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Far Cry source code has been leaked

A near complete collection of the source code for the original Far Cry has appeared on an internet archive site.

TJ Denzer

July 5, 2023 7:58 AM

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The original Far Cry was revolutionary in its graphical prowess and open-ended first-person shooter design, and its source code recently just leaked onto an internet archive website. The code mysteriously appeared out of nowhere over the end of last month and fans have dug into the code, determining its validity. It appears to be a near complete version of the game at its Version 1.34 state.

The original Far Cry code was recently uploaded to internet archive site Archive.org, as spotted by MXDWN. Dumped in a folder on the site called “Far Cry 1.34 Complete,” users noticed the code at the end of June. Digging in, many users have since determined that the code seems to be the real deal.

“From my educated guess, this is some source tree leak for the PC version of the game to add support for the Ubisoft game launcher / DRM,” one user said of the code. “It does contain some .exes but no Xbox code and no game assets. The code that is there doesn't compile without 332 errors (I could have the dev env setup wrong too). So, I think you could get some debug PC version of this game running if you put in the effort and learnt the code base.”

The original Far Cry launched in 2004 and was the first game ever put out by Crytek, though it was published by Ubisoft, who would retain the rights and go on to make further games in the series without the Crysis and Hunt: Showdown developer. Nonetheless, the original was an incredible feat for its time, bringing a semi-open world of action and gunplay to PCs and consoles with physics and visuals that were nearly unparalleled in those years.

It's unknown how the original source code for Far Cry made its way to an internet archive site, but it’s also an interesting (if not brief) opportunity to dig into the guts of what was one of the most influential games of its time. We’ll follow this story for further updates as they become available.

TJ Denzer

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.