Cover artwork I generate from the game data. I do not use publisher artwork.
Game profile
Far Cry 3
On a tropical archipelago full of pirates and madness, Jason Brody fights for survival and to rescue his friends. The shooter establishes the series' open world formula with towers, outposts and a legendary villain.
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What kind of game this is
At its core this is Shooter / Action, set in the present day. Visually it is going for realism, and the overall tone stays dark throughout. The world is open, so wandering off and ignoring the main path is part of the deal. It rewards long uninterrupted stretches more than quick check-ins.
The difficulty is moderate and fair, demanding attention without punishing you for it. The story matters and gives the mechanics a frame, without taking over. It is a single player experience from start to finish. It runs on 3 platforms. It sits in the budget bracket.
What stands out
- Tropical island world
- Iconic villain
- Towers and outposts
This fits you if
- exploring for its own sake is the point for you
- you want to live through a story, not just play a system
- you are after a proper adrenaline rush
- you can sit down for a proper long stretch without interruptions
- you like getting lost and ignoring the main objective for hours
- you play alone and want a complete experience without other people
Look elsewhere if
- you only ever get short bursts of play time
- you want something light and easy going
- you want to play it side by side with someone
- you prefer a stylised look over realism
What it costs you in time
About 16 hours in total. At three evenings a week and two hours each, you will be busy for roughly 3 weeks, or 8 sessions.
How the rating ranks
Critics settled on 90 out of 100, which puts it above 85 percent of the 1206 games here and at rank 139 overall. That is a strong score, comfortably above what most releases manage.
For comparison, Shooter averages 81 points across the database, so this one sits 9 points above its own genre. The figure rests on 2214 collected ratings.
Released in 2012, which makes it 14 years old. A genuine classic, and worth checking how the version you buy holds up today.
The facts
- Release year
- 2012
- Genres
- Shooter, Action
- Playtime
- approx. 16 hrs.
- Difficulty
- Moderate, fair
- Story weight
- Present and relevant
- Play with
- Solo
- Setting
- Present day
- Visual style
- Realistic
- Price bracket
- Budget
- Platforms
- PC, PlayStation, Xbox
- Critic rating
- 90 / 100
Direct comparison
| Genres | Release year | Playtime | Critic rating | Price bracket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Far Cry 3 | 2012 | approx. 16 hrs. | 90 | Budget |
| Far Cry 5 | 2018 | approx. 17 hrs. | 84 | Budget |
| Resident Evil 4 (Remake 2023) | 2023 | approx. 16 hrs. | 95 | Full price |
| Resident Evil 5 | 2009 | approx. 11 hrs. | 78 | Budget |
If you liked this, try these
- Far Cry 5 Shared: Shooter, Action, Present day
- Resident Evil 4 (Remake 2023) Shared: Shooter, Action, Present day, rated higher
- Resident Evil 5 Shared: Shooter, Action, Present day, shorter
- Batman: Arkham City Shared: Action, Present day, rated higher
- Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne Shared: Shooter, Action, Present day, shorter
- Cyberpunk 2077 Shared: Shooter, Action, longer