Far Cry 5: The Conservative Revolution Echoes Into Video Games

"We were given so much. This land... this life... our freedom... what's left of it now?"

Ubisoft is treading dangerous waters with the story and setting of Far Cry 5, not only because it's so different from the rest of the franchise but also because it's dicey political terrain in a world where there has been a paradigm shift in American politics. Let's start with the obvious: instead of the Asian or African villains of the other Far Cry games, the game features white American cultists as the bad guys. There's a family of rural folk led by a crazy religious figure named the Father who believe that the end times are near, and he's going to "save" everyone whether they like it or not. His followers are fanatical and tote their guns around like they're wearing the Second Amendment around their necks. There's also some very obvious Christian imagery abounding, with a very not subtle image of a cross wreathed in flames at one point in the trailer.

Let's just say that people are a little riled up that Ubisoft is apparently painting rural whites as crazed maniacs whose faith is little more than an excuse to exercise power over other people. In this world where populist conservatives who have no political experience or interest in people's well being can be elected president, I find it particularly amazing that Ubisoft has decided to go completely the other way and totally spit in the face of those who elected a madman to the highest office in the land. After all, why would people think that they were being targeted if they didn't something of themselves in the people that are being portrayed in this trailer?

That isn't to say that Ubisoft is making all the white people in Montana into crazy cultists. Far from it, in fact, as two of the companion reveal trailers show. One is a white woman and the other is a white family man, both of whom just want to be left alone but will fight if it means securing their freedom once more. The third character the player can ally with is a black pastor who's similarly being forced to fight against these oppressors if he wishes to reclaim the life that he has lost. It's interesting, though, that Ubisoft chose to make two of the three a woman and a black man, while all of the main villains, save one, are white men. Is Ubisoft making a political statement? Almost certainly, though not one that's particularly deep.

I'm more interested in the sort of effects that this conservative revolution has on the game industry, which - much like the larger entertainment industry - has been predominantly liberal. Far Cry 5 is the first of many video games that, I hope, chooses to tackle this ideological divide that exists, quite literally, between the coasts of the United States. And hopefully they do it in a way that isn't quite as "rah-rah" as Far Cry 5 does it, though obviously there is still a warm place in my heart for shooting redneck cultists in the face.

We're already getting a lot of stuff that exists in response to movements like Black Lives Matter and the increasing authoritarian ideologues that have risen in our governments. Games like Orwell, This Is The Police, and others show a bleak reality that one cannot help but begin to see emerging in the real world. The state of the world is frankly quite alarming, especially for those who value liberal ideals and democratic ideas, as those are all-too-often being thrown under the bus. Even things like basic human dignity is being ignored just because people are too invested in the "team" they've decided to join when it comes to their country's politics. I would love to see all of this expanded on in video game form. I don't know what to expect or what I want the gameplay to be, but I know that I'd love a game that explores the increasing threat and danger of this conservative revolution.