Far Cry 3 *SPOILERS*
Far Cry 3 is an excellent game. I don't make many impulse purchases, but I'm glad I made this one.
However, after Assassin's Creed and now Far Cry 3, I just plain don't trust Ubisoft to get a story right to the point where I'm not left wondering "What if?". Like, what if all aspects of the story actually made sense and not so much left to the player's imagination? What if you employed a quality writer that didn't have excuse after excuse for why we just didn't get his SATIRE about "going native" and gaming in general? No wonder the best character in your game, a character hailed as one of the best in gaming in a while, was pretty much created by his actor.
Still, I found both the basic story and even the most bare-boned characters really compelling, which is why I marathoned the game over the course of two days. I think the story was helped by the basic premise of the plot and features a main character who is pretty easy for the gaming audience to assimilate into. But can we not do boss fights while hallucinating so I have no clue what the fuck just happened? Like, I got stabbed in the chest and that's never addressed!! I'm having a knife fight with one dude and when I "wake up" I've actually slaughtered a roomful of people for some reason! It makes no sense given the context in the battle scene. I think I'm OK with how Vaas's final battle was handled, though, since I'd think they want to keep it ambiguous...if this is Michael Mando's first and final portrayal of Vaas, it would be such a waste (I don't care what anyone in the game says since we never actually see the dead body, but damn does that description of the achievement sting...).
It has some of the best acting in a game and really great mo-cap, especially facial expressions, and nicely rendered FINGERS, for once. Oh, and I have to give a mention to how the first-person perspective was handled, which was very well done and totally helped immerse me into the action. The villains were all excellently portrayed (though after Buck and Vaas, Hoyt is a huge let-down) and, happily, so are Sam, Willis, and your dude bro and dudette friends, who really weren't nearly as insufferable as I thought they would be. Citra is probably the worst, most boring character; lots of wasted potential there to do something interesting. Especially would have loved an encounter between her and Vaas.
I'm left wanting so much more, in a good way. I want to know more about the island, too. It's just so much about the island and characters is simply hinted at and you're left to fill in the details. This is one game where I'd love detailed compendiums, Ubisoft! Just bring back Vaas and all will be forgiven.
However, after Assassin's Creed and now Far Cry 3, I just plain don't trust Ubisoft to get a story right to the point where I'm not left wondering "What if?". Like, what if all aspects of the story actually made sense and not so much left to the player's imagination? What if you employed a quality writer that didn't have excuse after excuse for why we just didn't get his SATIRE about "going native" and gaming in general? No wonder the best character in your game, a character hailed as one of the best in gaming in a while, was pretty much created by his actor.
Still, I found both the basic story and even the most bare-boned characters really compelling, which is why I marathoned the game over the course of two days. I think the story was helped by the basic premise of the plot and features a main character who is pretty easy for the gaming audience to assimilate into. But can we not do boss fights while hallucinating so I have no clue what the fuck just happened? Like, I got stabbed in the chest and that's never addressed!! I'm having a knife fight with one dude and when I "wake up" I've actually slaughtered a roomful of people for some reason! It makes no sense given the context in the battle scene. I think I'm OK with how Vaas's final battle was handled, though, since I'd think they want to keep it ambiguous...if this is Michael Mando's first and final portrayal of Vaas, it would be such a waste (I don't care what anyone in the game says since we never actually see the dead body, but damn does that description of the achievement sting...).
It has some of the best acting in a game and really great mo-cap, especially facial expressions, and nicely rendered FINGERS, for once. Oh, and I have to give a mention to how the first-person perspective was handled, which was very well done and totally helped immerse me into the action. The villains were all excellently portrayed (though after Buck and Vaas, Hoyt is a huge let-down) and, happily, so are Sam, Willis, and your dude bro and dudette friends, who really weren't nearly as insufferable as I thought they would be. Citra is probably the worst, most boring character; lots of wasted potential there to do something interesting. Especially would have loved an encounter between her and Vaas.
I'm left wanting so much more, in a good way. I want to know more about the island, too. It's just so much about the island and characters is simply hinted at and you're left to fill in the details. This is one game where I'd love detailed compendiums, Ubisoft! Just bring back Vaas and all will be forgiven.