Update by Adam Rosenberg: The plot thickens. Sony delivered a lot more detail on Far Cry 4 than Ubisoft’s look at the game intro did earlier today. The key takeaway: there’s co-op play in the game, and any friend that joins you won’t need to own the game to join in. The particulars of how this works aren’t clear, but it’s an exclusive feature on PlayStation 4.
We’ll have a deeper look at the gameplay this week, but the video also served up a look at the two-player action, with a fortress invasion that involved a mini helicopter, weaponized elephants, and many massive explosions.
ORIGINAL POST: Ubisoft set the tone for its E3 Media Briefing by opening up with the first five minutes of Far Cry 4, and the preview of the upcoming, highly anticipated game certainly didn’t pull any punches.
In the brutal cinematic sequence, the player-controlled protagonist finds himself riding in a bus through the Himalayas accompanied by an NPC character that offers to help him out with the soldiers who have stopped the bus and are now demanding to see passenger s’ passports. Things quickly take a turn for worse, though, and the player soon finds himself surrounded by armed men and the bullet-riddled bodies of his fellow passengers.
The situation escalates when the well-dressed man the soldiers are taking orders from (as seen in the promotional images for the game) arrives via helicopter and takes his frustration at the solders’ management of the situation out on one of the men — a violent encounter that leaves his face and hands covered in blood. After apologizing and taking a selfie with your character (yes, you read that correctly — the blonde-haired villain is clearly a little … off), the unnamed, psychotic villain hints at a connection with your character, saying he’d “recognize those eyes anywhere.” He then encourages you to join him for a party in your honor.
The cutscene ends with a few minutes of The Clash’s “Should I Stay Or Should I Go.”
And that is just the first few minutes of the game.
Speaking to the premise of the game, Far Cry 4 creative director Dan Hay laughed, “We give you a fake passport, a little cash, and a gun. After that, you’re f***ed.”
Far Cry 4 is scheduled to hit shelves November 18.