Far Cry 3 is a 2012 first-person shooter game created by Ubisoft Montreal and released by Ubisoft. It is the third main game in the Far Cry series, following Far Cry 2. The game is set on the fictional Rook Islands, a tropical island chain that players can explore freely. The gameplay focuses on fighting enemies and exploring the environment. Players use different weapons to defeat human enemies and dangerous animals. The game includes features from role-playing games, such as skill trees and experience points. The story follows Jason Brody, the main character, who must rescue his friends after they are kidnapped by pirates and escape the island and its dangerous people.
Ubisoft Montreal worked with other Ubisoft teams worldwide, including Massive Entertainment, Ubisoft Shanghai, Ubisoft Bucharest, Ubisoft Reflections, and Red Storm Entertainment. In 2010, the development team changed after some key staff left. They reviewed feedback from Far Cry 2 and made improvements. The team spent a lot of time designing the island, which they called the "second most important character" in the game. The island’s design was inspired by movies and TV shows like Apocalypse Now and Lost, as well as video games such as The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Red Dead Redemption. Michael Mando was hired to act as Vaas Montenegro, an enemy the team compared to Darth Vader.
The game was announced in June 2011. Ubisoft promoted it with apps, online series, and other related content. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 in November 2012. Critics praised the game’s characters (especially Vaas), world design, visuals, and gameplay, though the multiplayer modes were criticized. Even though it sold fewer copies before release, the game sold 10 million copies and became a commercial success. It was nominated for awards like Game of the Year and Best Shooter by many gaming publications. It is also considered one of the greatest video games ever made. Ubisoft added downloadable content and released Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon, a separate expansion, in 2013. A later version, Far Cry 4, came out in November 2014. The game was re-released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in June 2018.
Gameplay
Far Cry 3 is a first-person shooter game set on the fictional Rook Islands, a tropical group of islands in the Pacific Ocean controlled by pirates and mercenaries. Players control Jason Brody and can complete missions and objectives in many ways. They can fight enemies using guns like assault rifles, sniper rifles, grenade launchers, rocket launchers, and explosives such as land mines and grenades. Alternatively, players can avoid enemies by using stealth. For example, players can use a camera to find enemy locations or throw rocks to distract enemies. Stealth methods, such as using silenced weapons and combat knives, can help avoid triggering alarms that call for more enemies. Skills are earned by completing missions and defeating enemies. These skills are unlocked in three skill trees: Spider, Heron, and Shark. Each skill tree improves different abilities. The Spider tree improves stealth and hunting, the Shark tree improves combat and health, and the Heron tree improves long-range attacks and movement. As players earn skills, a tribal tattoo on Jason’s forearm grows larger.
The Rook Islands are an open world where players can explore freely. Jason can move using vehicles like dune buggies, all-terrain vehicles, cargo trucks, jet skis, boats, and hang gliders. Later in the game, Jason can wear a wingsuit. Players will find friendly settlements where they can buy weapons, complete side missions like hunting or assassination tasks, and gather supplies. The Rook Islands have many animals, such as leopards and sharks. The game’s AI allows these animals to interact realistically. Players can hunt animals and use their materials to craft items like weapon holsters and ammo pouches. Green plants can be collected to make syringes, which heal Jason during fights or provide other benefits. Players can climb radio towers and remove scramblers. Removing scramblers reveals new areas, highlights points of interest, unlocks new weapons, and allows access to a supply-run mission where players must deliver medicine quickly. Players can take over enemy outposts controlled by pirates. Once an outpost is retaken, it becomes a rebel base, unlocking more side missions and allowing players to travel quickly to trade with vendors. A later patch allowed players to reset outposts. While exploring, unexpected events may happen, such as being attacked by wildlife or pirates. Players can complete Trials of the Rakyat missions, which are timed combat challenges, join minigames like poker, knife throwing, and shooting contests, and collect items like relics, letters, and memory cards.
