Yesterday`s full reveal of Far Cry 5 comes at an interesting time, to say the least. Its choice of a US setting--as opposed to the `exotic` locations in previous Far Cry games--seems acutely prescient, primed and ready to make a statement about the country. While Ubisoft`s decision to tackle a potentially controversial and difficult setting is admirable, there`s a thin line between an interesting examination of the current political climate of the US and a game that is incredibly tone-deaf in its approach. For Far Cry 5 to really nail its setting and themes, it shouldn`t shy away from the messy, complicated reality of its real-life inspirations.Far Cry 5`s cult-occupied Montana setting isn`t an accident. During a behind-closed-doors presentation ahead of the reveal, creative director Dan Hay specifically mentioned the occupation of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge in Oregon in 2016 as an influence of sorts (whether it`s for the anti-government militia themselves or the phallic fan mail they received during the occupation remains to be seen). He first presented the game by describing a side of America dedicated to Constitutional freedoms and possessing a strong aversion to the federal government, an America built on the mantra `faith, freedom, firearms.`But Far Cry 5`s antagonists aren`t merely a militia group fighting for individual freedoms justified or not--Eden`s Gate is also a radical doomsday cult. They control the fictional Hope County, and when you, a new junior deputy, arrive in their county, things get violent. The cult`s religious fanaticism is plastered all over the promotional materials for the game, from the Last Supper-inspired cover to a preacher in the trailer with the Seven Deadly Sins etched into his skin. All things considered, the roles seem pretty cut and dried: Your job as the deputy is to liberate the county from the cult`s stranglehold, and you can even `engage cult forces in aerial dogfights` in order to do it.It`s easy to condemn extremism, ...
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