Originally released on March 23, 2004, Far Cry is an impressive open-world FPS from developer Crytek and published by Ubisoft. It is notably the last game in the series to feature development from Crytek before Ubisoft took over stewardship of the IP as an in-house franchise and Crytek moved on to the Crysis games. The title was incredibly impressive for its time, garnering strong critical praise and impressive commercial sales. Along with other noteworthy first-person shooters like Half-Life and Halo, many elements of Far Cry would go on to become genre staples. The success of later games in the Far Cry series led to demand for Ubisoft to port the original to modern consoles, resulting in Far Cry: Classic for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 10 years after the release of the original.
Far Cry Premise
©Far Cry gameplay screenshot – Original
The original Far Cry is an action-packed tale of genetic experiments gone awry set in a lush tropical paradise. After retiring from the US Special Forces, Jack Carver seeks a life of peace and quiet in the South Pacific. Unfortunately, those plans fall apart when Jack crosses paths with young journalist Valerie Constantine, who charters one of Jack’s boats to investigate a mysterious island archipelago near Micronesia. The two are attacked, with Valerie getting kidnapped and Jack barely escaping with his life after a rocket blows up his boat. Naturally, Carver reverts back to his training and decides to both rescue Valerie and get revenge for the attempt on his life, all while exposing dangerous evolutionary research occurring on the island.
In terms of its gameplay, Far Cry establishes many of the core elements that persist in the series into the modern era. The game was one of the early first-person shooters to utilize an open-world sandbox and emergent gameplay where the enemy AI and world react to the player’s actions. Objectives can be completed in a non-linear fashion, with players having several viable paths to victory laid out in front of them.
While the actual gameplay itself is a fairly standard mix of first-person shooting and some stealth sequences, the open-world elements and reactive enemies made Far Cry an incredibly impressive title for its time. In particular, the game’s revolutionary AI resulted in enemies working together, flanking the player, and coordinating in ways that were almost unheard of in other first-person shooters.
Far Cry Main Characters
©Far Cry gameplay screenshot – Original
The story of Far Cry centers on the game’s protagonist, Jack Carver, as he investigates a mysterious island somewhere in the South Pacific. A former US Special Forces operative, Jack Carver has retired to run a boat-chartering business, which causes him to cross paths with journalist Valerie Constantine. When Val is attacked and kidnapped, Jack teams up with a local mercenary named Doyle and the two fight across the archipelago to both rescue Val and get to the bottom of the island’s strange and deadly experiments spearheaded by the nefarious Dr. Krieger. The main characters in Far Cry include:
- Jack Carver: The player character and protagonist of Far Cry. Jack Carver is a former Special Forces operative who leaves behind his military career for an attempt at a peaceful retirement. Those hopes all go up in flames after crossing paths with Valerie Constantine.
- Valerie Constantine: A CIA agent masquerading as a journalist, Valerie Constantine is who Jack Carver is trying to rescue throughout most of Far Cry and the person responsible for pulling him out of retirement.
- Doyle: A local mercenary who acts as Jack’s guide and partner across the island archipelago where Valerie is held hostage.
- Crowe: The leader of a group of paramilitary operatives hired by Dr. Krieger to protect his experiments. He is the secondary antagonist of Far Cry.
- Dr. Krieger: The main antagonist of Far Cry, Dr. Krieger is the traditional “mad scientist” archetype. He is a geneticist leading dangerous experiments in the South Pacific.
