Far Cry 5, the next entry in Ubisoft’s long running open world action adventure franchise, will be the first game in the series that is set in the United States. This is a departure from the norm for the series, which has previously been set in multiple foreign countries, real or fictitious, but never within the US itself. It has, naturally, also caused some controversy in some quarters at it depiction of the country’s Midwest.
However, there was an actual reason that motivated the decision to set the game in the US. Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, creative director Dan Hay discussed the reaction to the game’s reveal and setting, noting that when development of the game began, the themes it portrays weren’t such a relevant topic as they became by the time it was revealed.
“When we finished working on Far Cry 3, we were thinking about where we wanted to set the next one,” he said. “We were kicking around the idea of setting it in the United States, but we didn’t know what to do in terms of themes and locations.
“We made Far Cry 4, then Primal, and then there was a moment about three and a half years ago where we had the opportunity to talk about where we’d take Far Cry 5 and we brought back the idea of bringing it to the States. We thought it might be the right time.
“We weren’t sure at first, but within two days, we’d met enough interesting people, we’d been to enough interesting bars, we’d heard enough stories about people that wanted to live life the way they wanted… some people had actually moved to Montana to get away from the prying eyes of the government. There was this flavour, this feeling, and it felt very Far Cry.”
In the end, I think that the game makers have the liberty to set their game wherever they want to set, and the liberty to portray it however they will for their game; and I find it hypocritical that many who would complain about Far Cry 5‘s depiction of the US are the same people who wouldn’t bat an eye at exaggerated depictions of places like Africa or South Asia in their titles, either.
Far Cry 5 launches next year on PS4, Xbox One, and PC.