Ubisoft is working on not one, but two new Far Cry games. The first is the somewhat predictable Far Cry 7, but the second is intriguing, a standalone multiplayer spin on the traditionally solo (and recently co-op) shooter. Kotaku claims Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot mentioned both these prospective games in an internal company meeting.
With Ubisoft positively churning out the Far Cry games over the years and Far Cry 6 releasing back at the end of 2021, you may have been expecting a new game to be right around the corner. However, the progress towards these new games could be further away than you may think. Kotaku reports in an article that Ubisoft is apparently switching from the Dunia engine to Snowdrop for the new games. Snowdrop is the tech powering The Division games and Ubisoft’s upcoming Star Wars game.
While Insider Gaming also reported that these two titles were initially born out of a single idea, this isn’t something we can confirm. While it’s not surprising that we’ll see a Far Cry 7 soon, considering its long-running success, having a dedicated multiplayer game would be a first for the series.
Warzone is that you?
Similar to what Activision pulled off with Warzone as a stand-alone multiplayer battle royale, it looks like Ubisoft may be going down the path of live service multiplayer games that are separate entities to its campaign story.
In my brief stint playing Far Cry 6, I could spot the clues of a battle royale. The vehicles left around the map, the island biomes, and the multitude of guns littering the landscape seemed aptly placed for hundreds of players to drop into and fight to the death. While there is no saying that this multiplayer Far Cry could be a battle royale, from what I’ve played in the past, I wouldn’t be surprised.
In terms of making Ubisoft’s spin on battle royale stand out from the competition, if the developer leans into Far Cry’s long history of vicious local wildlife and AI-populated camps, I can see that making for an exciting game. Maybe have the game’s final circle not be a radioactive cloud but a crowd of angry cassowaries looking to peck you to death.
One location to rule them all
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little tired of Far Cry games. The last time I was excited to sit down and wrestle with cults was with Far Cry 4. That being said, I could play this game again in the right location.
In 2015 a Ubisoft poll sent out to Far Cry fans was forwarded to Eurogamer, who collated all the possible fan-favorite locations. While Ubisoft mentioned vampires and dinosaurs in this poll, the best suggestion I saw involved the next game in the series traveling to the remote corners of Alaska. This is a location I could get out of bed, turn my PC on, and fight angry cultists for.
While information is still thin for the next Far Cry games, a stand-alone multiplayer could be the exciting change the series needs to give it a facelift and revitalize fans like myself. If you couple that with a sick location like Alaska, then I may have no choice but to hop back into the psychedelic world of Far Cry.
