standard of their animation and speech is so good that it really improves the storyline.

 

 

And it’s also the voice performances that really add depth to the characters as well. You can really see Jason being an archetypal Californian stoner knob, being spoilt and arrogant. But then he changes as the game goes on- you can see it, his friends can see it, and Vaas can see it too. Vaas is easily the best new character in a game this year. He’s evil, clearly insane, and at the same time, almost likeable as a villain.

 

The cast of characters is certainly very much larger than life, so don’t expect hyper-realism, but they’re no more outrageous than say some of the Call of Duty stereotypes, so you’re hardly seeing a load of hammed-up pastiches for performances either.

 

 

 

Far Cry 3 includes both competitive versus multiplayer, and a number of 4-player co-op maps that take place in a campaign set six months before the main single player. We were only provided one copy of the game before release, so were unable to test any of these. I’m planning on updating the review once the game has been released to tell you more about these modes.

 

 

As a single-player game, "Far Cry 3" is almost revelatory. The first 30 minutes or so are just amazing, and whilst you do transform into more of a stereotypical videogame killer, the emotional level of the plot, and quality of the action continued to thrill all throughout the lengthy campaign. Coupled with the holy trinity of an open-world game- driving, gunplay and exploration all being brilliantly executed, and you end up with a fantastic game to finish the year with. This one’s going to rank high on my GOTY list for sure, and that’s great, because with first Halo, and now Far Cry, 2012 has proved there is more than Call of Duty in the world of shooters, and it’s this level of innovation that gives me great hope that the genre can continue to evolve and move onto bigger and better things.

 

 

 

  

 

 

+ Character development