Far Cry 6 hands-on preview: Freedom by force

Ubisoft will continue its open-world action series with the release of Far Cry 6 this fall. With actor Giancarlo Esposito set to play its main villain, Far Cry 6 follows the story of the island of Yara, and its people’s fight for freedom from an oppressive regime. I got to play a few hours of Far Cry 6 on PC, getting a better understanding of this world and its characters.

Give me liberty or give me death

Far Cry 6 centers around Dani Rojas, a native Yaran that takes up arms and joins the fight against Anton Castillo’s new regime. Early in the game, Dani joins the Libertad, a group of Guerilla fighters that are looking to liberate other Yarans.

Anton Castillo is an omnipresent force in Far Cry 6. From billboards, to radio broadcasts, and other forms of propaganda, he feels inescapable. This is also reflected in the gameplay, as there are a number of different outposts that host Castillo’s forces. Successfully defeating the forces here will help the player “liberate” different areas of Yara. One mission required me to deliver a helicopter to a location, but a nearby military base had the airspace restricted. I had to first attack the base and disable its weaponry, freeing up the base.

Fight together

In the first trailer for Far Cry 6, we met Chorizo, a small dog who’s hind legs were replaced with wheels after an accident. I learned during my preview that Chorizo is one of several animal companions that players can meet on their journey. Each animal provides a unique boost for the player. While Chorizo is a great scout, pointing out enemy locations, there’s an alligator that players can command to chomp down and deal heavy damage to enemies.

Far Cry 6 is shaping up to once again deliver the spectacle of chaos that the franchise is known for. There’s a range of vehicles, from cars, to boats, to planes, and more, and the land of Yara is just a breeding ground for mayhem. One particular mission I played had me fighting to clear out enemies from two neighboring cargo ships. I was sending fire between the two boats as jets soared above and other battles went on in the waters below. It was a level of all-out madness that felt plucked from an action film.

Co-op is also a big part of Far Cry 6. Players can jump in and out of matches with friends, completing story missions as well as side missions together. I got to team up with another player during my preview to take on some missions. There were instances where we were able to divide the work and complete different objectives simultaneously, making it easier to get past the more tedious missions.

The world at your fingertips

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Far Cry game if there wasn’t a rich catalogue of weapons at the player’s disposal. In Far Cry 6, there’s an assortment of assault rifles, shotguns, handguns, and explosives to use. Whether it’s the sticky grenades being used to take out big groups of enemies or a launcher that sends out an EMP-like pulse, temporarily shutting down vehicles and aircraft, there are a lot of options when approaching different combat scenarios.

Players can take the weapons they acquire to one of the several different crafting tables that are scattered throughout Yara. At crafting tables, players can use parts to craft new attachments and upgrades for their weapons. This can mean a better scope or bigger magazine, but also bullets that have special effects. Most enemies in the game have a resistance or weakness to some form of ammunition or effect, so it’s important to have a loadout suitable for any situation. One boss was vulnerable to armor piercing rounds, so I was able to make quick work of him using my sniper rifle that used that type of ammunition.

When customizing their loadout in Far Cry 6, players will be able to select a Supremo. A Supremo is effectively an “ultimate ability” allowing players to unleash a deadly move on nearby enemies. One Supremo early on in the game sends a barrage of missiles at every nearby enemy and vehicle. Another that I liked gave players a small jet boost into the air, sending out a circular blaze in their wake. This Supremo was not only good for traversal, but also helpful for starting fires and spreading destruction.

Taking back the land

Far Cry 6 seems to be bringing everything you’d expect from a new entry in this series - high-octane action and a charmingly evil villain that's undeniably sinister, but you can't help but look forward to whenever he's on the screen. That said, we’ll have to see where it really stacks up with other titles in the franchise when Far Cry 6 launches on October 7, 2021.

These impressions are based on a digital PC code provided by Ubisoft. Far Cry 6 releases on October 7, 2021 for PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PS4, PS5, and Stadia.

Donovan Erskine

News Editor

Donovan is a journalist from Maryland. His oldest gaming memory is playing Pajama Sam on his mom's desktop during weekends. Pokémon Emerald, Halo 2, and the original Star Wars Battlefront 2 were some of the most influential titles in awakening his love for video games. After interning for Shacknews throughout college, Donovan graduated from Bowie State University in 2020 with a major in broadcast journalism and joined the team full-time. He is a huge film fanatic and will talk with you about movies and games all day. You can follow him on twitter @Donimals_