Our review copy, provided by Ubisoft PR, was on the PS4 and ergo had very little in the way of bugs and technical issues. We’re hoping to get a PC copy too when the time comes, and we’ll see how it performs, but by and large Primal seems like a really polished experience. There was one time when a character graphically flipped out and spazzed off into the ether when he was killed by my club, but that’s the only thing that stands out. The parkour-like running and climbing are still key, as are the many gadgets and weapons you’ll use to fight the Udam, other tribes, and animals of Oros.
Unlike FC4, there’s no co-op multiplayer in Primal. The reasoning, reported to VG247, is because Primal’s entirely new world and gameplay mechanics mean the team had to focus on single-player. But I’m saying it here and now… if anyone ever makes a game like this that can support 100+ player servers, I’ll be sold in an instant. Take notes, Ubisoft, you’ve got the ingredients for a killer MMO experience here and I’d love to play it if you made the thing.
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Fire, like Prometheus knew, is key to just about everything in Far Cry Primal.
Finally, we come to the part of Far Cry Primal that makes it stand out the most: it’s animal taming. Introduced in FC4, Primal lets you become the master of all Oros’ beasts. Learn the right skills from your allies, and have the right bait, and you can pretty much tame anything you see in the world. At first, you get an owl, who has one of the coolest abilities in the game. Like Bran Stark in Game of Thrones, you’ll see through the owl’s eyes and be able to scout from high above the lush landscape. Eventually, you’ll also be able to divebomb down on an enemy and kill them in one shot, which sends his friends panicking – giving you a nice chance to sneak up and take them out with a well-placed arrow or spear… or swing of a giant two-handed club.
When you throw in the fact that you can tame and command bears, sabretooth tigers, mammoths… and ride them? Well, you get the idea. Far Cry Primal is about letting you play warrior god in the primeval times. There’s a whole lot of fun to be had in Primal, and I’d definitely recommend it for fans of the series, or for any wannabe caveman.
OVERALL SCORE - 8.2
GAMEPLAY – 9 | The core loop of exploring, collecting crafting supplies, and claiming territory is as addictive as it’s ever been. The added bonus of taming and hunting down animals is just icing on the cake. It can feel grindy if you want to clear the whole map, but it’s never dull.
AUDIO AND VISUALS – 9 | Oros is beautiful, the people are gorgeously brutal, and not a one of them is given the Hollywood “white-wash” makeover that tends to happen with AAA games. No one has perfect straight teeth, no one is clean and prim, everyone is just trying to survive. The lush animal-filled soundscape and primal drum-driven music make for a real audio treat too.
LONGEVITY – 8 | With at least 20-60 hours of content, depending on how much you rush through the main missions, there’s loads to do in Oros. But there’s not likely a need to play it through a second time.
VALUE – 8 | For 60 bucks, there’s a whole lot of game to sink your teeth into here. The question, as always, is what we’re missing in the form of DLC which will undoubtedly come after. Still, for the standard price, if you’re into open world games, Far Cry Primal is worth every penny.
POLISH – 7 | The game feels really good, the steps and rhythms of the Far Cry series are honed to perfection at this point, but I can’t help feeling there could have been more done with the game if they weren’t trying to get one out every year. Hopefully the Far Cry series takes a queue from Assassin’s Creed and starts coming every two years… and I’d definitely like to see it visit more time periods, just so long as it can maintain its identity from Assassin’s Creed.
