Far Cry New Dawn Review- Let’s Enjoy the End of the World

Platforms: Xbox One, PC, PlayStation 4

Release Date: February 15th, 2019

Reviewed On: Xbox One S

Developer: Ubisoft Montreal

Publisher: Ubisoft

Price: $39.99 USD

Imagine that you left your home for 17 years and came back with everything gone or changed to the point it’s almost unrecognizable. That’s what Far Cry New Dawn is like to me. With all the time that I spent in Far Cry 5, I was amazed at how the characters hadn’t changed in Hope County including Hurk.

Story

We start off 17 years after the events of Far Cry 5. The nukes have gone off and the world is rebuilding. I find myself among friends on a train bound for Hope County. This train is set to help the folk behind the Prosperity. A small foothold in an area overrun with The Highwaymen. The train is attacked and we finally meet The Twins. These sisters, Mickey and Lou, are the brains and brawn behind this areas’ Highwaymen. They will constantly try to kill you, so thankfully you can make an awesome buzzsaw weapon to mow them down.

That’s all the story that  I’m going to go over. If I start getting any deeper into what happens, the spoilers will ruin the game. This story does a great job of closing up the cliff hanger from the last game. I was satisfied with the results of what happened between Joseph Seed and the Rookie from Far Cry 5. I felt that it was a fitting end between these two characters  given the amount of time they were stuck together. Far Cry New Dawn’s story is an interesting take on the idea of the post apocalyptic world. It has all the basic things we see in movies and games that make a for a good time after the fallout.

Graphics

This new game looks at times better than the last game. For the most part it’s just a copy of something players spent time with last year. The apocalypse does have some nice color to it in Hope County. From the flowers blooming to the new colored creatures, the game does look good. The monstrous creatures that look like the terrain is slowly taking them over is a great addition to the game. Some of the better details on display are the crafted weapons. Players will notice different clamps, screw drivers and all sorts of things used to make a weapon. These little details really add up and add to the immersion, especially with how long you spend looking at your guns.

Characters in this game look like many of the others from any other Far Cry game. You will encounter older version of Joseph Seed, Hurk, and a few others from the last game. Visually I didn’t have any glitches. The games outlying borders are the worst looking parts of the game. The fact is you wont be spending much time looking at those places with laundry list of things to do in this game. The end of the world in Hope County is colorful and not as depressing as you would think it would be. 

Audio

The game follows its predecessor in the audio department. Far Cry New Dawn does a great job just like the past game. The thing is about the music is that I never really had the time to listen to it. In the last game it took over 40 hrs to beat. This game was under 15 hrs and I never really sat in a car long enough to appreciate the soundtrack. It was great to hear the classic rock soundtrack that was the Survivor radio. The Highwaymen’s selection of music was a little more full of anger and beats. Having that louder music made it easier to know which people walking around where enemies or friends.

The voice acting in this game is still top notch. Ubisoft has done a great job with bringing back Greg Bryk as the voice of Joseph Seed. The Twins are voiced by Cara Ricketts (Mickey) and Leslie L. Miller (Lou). Both actresses do a great job bringing those characters to life. They really made it easy to hunt those characters down. The absolute best part about the audio in this game was the sounds of nature. Just stopping for a minute and listening to my surroundings was fantastic, especially given that my front yard is covered in snow and I can’t enjoy the nature around me.

Gameplay

Far Cry New Dawn plays just like the past games. Nothing is wrong with a form that works. What Ubisoft did though was add something to this game that made the gameplay better than the last few. The different tiers of weapons made for an experience that made me feel more accomplished after I finished the story. The basic tiers of weapons and vehicles are abundant around the game, it’s very easy to find any gun you desire. The real task was getting my weapons up the Elite tier. To do all of that I had to stop worrying about the story and just grind. Making it so that each outpost can be taken over again and again for resources made for a fun experience. Each time new enemies appeared, causing me to rethink my previous strategy. The fact that I had to go out and grind and collect resources other than healing items. The animals in this game are insane. They will attack you and everyone else. Just be careful, as even the fish will try to kill you.

Fishing in this game is actually easier than it was in Far Cry 5. You unlock a perk that gives you a pole. In fact this game has some great perks that really help you. As you progress is the story more of those will be unlocked for you. I actually didn’t use these power perks like I thought I would. By the time I had the better weapons I didn’t really need these powers. They do help progress the story, so they have to be in the game. The sad part was seeing the Far Cry credits being used to purchase those perks to instantly have an advantage in the game. This cheapens the gameplay in my opinion and makes it pointless to enjoy the story.  The gameplay really works in this version of Far Cry, everything you gather or skin is used for items to help build a better life for our character and those living in Prosperity.

Players will notice they get a chance to explore a little in this game and witness how the apocalypse has affected other parts of the country. These Expeditions make for a nice break in the game. They also rewarded me with a sense that not only am I getting materials needed to craft weapons, I’m seeing a different view of a scenario that has been used over and over. The end of the world has been played out in so many movies and games that it can get overused. Allowing players to glimpse just a small amount of what happened in other areas keeps the game fresh. Don’t forget, there are some cool easter eggs out in those Expeditions. The few problems I had only included the coin system and a couple of glitches of characters floating in circles. Other than that I had an enjoyable experience back in Hope County.

Verdict

In the time that I spent In Hope County, I felt happy. Happy that the story is finished with nothing really left to ask about. The 14 hours I put into this game doesn’t feel wasted. Everything I did was to get the best weapons so that I could beat The Twins. The gameplay wasn’t terrible and Ubisoft added some new features that I hope stay in future Far Cry games. Also, nothing really beats the price of the game. With that being said I really think you should at least know the story of the past game before jumping into this one. It may be a little weird at first if you don’t have some background to use.

Game was purchased by the reviewer.