The best Far Cry game – no, not Far Cry 3, and definitely not Far Cry 6 – is more brutal, tough, violent, and realistic than ever thanks a transformative new mod that remakes and remasters the Ubisoft open-world FPS into something closer to The Day Before or the upcoming Road to Vostok.
Far Cry 2 from 2008 is still the series’ peak, owing to its stunning visuals, attention to detail, and grounded, impactful story. The guns sound frightening, the violence is raw, and there’s a bold and mature sense of bleakness shot through the entire narrative, which begins on a cruel down note as you contract malaria, and never really goes up from there. Various technical and gameplay issues, however, have undermined Far Cry 2’s reputation over the years, owing to some rough animations and questionable enemy AI. Some of these issues are small, some are large. This new mod project attempts to tackle them all.
Far Cry 2: Realism and Redux is an ambitious combination of dozens of Far Cry 2 mods into one, simple package. It improves the graphics, adds new textures, provides greater details like bullet holes remaining in your cars, and also addresses that frustrating Far Cry 2 feature whereby enemies would respawn at roadblocks five minutes after you have killed them. But that’s just scratching the surface.
There are new difficulty modes, weapon rebalances, extra guns and vehicles, new characters to play as, and much-improved AI for both enemies and your NPC companions. Even the game’s opening taxi ride, which is a neat introduction, but goes on far too long, has been shortened, making this feel almost like a special edition or director’s cut of Far Cry 2.
Available now at ModDB, Far Cry 2: Realism and Redux takes one of the best and most significant open-world games of the past 15 years and makes it better. You might also be interested to know that Clint Hocking, Far Cry 2’s creative lead and director, is once again working with Ubisoft on the mysterious, upcoming Assassin’s Creed: Hexe. Watch this space for more.
Make sure to check out our guide to the best old games, as well as our comprehensive list of the best sandbox games out right now. Inspired by the unforgiving brutality of Far Cry 2’s gameplay? You might also want to try some of the best survival games on PC.