For more on Far Cry 5, check out our full Far Cry 5 review. Or, for more of the best Playstation 4 games for a 10 year old, why not try our Family Game Finder
What is Far Cry 5?
Set for the first time in America, Far Cry 5 takes place in the fictional Hope County, Montana, where a sinister cult known as Eden's Gate have appeared. Believing the end is nigh with a religious zeal, they're doing all they can to prepare for the coming apocalypse - by pillaging, plundering, and converting the locals to their flock by force. When an attempt to arrest the cult's leader goes horribly wrong, you find yourself stranded "behind enemy lines". Joining forces with a small resistance, it's up to you to take the fight to the leaders of Eden's Gate, and reclaim Hope County in this open world shooter.
How do you play Far Cry 5?
Often described as a sandbox shooter, Far Cry 5 is a game that gives you a lot of flexibility. Hope County itself is divided into three sections, each run by one of the Seed family - the leaders of the Eden's Gate cult. Though there are story missions to complete, you can choose which member you want to go after first, and chop and change between the different story paths as you see fit - with plenty of other fun and games to be had in the world along the way.
Though many of the game's missions involve leading an assault on a base or encampment, how you choose to do so is entirely up to you. You could fly in with an attack helicopter; play it stealthily, and pick enemies off one by one with a bow; or get the game's friendly bear companion, Cheeseburger, to charge in and deal with the enemies for you. Side missions see you completing stunts, base jumping, fishing, or even trying to solve a practical puzzle to gain entrance to a prepper stash - a hoard of ammo, guns and money that'll go a long way to helping the resistance.
How easy is Far Cry 5 to pick up and play?
Though previous Far Cry games have been pretty impenetrable when it comes to accessibility, Far Cry 5 is a lot better. There's a wide array of tutorials to take you through the basics; an adjustable difficulty level, where you'll take much less damage on easy; and much less of an emphasis on remaining hidden and stealthy. Letting you fight alongside a number of computer controlled allies, including a bear, a dog and a cougar/puma, you'll always have someone by your side, too!
In terms of accessibility, though the game features large, clear subtitles (along with the option of applying a background to make them even more readable), it doesn't let you turn them on before starting the game, meaning anyone in need of subtitling will have to sit through a five minute long cutscene before they can start following what's happening. While main dialogue is subtitled, any additional dialogue or flavour text isn't, which can lead to you missing out on some reasonably useful conversations.
Far Cry 5 contains strong bloody violence, equally strong, frequent bad language, and mild sexual innuendo.
Violence and Gore
Though not as violent as other Far Cry games in terms of the gameplay itself, Far Cry 5 still contains a large amount of claret. Enemies give off blood spurts when damaged; characters can often be found lying in pools of blood; and mutilated corpses are seen strung up in enemy bases. There are also some torture scenes, with characters being electrocuted in order to encourage them to give up information. Animal violence is also present throughout, with deceased dogs and other animals found in certain areas, while others contain animal cruelty (a group of two dozen dogs left locked inside a house and abandoned).
Bad Language
F**k, c**t, s**t and other swear words are heard frequently throughout.
Sexual Content
Some of the dialogue contains references to sex, "Now it's time for me to find some p*ssy to eat", "It's all burning up like an STD!"
Additional Notes
Large parts of the game sees the player coming under the influence of drugs, to the point where they start hallucinating.
Online Safety
Far Cry 5 comes with a substantial online mode dubbed Far Cry Arcade. In this mode, players will face off against each other in competitive deathmatches, team deathmatches, and a variety of other, more objective based modes. Though you can choose to play in a group of up to six players in a private game, by default the game pits you against random folk from around the world.
What parents need to bear in mind is that voice chat is enabled by default in Far Cry Arcade - so even if you don't have your headphones plugged in, you'll be able to hear what everyone else in the game is saying - including when they're talking about you. While you can easily mute other participants at the touch of a button, you'll need to wait until you return to the lobby to be able to do so. You can, however, turn voice chat off in Far Cry 5 altogether by going to Options -> Audio and Video -> Voice Chat. Or, you can use parental controls on your console to restrict voice communication to friends only.
Another thing parents will want to bear in mind is that all of the maps you play on in Far Cry 5's Arcade mode are user generated. While there's no tool that lets you write things easily, there is still the chance of running into mature content that isn't otherwise covered in this guide.
Age Ratings
Format Reviewed: Playstation 4