The game includes a four-player cooperative multiplayer mode set six months before the main story. This mode has five classes: Warrior, Rusher, Deadeye, Saboteur, and Bodyguard. Players can customize each class’s weapons and equipment. In multiplayer, players can use a “battle cry” to boost their team’s health, accuracy, and speed. Competitive multiplayer modes include Team Deathmatch and Domination, where two teams compete to capture control points. There is also Transmission, a version of Domination where control points are moving radio transmitters. In Firestorm, a team must set fire to two enemy fuel dumps while protecting their own. Actions like killing enemies, reviving teammates, and using battle cries earn Team Support Points, which unlock perks like “psyche gas,” making enemies see players as shadows. The game includes a map editor that lets players create and share custom maps. Players can design landscapes, place buildings, trees, vehicles, and AI-controlled units.
Plot
Jason Brody (Gianpaolo Venuta) is on vacation with friends in Bangkok, Thailand. During a skydiving trip, they land on the Rook Islands, which are controlled by pirates. They are captured by pirate leader Vaas Montenegro (Michael Mando), who plans to sell them into slavery. Jason escapes with help from his older brother Grant (Lane Edwards), who is killed by Vaas. Jason is rescued by Dennis (Charles Malik Whitfield), a member of the Rakyat tribe. Dennis sees Jason's strength and gives him the Tatau, tattoos that mark him as a Rakyat warrior.
While helping the Rakyat, Jason finds his friend Daisy (Natalie Brown) at the home of Dr. Earnhardt (Martin Kevan), a botanist. Jason's skills impress the Rakyat, who allow him to enter their sacred temple for the first time since an outsider. After returning a sacred weapon called the Silver Dragon Knife, Jason is officially accepted into the tribe by priestess Citra (Faye Kingslee).
With help from Dr. Earnhardt and CIA agent Willis Huntley (Alain Goulem), Jason aids the Rakyat in fighting the pirates. He also rescues his girlfriend, Liza (Mylène Dinh-Robic), and his friends Keith (James A. Woods) and Oliver (Kristian Hodko). Jason learns that Vaas is Citra's brother, who betrayed the Rakyat after becoming addicted to drugs supplied by Hoyt Volker (Steve Cumyn), a South African slave trader. Jason grows stronger and becomes respected by the Rakyat, but he becomes more distant from his friends.
Citra harms Jason while he is under the influence of drugs and asks him to stay on the island. Jason chooses to remain and confronts Vaas, who sets a trap. Jason survives and fights many copies of Vaas in a dream-like state before defeating the real Vaas with the Dragon Knife. He then promises to kill Hoyt for Citra.
With help from Huntley, Jason meets Sam Becker (Stephen Bogaert), who helps him infiltrate Hoyt's army. Jason learns his younger brother Riley (Alex Harrouch) is alive and being held by Hoyt. Jason pretends to hurt Riley to keep a secret, but his plan is discovered. Jason and Becker plan to kill Hoyt during a poker game, but Hoyt kills Becker and reveals he knows their plan. Jason fights Hoyt and his men, killing Hoyt and escaping with Riley.
Jason and Riley return to Dr. Earnhardt's home, which is on fire. The dying doctor tells Jason that the Rakyat kidnapped his friends. Jason confronts Citra, who drugs him and captures Riley. Citra claims she loves Jason and believes he is a great warrior. Jason faces a choice: save his friends or side with Citra and kill them.
If Jason saves his friends, Citra begs him to stay, but Dennis, angry at Jason's betrayal, tries to kill him. Citra stops Dennis and is killed instead, saying she loves Jason. Jason and his friends leave the island, and he reflects that even though he has become violent, he still believes he is not a monster. If Jason kills Liza, he later has a ritual with Citra, who then kills him, claiming their child will lead the Rakyat to glory.
Six months before Jason arrives on the Rook Islands, ex-gangster Callum (Stuart Martin), former soldier Tisha (Alana Maria), retired police officer Leonard (Nigel Whitmey), and ex-hitman Mikhail (Nick Nevern) work on the cruise ship MS Astrid. Pirates capture the ship after the captain betrays the passengers for money. The story also follows these characters as they fight pirates and search for the captain in the Rook Islands.