Games in the Far Cry Series
From the humble beginnings of the original 2004 Far Cry, Ubisoft has developed the franchise into one of its most popular and successful IPs. The newer games in the series still retain the core elements of the first Far Cry such as a lush open world set in a natural environment as well as the tendency for player action to influence emergent gameplay. The series would really find its footing in the excellent Far Cry 3, which many still consider to be the franchise’s high point. Following the refinements and perfection of the Far Cry formula in the third entry, Ubisoft would continue to use that game as a template for all future entries. Games in the Far Cry series include:
- Far Cry (PC, 2004)
- Far Cry Instincts (Xbox, 2005)
- Far Cry Instincts: Evolution (Xbox, 2006)
- Far Cry Instincts: Predator (Xbox 360, 2006)
- Far Cry Vengeance (Wii, 2006)
- Far Cry 2 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360, 2008)
- Far Cry 3 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360, 2012)
- Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon (PC, PS3, Xbox 360, 2013)
- Far Cry: Classic (PS3, Xbox 360, 2014)
- Far Cry 4 (PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, 2014)
- Far Cry Primal (PC, PS4, Xbox One, 2016)
- Far Cry 5 (PC, PS4, Xbox One, 2018)
- Far Cry New Dawn (PC, PS4, Xbox One, 2019)
- Far Cry 6 (PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, 2021)
Far Cry Cheats & Secrets
The original PC release of Far Cry has several cheats available that players can take advantage of. Some of these cheats will require players to do some editing of the game files. As such, make sure to copy the unaltered game files and make backups before attempting any changes to the files using a text editor like Notepad. The console versions of Far Cry (Far Cry: Classic) unfortunately do not feature the same cheats.
Change Name Color in Far Cry
At the character selection screen players will receive a prompt to enter their name. Using the following special characters will change the color of the letters.
For example, naming a character “SAM” and wanting each character to be a different color (let’s say red, white, and blue) you would type: $4S$1A$2M
| Color | Special Character |
|---|---|
| Black | $0 |
| White | $1 |
| Blue | $2 |
| Green | $3 |
| Red | $4 |
| Light Blue | $5 |
| Yellow | $6 |
| Pink | $7 |
| Orange | $8 |
| Gray | $9 |
Far Cry Console Commands
At any point during gameplay, press the tilde key (~) to display the console window. Enter any of the following console commands to activate the corresponding cheat.
| Cheat | Console Command |
|---|---|
| Invincibility | \god_mode_count=1 |
| All weapons | \give_all_weapons=1 |
| Extra ammunition | \give_all_ammo=1 |
| Save game at this point | \save_game <file name here> |
| Load quick save | \load_game <file name here> |
| Archive level | \map archive |
| Boat level | \map boat |
| Bunker level | \map bunker |
| Carrier level | \map carrier |
| Catacombs level | \map catacombs |
| Control level | \map control |
| Cooler level | \map cooler |
| Dam level | \map dam |
| Demo level | \map demo |
| Factory level | \map factory |
| Fort level | \map fort |
| Pier level | \map pier |
| Rebellion level | \map rebellion |
| Regulator level | \map regulator |
| Research level | \map research |
| River level | \map river |
| Steam level | \map steam |
| Swamp level | \map swamp |
| Training level | \map training |
| Treehouse level | \map treehouse |
| Volcano level | \map volcano |
Enabling DEVMODE in Far Cry
There are two ways to activate DEVMODE and enable cheats when playing Far Cry on PC. One involves changing the file name for the Far Cry shortcut while the other is much simpler and can be done within the Steam launcher.
Windows
Find the Far Cry desktop icon or navigate to the game file location and right-click on the game. Select “Properties”. A window will pop up in which one of the boxes displays “Target…”. Use the arrow keys to navigate until the blue highlight disappears and then hit the Spacebar and type “-devmode“. Click “Apply”. When launching the game, the DEVMODE hotkeys should now work.
Steam
The process to enable DEVMODE in Steam is much, much easier. Simply find Far Cry in your Steam library. Right-click on the game and select “Properties”. Click to “Set Launch Options” and type “-devmode” in the box. Click OK and Far Cry will now launch in DEVMODE.
