The only thing more surprising than the announcement of Far Cry 4 so soon after Far Cry 3 may very well be the announcement of Far Cry 4’s playable presence at E3 so soon after, well, the announcement of Far Cry 4. Ubisoft’s demo at this year’s show shed little to no new information on the game’s plot, characters, or highly talked-about box art, but it did provide some fun gameplay. Whether it was particularly unique or not is another question entirely, but I’d easily label it enjoyable (as opposed to not) if asked to deal solely in absolutes.
Before my play session began I was asked to choose from three demo scenarios, one of which would allow me to raid an enemy camp on the back of a wild elephant. Though the other options were admittedly enticing (I believe one would’ve let me zipline into trouble rather than by way of elephant stampede), I couldn’t resist the promise of a bareback elephant ride, so I proceeded to select that option with no visible sign of hesitation. The Ubisoft rep issued a slow nod of approval.
After a somewhat lengthy loading screen, there I was — standing awkwardly in a puddle nearby some grazing, unsuspecting elephants. I could hear noise from the hilltop a few dozen yards away (presumably where the camp was located), so I quickly looked through my inventory, settled on a seemingly-functional double barrelled shotgun, and jumped atop the nearest pachidermian pal to get started. Pressing square on the PS4 controller to do so resulted in a brief bit of resistance from the animal, but it soon receded. I was in control.
Riding the thick-skinned mammoth of a creature was easier than I thought; the first person view made it feel more like a wobbly, slow racecar than anything, with understandably lose controls and handling. It took just a few moments to get used to, at which point I rammed through the nearby fortress doors with guns blazing. The demo was clearly designed to show off elephants, graphics, and general destruction, so it wasn’t all that difficult to dispatch the waves of nameless goons jumping from cover to put me and my elephant friend permanently to rest. Semi-auto aiming felt nice and similar to that of Far Cry 3, and I was able to quickly terminate most foes with a well-placed blast from my shotgun. Unfortunately, a few dozen rounds of bullets proved a bit too much for old Eeyore, and the massive beast soon collapsed in a heap of dust and creaking muscles. It was actually rather sad if I think about it, but I felt better once I snuck through an opening in the wall and nabbed an even larger elephant from the same nearby pond. These guys sure are loyal.
I came close to dying a few times, but in every case I was able to mash triangle and recover via injections before things got too hairy. There were other weapons in my inventory, including options of a more automatic bent, but to me bareback elephant shotgun-wielding just felt right. Your mileage will certainly vary, and we still have no idea where this mission will fall in the game’s story — if it even does at all.
When it comes to visuals and presentation, I’ll be completely honest in saying that I wasn’t all that impressed. The game’s 720p-ness was quite evident, and though it obviously looks better than Far Cry 3, the improvements at this stage seem minimal. The game has until November to polish itself up, so making a final call is definitely premature; I’m just hoping Far Cry isn’t slipping into an Assassin’s Creed-like update cycle so soon after the previous game’s stellar public and critical reception. One of my favorite things about Far Cry is that a new entry always feels like a considerable gaming event, and I’d hate for that to change.
Otherwise, you needn’t worry about general quality or playability going anywhere; my experience was undeniably fun, and the developer standing by giggled with glee each and every time I blew a guy to smithereens from atop the hulking gray mammal I’d so quickly befriended and tamed. To me the most interesting aspects of Far Cry 4 have yet to be revealed (further details on the game’s plot and its tantalizing box art), but at least I can rest easy knowing domination via oversized tusker is alive and well. I’m not sure why such terrifying thoughts make me feel better, but perhaps that’s better left unquestioned.
