Ubisoft’s Far Cry franchise is one of the companies most successful but its appeal has diminished rapidly as the years go by. News of a potential Far Cry 6 have just began to appear signaling a brand new entry for fans to explore and wreak havoc on. Yet, there just isn’t that much excitement behind this. It’s clear that the series needs to take a break much like Assassin’s Creed did, otherwise this next entry may end up feeling more like a cash grab rather than a refreshing experience.
The Far Cry series feels like it’s been nonstop for the last few years. Since the release of Far Cry 5 in 2018, the franchise has released Far Cry: New Dawn, Far Cry 3 Classic Edition, and multiple DLC releases. Now, rumors have popped up stating that Ubisoft is prepared to unveil the next iteration during their upcoming digital showcase next month, in lieu of this year’s E3. The rumor suggests that this future installment is on the way and is to be set somewhere else besides North America. Does this matter though?
It feels as if the series is already undergoing fatigue as there has already been three major releases within the last two years. Ubisoft is no stranger to this phenomenon as their most successful franchise, Assassin’s Creed, was suffering this same fate. After the release of Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate, many fans and critics had called for the series to take a break and reevaluate the series’ direction due to gameplay feeling repetitive. Two years later, Origins was unveiled to vast acclaim from fans. The break was much needed and allowed for the series to grow and develop into a creative and exciting new direction. Ubisoft isn’t the only company to have to do this, though.
Capcom recently underwent a widespread creative reawakening that has been greatly received. Franchises such as Mega Man, Devil May Cry, and Resident Evil took some long looks in the mirror and ended up creating some excellent new entries. Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, Devil May Cry 5, and Mega Man 11 all received praise from fans of each respective franchise. Resident Evil, in particular, has seen successful entries with the Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3 Remakes since the hiatus. It’s clear that this can work while producing major results.
Ubisoft should take a few notes from these examples in order to produce some higher quality results. Not only is Far Cry facing trouble in paradise, the Ghost Recon franchise is already in trouble. Last year’s release of Ghost Recon: Breakpoint failed to meet expectations and was critically panned. Despite Wildlands performing fairly well just prior to this title, Breakpoint was a far cry from being similar. The company should break free from their yearly release schedule and focus on making meaningful experiences that fans can’t wait to dive into. The whole Ubisoft model is fairly exhausting from a gaming perspective. Games are padded with meaningless side missions and objectives in order to create a lengthy product. This needs to be redone completely and reassessed.
Far Cry 6 is most likely to coincide with the releases of the next generation of consoles, the Xbox One Series X and PlayStation 5. Instead of making new entries for this franchise, they should shift their focus onto new IPs and revitalizing old ones. A new Splinter Cell game would be fantastic or seeing a new Rayman game that isn’t a new version of Legends could do wonders. Even just an update on Beyond Good and Evil 2 is welcome. There doesn’t have to be a new Far Cry entry if there isn’t anything groundbreakingly new to offer. Instead, give it the rest it needs in order to bring about some much-needed creativity.