Far Cry 4's similarities to its predecessor are often brought up when comparing the games. Personally, I think they nailed the Far Cry formula with the 3rd game and I think the series has done better for sticking with said formula, only really changing up a few things beyond the characters and setting. With that being said, there's a number of things you can expect going into a Far Cry game, like a charismatic, almost-convincing villain, and while Far Cry 3 is the origin of a lot of the series' most-loved trademarks, Far Cry 4 cemented their reoccurrence and turned them into staples of the franchise, as well as birthing a few of its own.
Far Cry 4's story evolves from the previously seen "island militia warfare," and goes into a full-scale civil war set in a fictionalised version of Nepal. It sees a bunch of characters return, as well as introducing a load of memorable new ones, including Yogi & Reggie, two of my favourites. That being said, there's a few characters that feel a little boring, too over-the-top or just aren't memorable in terms of the series as a whole. Least of all though is Pagan Min, this game's semi-antagonist and one of the best examples of an empathetic villain in recent gaming memory.
The game lets you make a few choices that change up how the missions play out, their impact is oversold a little, but all of them are morally conflicting and there's ups and downs to whichever path you choose to take, including the golden one. There's somehow less to do than Far Cry 3 in terms of side activities, but it more than makes up for it with its lush, detailed world - in other words, it still manages to feel slightly more polished and higher-scale than 3.
The DLCs are unfortunately a miss for me, I thought I'd enjoy Valley of the Yetis at least, but even that I found a bit stale. Also, there's multiple guns in the game that are very fun to use, but only become accessible in the later parts of the game. My only other problems with the game are Amita, Sabal and Noore. Amita and Sabal are both pretty dislikeable and feel overly demanding and unempathetic to the player. Noore on the other hand was an interesting character and I'd like to have seen more of her, hence why I chose not to kill her, but the game still frustratingly kills her off.
Overall, Far Cry 4's got an immersive, unique world that's a lot of fun to explore. There's no shortage of side-activities after you finish the story, including the franchise's now-signature drug missions that see your characters trip balls on a, usually, fictional drug. The soundtrack's cool and used well throughout the story, including a cool usage of Should I stay or should I go that has a sort-of double meaning if you're aware of the game's pretty well-known secret ending.
