Ubisoft franchises have had the liberty of sharing inspiration and development ideas between various games over the years. Much of the social stealth of the earlier Assassin's Creed series has inspired the hacking and diversionary mechanics implemented in several Watch Dogs games. Even Far Cry has borrowed elements from franchises like Assassin's Creed in the past, like some of the open-world design and radio towers to unlock the map. Far Cry 6 is also continuing this trend, though with a very interesting and specific feature from Assassin's Creed being implemented in the world of Yara that's never been seen in a Far Cry game previously.
First seen in Assassin's Creed 2, a "notoriety" system is going to dictate how the world pushes back against players' decisions in Far Cry 6. This is especially surprising for a series like Far Cry, which has featured systemic world mechanics focused more on destruction or teammate abilities through buddies, but nothing quite like this. That being said, a notoriety system for Far Cry 6 makes the most sense, given the premise and setting of the game lend themselves well to including such a system. As a freedom fighter working incognito in the Yaran capital city, Dani Rojas is going to want to manage their reputation as often as possible to take down Anton Castillo's regime.
Far Cry 6 Receives an Assassin's Creed-style Notoriety System
The notoriety system in Assassin's Creed 2, and subsequently in Brotherhood, Revelations, and Assassin's Creed 3, all measured the player's reputation as an assassin in each respective city. More guards would be on alert and on patrol, and players are more easily detected when out in the open. Increased notoriety was never a massive barrier for players in Assassin's Creed, but it basically served to just place more enemies in the way and make detection a little easier. As for Far Cry, the series has never presented a need for that kind of gameplay system. Assassin's Creed used to be all about "social" stealth and blending in among citizens, making notoriety important.
Notoriety and reputation-style mechanics have been absent in the Far Cry series prior, at least in the same manner that Far Cry 6's notoriety system is being implemented. Only the traditional stealth mechanics and detection systems were eventually included in Far Cry 3, but for an open-world, open-ended shooter, adding stealth mechanics is an expected option. The closest thing to a notoriety or reputation-style system in Far Cry was alarm systems at outposts, but even that's not the same thing. Alarms were just a simple consequence for failing stealth or not taking down enemies before they call for reinforcements, and had no permanence beyond outposts.
Managing Reputation in Far Cry 6 Makes Sense
Expanding notoriety and/or reputation into a fully fledged system for Far Cry 6 makes a lot more sense compared to previous entries. The past few Far Cry games have all been centered on the gameplay loop of completing unique, linear story missions, while sieging and clearing outposts to progressively unlock the world map. That same gameplay loop will likely carry over into Far Cry 6, but gauging reputation and remaining incognito will be vastly more important in this game's context. Like other Far Cry games before it, Far Cry 6 allows players to lead the revolution in their own way, and the game's world and logic will need to challenge that freedom with obstacles.
There's plenty of ways how a notoriety system could affect the gameplay loop in Far Cry 6 in a unique way. Far Cry 6's latest gameplay trailer alluded completing missions in various ways, one of which was infiltrating an enemy outpost in disguise as a Yaran military official. Perhaps at a higher notoriety level, this type of infiltration may become impossible or very difficult since most soldiers can recognize Dani Rojas' face. Players could perhaps be hunted by special forces if they stay notorious for too long, having to react and survive the encounter in order to reduce notoriety. Far Cry 6 will also presumably provide players plenty of options to reduce notoriety if necessary.
Reducing reputation likely won't be as granular or simple as removing wanted posters off walls a la Assassin's Creed, but it's clear notoriety will play a big role in the Far Cry 6 gameplay loop. Freedom fighters will likely become infamous as their exploits against Anton Castillo's regime continue to weaken his tyrannical grip on Yara. Having to manage that reputation as the game goes on is an intelligent next step for the franchise, and players being able to adapt to this system over time could make gameplay variation interesting.
Far Cry 6 releases on October 7, 2021, for Luna, PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