Far Cry DEVMODE Hotkeys
Start the game with the “-DEVMODE” command line parameter active. After, players can press one of the following keys during gameplay to activate the corresponding cheat.
| Cheat | Hotkey |
|---|---|
| Toggle invincibility/God Mode | Move to the next checkpoint |
| All weapons | |
| 999 ammunition | |
| Spawn point | |
| Toggle no clipping | |
| Toggle first and third-person view | |
| Save current position | |
| Load current position | |
| Toggle extra information | |
| Toggle first and third person view | |
| Increase speed | |
| Decrease speed | |
| Return to Default speed |
Far Cry Cheat Engine Cheats
PC users can also download and install a third-party cheat engine to enable cheat mods for Far Cry. One such cheat trainer file can be found here and contains the following cheat options:
Player Mods
- Infinite Health
- Infinite Stamina
- Infinite Armor
- Set Player Speed
Weapon Mods
- Infinite Ammo
- Infinite Grenades
- No Recoil
- No Reload
Game Mods
- Set Game Speed
Far Cry Achievements/Trophies
Completing the following in-game activities will unlock the corresponding achievement/trophy:
| Achievement/Trophy | Description |
|---|---|
| Paradise Memoirs | Unlock all Trophies (PlayStation-exclusive, Platinum) |
| Wildlife Safari | Complete Dam without equipping a weapon (can use mounted weapons) |
| SpecOps Training | Do not die while Doyle hacks the gates during Fort |
| In the Zoo | Complete Treehouse without dying |
| Hot Zone Date | Do not let Valerie die once during Swamp |
| Carver Style | Complete the game on Hard or Realistic difficulty |
| Ninja Jack | Collect the keycard in Research without altering anybody |
| Contained Evolution | Defeat Krieger |
| Call Drops | Kill the Traitor with a melee attack |
| “Hurt? Who me?” | Complete a level with full health and armor |
| Of Ravens And Crowes | Kill Crowe with a headshot |
| Reenlisted | Complete Training |
| Offline Interaction | Complete Pier |
| Mean Steam Machine | Complete Steam |
| Differing Opinions | Complete Rebellion |
| Operation We Want Peace | Complete Swamp |
| Unleashed Fury | Complete Volcano |
| Uneven Terrain | Run over 5 enemies while driving a vehicle |
| Flight Simulation | Fall over 150m and survive |
| Lon Distance Correspondence | Get a headshot kill from 500m |
| Oceanic Vista | Score 1 kill each from a land, maritime, and aerial vehicle |
| Bonding Experiences | In Bunker, make the Mercs and the caged Trigens mingle |
Far Cry Cheat FAQs
How do I enable cheats in Far Cry?
Enabling cheats in Far Cry for PC does require players to adjust the game’s launch options. To do this, simply find the game’s file directory on Windows or navigate to the game in your Steam library. Once there, players can change the launch options for the game under “Properties”. Typing in the command prompt “-devmode” will enable cheats that otherwise would not work. Note that this is for PC only and does not work for the console versions.
How do I get God Mode in Far Cry 1?
God Mode is one of many cheats that will become available after launching Far Cry in DEVMODE. However, some players note that enabling DEVMODE still results in God Mode not working. Once the steps to enable DEVMODE are complete, there should be a file in the Far Cry directory labeled “devmode.lua”. Using a text editor like Notepad, copy and paste the following into the file:
function ToggleGod()
if (not god) then
god=1;
else
god=1-god;
end
if (god==1) then
System:LogToConsole(“God-Mode ON”);
else
System:LogToConsole(“God-Mode OFF”);
end
end
Input:BindCommandToKey(“#ToggleGod()”,”backspace”,1);
Is Far Cry: Classic the same as the original Far Cry on PC?
Unlike Far Cry: Instincts for the original Xbox, which is a slightly altered version of the original Far Cry, Far Cry: Classic on PS3 and Xbox 360 is the first official console release of the original Far Cry for PC. This version retains the open world elements and emergent gameplay of the original. The main difference between the two versions is the lack of any usable cheats on consoles.
How long to beat Far Cry?
The original Far Cry is a fairly short experience owing to its smaller open-world sandbox. Comparatively, it’s the shortest game in the series by a large margin. Most players will complete a standard playthrough of Far Cry or Far Cry: Classic in roughly 10-15 hours. Those hoping to fully complete the game and unlock all achievements/trophies can extend that length to 15-20 hours.
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Far Cry key art.