Development
Ubisoft Montreal was the main studio responsible for creating the single-player part of the game. The game was developed by multiple Ubisoft studios around the world. Massive Entertainment made the multiplayer part of the game. Ubisoft Shanghai created the missions and designed the artificial intelligence for wildlife. Ubisoft Bucharest checked the game for errors. Ubisoft Reflections helped with the design of vehicles. Red Storm Entertainment made the PC version and the game's user interface. West Studio created early artwork for the game. The game's development began in 2008, and more than 90 people worked on it. Far Cry 3 was originally planned to continue the story from earlier games in the series, but this idea was changed when development was restarted in 2010 after some key staff left the project. On November 6, 2012, Ubisoft announced that the game was ready to be produced. Far Cry 3 is the first game in the series to use the Dunia 2 game engine, which is an improved version of the engine used in Far Cry 2. The Dunia 2 engine was created to make games run better on consoles and to add advanced visual effects, such as realistic lighting.
The team avoided making separate levels. Instead of placing objects on a grid, they used an algorithm from the Dunia Engine to automatically generate the layout of large areas. After this, they adjusted the placement of objects and tested the results. This method helped make the game world feel unpredictable and realistic. Enemy encounters and wildlife would change each time players returned to the same area. Spaces in the game were designed to feel logical and connected to the story. For example, enemy bases were based on real-world industries that pirates would need to operate in the Rook Islands. The team wanted players to believe that the spaces in the game had real purposes, not just for gameplay. This helped make the game world feel more believable. The game was inspired by The Elder Scrolls series and Red Dead Redemption, which reward players for progressing. However, the team avoided repeating gameplay elements and created over 250 unique enemy encounters. A system was added to ensure encounters were only reused after long periods of play. This helped keep the game experience diverse.
The team reviewed gameplay features from Far Cry 2 and decided which to keep or improve. Features like weapon wear and malaria were removed because they made the game less enjoyable. According to producer Dan Hay, Far Cry 2's world felt empty and did not react to players' actions. The team wanted Far Cry 3's world to feel more alive and to create a believable civilization for players to explore. In Far Cry 3, players' actions affect the game world. For example, as Jason frees hostile camps, the influence of the villain, Vaas, decreases. The world of Rook Islands was designed with many activities and opportunities to encourage exploration. Side quests were added to teach players about the islands' history and people. The game world was designed to give players freedom, allowing them to choose how to complete missions, whether through stealth or direct combat. Hay believed the game respected players' choices and that Rook Island was "the second most important character" in the game. Lead designer Jamie Keen described the world as both "alluring and repulsive," saying players would feel drawn to the place and its people. The team took inspiration from movies like Apocalypse Now and Lost. The decision to return to an island setting, like the first Far Cry game, was made early in development. The team believed this setting matched the story they wanted to tell and helped create a sense of isolation and discovery.
Level designer Mark Thompson said that in Far Cry games, morality is not clearly defined, and players often face situations where it is unclear what is right or wrong. The team avoided adding a morality system that judged players' choices. For example, Jason kills pirates to save his friends and survive on the island, showing a "moral gray space." The team took inspiration from movies like Apocalypse Now, The Deer Hunter, and Deliverance when writing the story. They wanted the story to match the game's focus on killing non-playable characters, avoiding contradictions between gameplay and narrative. As Jason kills more people, he becomes more comfortable with violence. Hay said players would notice Jason's transformation as he becomes more like the pirates he fights. Jason's hallucinations were meant to show his troubled mind. Thompson called these scenes "introspective" moments where Jason's conscience questions the player's actions. Jeffrey Yohalem, the story writer, was inspired by the dreamlike levels in Prince of Persia when creating these sequences. As players progress, Jason's friends begin to view him differently, and he experiences post-traumatic stress disorder. Despite a final explanation, the game left some story elements open to interpretation. Hay said the story was about the cost of becoming a hero and the heavy toll it takes.
Yohalem designed a story that explores players' thoughts and actions. The game was described as "self-aware," reacting to how players play. Yohalem wanted to highlight the difference between players, who enjoy the game, and Jason, who is on a difficult journey killing people. The freedom to explore and enjoy the game's activities, while ignoring the urgency to save Jason's friends, was meant to reflect players' own mindset. Yohalem asked whether players are willing to "kill characters in the game to finish their entertainment," creating discomfort. He was inspired by movies like Pulp Fiction, A History of Violence, Requiem for a Dream, and Exit Through the Gift Shop. While Far Cry 2 had a dark atmosphere, Far Cry 3 was designed to feel more positive, with Yohalem saying it was "so sweet, it's like getting an overdose on drugs." He asked why players would choose to spend time in a beautiful but virtual world instead of being with real people. The story faced criticism for its portrayal of racism and colonialism, but Yohalem defended it by saying the game was "the opposite of Avatar" because the local people did not need Jason's help.
