STACK February 2016 Issue 136

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I Didn’t
Know That!
• The first Far
Cry title was
developed by
Crytek Studios
in Germany, way
back in 2004.
• The renowned
CryEngine game
engine was first
used for Far Cry.
• Ubisoft Montreal
took over
development of
the franchise after
Far Cry: Instincts
in 2005.
• The infamous
Uwe Boll directed
an awful screen
adaptation of the
franchise that
went direct to
video.
• Ubisoft sent a team
of devs to ‘rough
it’ in Kenya for two
weeks in order
to research the
African setting for
Far Cry 2.
• Far Cry 3 sold just
over 10 million
copies globally.
• Troy Baker, the
voice of Pagan Min
in Far Cry 4, chose
to ignore the script
when auditioning,
instead opting
to improvise by
threatening to
cut the face off a
Ubisoft assistant
who just happened
to walk into the
room.
Facts About The Mesolithic Age
The Mesolithic era is widely accepted as the period between 10,000 BC
and 4,500 BC. Following the end of the last glacial period, humans no
longer needed to shelter in caves and more traditional settlements appeared
along riverbanks. The bow and arrow first appeared during this era. Flint
was used for arrow and spearheads. Pottery became a way to store
food and water. Popular art of the era moved from cave walls to rock
faces with more of a focus on humans than animals.
the series,” Davies says. “You’ll need
to enter the mindset of a hunter-
gatherer, looking for wood, stone, and
binding materials to create your own
clubs, spears, arrows, and other tools.
Over time you’ll be able to upgrade
your weapons into more powerful
versions and craft new alternatives,
such as a stronger two-handed club.”
Additionally, the aforementioned
fire plays a big part in the game, both
as a survival aid and a weapon, and
Davies outlines how it's incorporated
into the game.
“What may surprise you is the
variety of uses [fire] has. You’ll find
that igniting your weapons opens up
new strategies – a club can become
a torch to navigate dark caves, while
a burning arrow can set your enemies
on fire.
“There are large bonfires you will
need to light to stake your claim on
the land, and you’ll also need to learn
from the Izila tribe (an opposing tribe
in the game), who have weaponised
fire and will use it against you."
In Far Cry Primal, players assume
the role of Takkar, a clansman in the
fictional Oros. Oros is supposed to
represent the eastern regions of
Europe during the Stone Age period.
According to Davies, the Danube
River that flows through ten modern
countries in Europe was followed
by primitive humans migrating from
Africa. This presented the studio with
a huge gameplay area that includes
forests and ice-filled environments.
Takkar must rebuild his tribe – the
predominant focus of the game –
to prepare to counter the deadly
aggression of two opposing enemy
clans.
Ubisoft has an abundance of
experience researching historical
details for its games, namely the
Assassin’s Creed franchise, and again
turned to experts for knowledge and
guidance during this project.
“Our research was very extensive,
and we spoke with several specialists
for topics such as culture, beliefs, and
anthropology,” Davies tells STACK.
“We spoke with Andrew and
Brenna Byrd, who are linguists at the
University of Kentucky. They were our
language specialists, and they helped
us to adapt the language at the time
– Proto Indo European, or “PIE” – into
something that could be understood
by a modern audience.”
Far Cry Primal is a significant
departure from a formula that has
proven highly successful for the
French developer. It’s a gamble, but
one you have to applaud Ubisoft
for taking. Davies is confident that
fans of the franchise will not be
disappointed.
“In Primal, we offer a lot more
freedom in how players discover
missions and the order in which they
can play them. Far Cry
has always been very
generous with the
overall amount of
content we provide,
and Far Cry Primal is
no different.”
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