It's been over three years since the last installment in the mainline Far Cry series, with 2018's Far Cry 5 taking players to the American Northwest, and the following year's New Dawn offering an apocalyptic spinoff. Now, Ubisoft's premier action franchise is back with Far Cry 6 from the publisher's Toronto studio.

Set on the fictional Caribbean island of Yara, the series is back to its more exotic roots, but how is it fairing among critics? The Far Cry series has set a high standard for itself, and reviews for the latest game are out. By and large, it appears Far Cry 6 is another welcome addition to the series, though some critics are much more impressed than others.

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Critics Enjoyed Giancarlo Esposito, but Are Divided on the Story

Far Cry 6 grabbed the attention of gamers with the reveal of its villain, Anton Castillo, portrayed by Breaking Bad and The Mandalorian's Giancarlo Esposito. The series is known for its memorable antagonists, such as Vaas, Pagan Min and Father Joseph Seed, so Esposito had quite the task in becoming Yara's fascist dictator. Fortunately, Jon Ryan of IGN wrote "every one of Esposito's scenes is captivating" and that "Castillo remains a memorable antagonist until the bitter end."

However, not everyone was all too impressed by Ubisoft's use of their famed thespian, with Eurogamer's Ian Higton saying "he's criminally underused. He's mostly kept away from the action, and simply not as interesting as previous villains because a lot of the things he's done to earn his reputation are never shown -- only implied by the game and told about in passing in cutscenes."

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As for the rest of Far Cry 6's narrative, critics are split. In terms of the plot's general direction, PC Gamer's Lauren Aitken reflects that it's par for the Far Cry course, where "a lot of the betrayal is predictable...but there are enough surprises to keep you happy." However, some take issue with the game's inconsistency, especially after Ubisoft promised an openly political story.

Brian Shea of Game Informer noted that "for every authentic character, there's another that is a caricature. These borderline cartoonish people are especially jarring in a story centered on a bloody revolution...Far Cry 6 still struggles with the precarious balancing act of telling a dark, serious story and delivering the carefree thrills players expect." Polygon's Diego Arguello went further, writing "Far Cry 6 continues the series' tiring tradition of presenting itself as political, on the surface, while fumbling any attempts at meaningful critique."

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Far Cry 6 Delivers the Same Nonstop Action - For Better or Worse

A screenshot of gameplay from Far Cry 6, featuring the player character holding a gun and walking through a ruined town

The Far Cry series is also known for its high-octane action, and this game keeps that trend alive. According to Shea of Game Informer, "Far Cry 6 is a nonstop thrill ride from start to finish, delivering a wide variety of activities to pursue within its vast open world." Higton of Eurogamer highlights that "there are checkpoints to clear, hostages to rescue from the side of the road, collectibles to hunt down and cross off your lengthy list -- mechanically, the framework here is almost identical...Many players love that familiar Far Cry grind -- while some may have been hoping for a shake up to that formula."

A big change in Far Cry 6's combat comes with its weapons, more specifically the addition of the Supremo. Aitken of PC Gamer's review says "the Supremo is like an ugly backbling that brings way too much power to a fight. You can combo it with a weapon to inflict terrible damage on your opponents as you see fit. You'll begin with a flamethrower and rocket launcher combo that's just as stupid and OP as it sounds."

The game also introduces Resolver weapons, where the player crafts tools from materials found in the world, with Eurogamer's Ian Higton noting "there's a ton of options out there to pick up, build and experiment with. Sometimes, perhaps, a touch too much -- the sheer amount of collectibles to hoover up gets a little overwhelming at times."

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Far Cry 6's Island of Yara Has Some Bugs

Critics have also found some frustrating technical issues in Far Cry 6, with the otherwise beautifully crafted island of Yara being riddled with bugs. Eurogamer's Ian Higton in particular had a troublesome experience exploring the game's world, detailing a laundry list of bugs and recounting that "screen tearing was prominent, frame rate dips took the tension out of cutscenes and the NPC AI, be it enemy or friendly, was at times absolutely atrocious. One time I fast travelled to a friendly base and as soon as I spawned I began to slowly choke to death, even though there was no poison gas present. Another time all the voices in the game stopped working necessitating a restart and the less said about the weird potato beards some of the characters kept growing, the better."

Overall, it appears Far Cry 6 is simply the newest take on a familiar formula that has worked for many years. By all accounts, gamers who enjoyed their previous experiences with Far Cry game will likely have a good time with the newest release thanks to how similar it feels. However, those hoping the game would steer the series in a new direction may be disappointed by that same familiarity.

Far Cry 6 is available now on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Amazon Luna, Google Stadia and PC.

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