Promotion and release
Far Cry 3 was announced in June 2011 during Ubisoft's press conference at E3 2011. A closed beta for the game's multiplayer portion was launched for players who purchased Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier at GameStop before May 22, 2012. A companion app named Far Cry The Outpost was released for iOS and Android to allow players to manage their multiplayer loadout and monitor their progress. A UK-exclusive companion app named "Insanity Mirror" imagines what players would look like if they are trapped on an island. A Facebook app named "Holiday From Hell," which allows players to create and customize their own postcard, was released in September 2012. The first 2,000 participants had their own postcard printed and delivered by Royal Mail for free. To promote the game at PAX East, players who shaved their head or received a permanent tribal tattoo would receive a free copy of the game. At PAX Prime, attendees could shave their head into a mohawk to look like Vaas. Ubisoft asked Michael Lambert, a Minecraft enthusiast, and artists Axel Janssen and Yohann Delcourt to create a custom map and texture pack mimicking Far Cry 3's setting and characters within the popular indie game Minecraft. The Minecraft texture pack was released, along with a Far Cry 3-Minecraft custom adventure map, on October 26, 2012. A four-part webseries named Far Cry: The Experience, which stars Mando as Vaas and Christopher Mintz-Plasse as himself, was released.
The game was initially set to be released on September 4, 2012, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. This was delayed to November 29 in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) regions, November 30 in the UK, and December 4 in the US, to give additional time to complete the game. Far Cry 3 would not appear on Nintendo's Wii U due to the system not being an onset of development, despite Ubisoft themselves being major supporters of the system at launch a few weeks before Far Cry 3's launch. On launch date, the Windows version of the game suffered from server issues which temporarily caused the game to be unplayable. Players who pre-ordered the game gained access to "The Lost Expeditions" pack, which includes two single-player missions named The Forgotten Experiment and Ignition in the Deep and a flare gun for multiplayer. Players who preordered the game at GameStop gained access to the "Monkey Business Pack," which adds four missions to the game. European players could also purchase the Insane Edition, which includes all pre-order bonuses and all other forms of launch downloadable content (DLC), along with a Vaas bobblehead and a survival skill manual for usage in real situations of danger. Uplay users can unlock bonus content ranging from a new mission to customizable items. The "Monkey Business Pack" and "The Lost Expeditions" were later bundled with another two DLC packs, namely "The Warrior" and "The Predator Pack" in the Deluxe Bundle, which was released on January 17, 2013. Not included in the bundle were "High Tides," a PlayStation 3-exclusive DLC that concludes the cooperative multiplayer modes with two missions.
Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon, the game's standalone expansion, was released in May 2013. Blood Dragon was a parody of 1980s action films, cartoons, and video games and takes place on a retro-futuristic open world island with players assuming the action role of the military cyborg Sergeant Rex "Power" Colt. Far Cry 3 and Blood Dragon were later bundled with Far Cry 2 and Far Cry Classic in a compilation game named Far Cry: The Wild Expedition for PS3, Xbox 360, and PC. Starting from May 29, 2018, players who purchased Far Cry 5's season pass or the Gold Edition on PC can gain access to the Classic Edition, the game's re-release for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. For console users, it features higher resolution graphics than the original Far Cry 3 releases, including support for QHD resolution on the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X, but with an FPS cap of 30FPS that (unlike the original Far Cry 3) cannot be boosted to 60FPS. The Classic Edition was made available for standalone purchase on June 26, 2018.
In January 2026, Ubisoft released a patch for Far Cry 3 Classic Edition which boosted the framerate to 60fps on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions of the game.
