A Survivor's Guide To Far Cry 3

The Rook Islands look like a perfect location for a resort, but there is a reason Sandals and Wyndham have avoided the island altogether. With “attractions” like sharks, tigers, gun-toting pirates, and human trafficking, it has nightmare vacation written all over it. To help you navigate the dangerous terrain of Far Cry 3, I offer you these tips.

Get Your Hunt On
Tracking and hunting animals isn’t just a fun side activity in Far Cry 3 – it’s crucial if you want to survive the island. When Jason escapes pirate captivity, all he can carry is one gun and a couple bullet clips. If you want to be able to shoot your way out of sticky situations, you’ll need more guns, ammo, and syringe kits. The only way to attain these is by collecting the hides of specific animals. I recommend fast-tracking these hunts to expand the amount of guns and ammo you can carry right off the bat. Having an assault rifle, an SMG/pistol, and an explosive weapon like a rocket or grenade launcher is extremely helpful. If you take a lot of bullets, expand the size of your syringe kit as well. Explorers and collectors may want to focus on getting a bigger loot rucksack and wallet.

Climb Those Towers
The best thing you can do for your navigation sense (and your wallet) is track down the many towers located throughout the Rook Islands. Not only do these locations provide better climbing puzzles than any of the trees or buildings in Assassin’s Creed III, conquering a tower reveals the map of the surrounding territory, which makes it easier to find what you’re looking for. Reclaiming a tower for the natives also gives you free access to weapons, which allows you to focus your spending on attachments instead of the weapons themselves. Once you conquer a tower, be sure to take a zipline down to get a head start in a new direction.

Claim The Strongholds
Far Cry 2 frustrated many gamers thanks to the infinitely respawning enemies who would pop up on a road even though you just eliminated all the enemies in that outpost less than five minutes ago. To avoid this hassle in Far Cry 3, you can capture the strongholds outright by killing all of the soldiers stationed there. Doing so rids the immediate area of roving pirates, gives you a new location for fast travel and buying and selling items, and unlocks several new side quests in the vicinity.

Experiment With Approaches
Before you attack an enemy outpost, I recommend pulling out your camera to get the lay of the land and mark all the enemies. If you survey the area well, new opportunities may present themselves. You could snipe enemies from afar, sneak in and take them down one by one, or run in guns blazing like Leeroy Jenkins. But why open up fire right away when you could shoot open the cage housing an angry tiger and have it maul a few enemies first?

Don’t Fret About Skills
Far Cry 3 offers players three distinct tracts for upgrading your skills. As you gain experience for completing objectives, you can spend it to learn new abilities. But unlike Deus Ex, you don’t need to worry about choosing the wrong path. If you take down a healthy amount of strongholds, capture the towers, and complete the side quests, you won’t have a problem unlocking all of the abilities before you reach the end of the narrative. If you're having trouble in the early going, I recommend boosting your max health.

Pay Attention To Your Surroundings
Jungles can be dangerous for those who walk into them unaware. If you’re moving through heavy brush, tread lightly and keep your eyes and ears open. If you hear a faint hissing sound, it could be a pack of antagonistic Komodo dragons or a poisonous snake.