A back-compat patch transforms the game on PS5 and Xbox Series hardware.
Far Cry 5was a beautiful game when it launched back in 2018.
Or are gamers in for a bumpy ride?
As with all backwards-compatible patching efforts, it’s important to set expectations right off the bat.
But that’s not really a bad thing, because Far Cry 5 is still a visually impressive title.
Dense foliage blankets the game’s forested areas,with detailed greenery and excellent shading.
Materials and texture work are both top-notch, and hold up perfectly well even at close range.
That’s essentially what Far Cry 5 delivers here as well.
Looking at the Series X release, it’s hard to pull the game down from its 60fps target.
It’s a perfectly fluid experience, with just a few exceptions.
I encountered some very minor dips in a couple of moments for some reason or another.
Thirdly, I did notice a bizarre bug on Series X at one point.
Meanwhile, Series S is essentially a perfect mirror of the X.
The minor dips in combat return, as do the frame-rate and tearing issues with the armoured truck sequence.
Finally, PS5 fares better than either Microsoft machine, with a perfect lock to 60fps during gameplay.
There were no performance issues whatsoever throughout my testing.
Series X does seem more or less identical to the One X release.
We’re still looking at a full 4K resolution with the same visual options as its last-gen counterpart.
PS5 also looks basically identical to PS4 Pro.
It runs at roughly 1620p, just like the Pro, with little to distinguish the two platforms.
But they don’t look like 1620p - they have the sharp resolve characteristic of a native 4K image.
Series S is a bit stranger still.
Of course, this isn’t the first time we’ve played Far Cry 5 at 60fps on consoles.
Both Series X and S was updated in 2021 with Microsoft’s FPS Boost backwards compatibility enhancement.
Plus, the occasional frame-rate drops observed on Series S are mostly gone in the updated release.
Ubisoft’s patch is essentially a win on all counts here.
Far Cry 5 is in the running for my favourite Far Cry title.
The excellent visuals help as well of course.
Foliage in particular looks quite realistic, a byproduct of careful artistry combined with then-new techniques like screen-space shadows.
This is an excellent time to explore one of the most true-to-life open worlds in video games.