Reception
James Stephanie Sterling from Destructoid said the game focused more on storytelling than earlier versions and praised the characters. Sterling called the story "well-written" and "stylishly presented." Matt Bertz from Game Informer agreed, saying the story was "interesting." Critics praised the side characters for their acting and development. Mando's performance as Vaas was highlighted by Ryan Taljonick from GamesRadar, who said his role made some missions stand out. Mitch Dyer from IGN noted that Jason, the main character, was relatable because of his flaws. Kevin VanOrd from GameSpot questioned some story choices, like the focus on drug use. Other parts, such as Jason becoming a strong fighter quickly and Vaas dying early, were criticized. Bob Mackey of 1Up.com said the game did not include cultural commentary as promised. Bramwell and Tom Francis from PC Gamer mentioned the main story was too linear, with Francis calling it a "guided tour" of poor storytelling. Arthur Gies from Polygon said the story was overused. The game's handling of topics like sexism, racism, and the "white savior" idea was also criticized.
The island setting was widely praised. Tom Bramwell from Eurogamer said the island was the reason he liked the game, thanks to its variety of activities and rich history. He liked the smart behavior of wild animals, which made the game unpredictable. Bertz agreed, saying the environment was "diverse" and "beautiful" and suited different ways to play. VanOrd said Ubisoft worked hard to design the island, calling it "enthralling" and "focused." He also liked how the island's ecosystems worked together to feel real. Dyer enjoyed finding collectibles that added to the island's history. Dyer said the game had a strong sense of place and "captivating culture and scenery." Arthur Gies from Polygon was impressed by the world design, which allowed unexpected events and systems to work together. Taljonick said the flexible gameplay helped create unique stories for each player.
Most critics liked the gameplay. Sterling praised the freedom players had to complete goals, though they said some side tasks became repetitive. They liked the game's easier controls but said traveling was a problem. Bramwell appreciated the freedom, calling stealth a strength and combat adaptable. VanOrd said stealth was fun and praised the chance to be creative. Dyer said the action was exciting and could be combined in different ways. Bertz and Taljonick liked improvements like fast travel and better weapons, though Bertz was upset that enemies did not act smarter. VanOrd liked the shooting and driving, and the way the game showed progress through role-playing elements. However, he and Francis said enemies that kept appearing were frustrating. Gies said the game had a lot of content but warned it might feel overwhelming.
The multiplayer part of the game was not well received. Sterling said the competitive mode had no new ideas and was similar to Call of Duty. They liked the cooperative mode, which was like Left 4 Dead, but said the player characters lacked depth. Francis called cooperative mode "fun" but said there was no way to find servers. Bramwell said multiplayer was the least interesting part but liked the extra content. Bertz said cooperative mode was "fun" but said poor movement and hit detection made competitive play less enjoyable. VanOrd said cooperative mode did not use the open world well but liked the unique features in the progression system. Dyer said multiplayer was unoriginal and had confusing maps. He said the cooperative mode made the game feel like a "mindless shooter" with unclear goals.
The game sold fewer copies than Ubisoft hoped. In the US, it was the sixth-best-selling game in 2012, and the second-biggest launch in December. In January 2013, it was the second-best-selling game, behind Black Ops II. In the UK, it was the ninth-biggest launch in 2012. At release, it was the second-best-selling retail game, behind Black Ops II. Far Cry 3 later became the best-selling game of the week during Christmas. Over 4.5 million copies were sent to stores in December 2012. In October 2014, Ubisoft said about 10 million copies had been sold.
Legacy
The success of the game helped make the franchise more famous, now seen as a very popular series with a clear identity. Dom Peppiatt from GamesRadar wrote that Far Cry 3 and its expansion Blood Dragon showed Ubisoft's leadership in open-world first-person shooter games and its role as both a game creator and publisher. Features from Far Cry 3, such as towers and hunting animals, were later used in other Ubisoft games not part of the Far Cry series. Alex Avard from GamesRadar+ described the Classic Edition as an important game that set the standard for open-world game design for future Ubisoft games and other major games. In a more negative review, Kevin Fox Jr. from Paste Magazine wrote that the game was one of the most influential titles of the 2010s because its mix of game styles and simple storytelling inspired modern games. He called Far Cry 3 "a game that tries to do everything but lacks depth."
Ubisoft first planned to make a sequel that continued the same story, featuring Jason as the main character, other characters from the first game, and bringing back Vaas. This plan was quickly changed to an indirect sequel, Far Cry 4, set in the Himalayas region. Far Cry 4 was released on November 18, 2014, for Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. It includes new characters and takes place in the South Asian country of Kyrat.