There's no denying that Far Cry 6's dog companion Chorizo is cute as a button. There's a good reason he's been out in front in the game's reveal, and his animations in-game are sure to capture the hearts of players when Far Cry 6 releases next month. However, after playing through a solid chunk of Ubisoft's latest FPS open-world, it's easy to see that Far Cry 6's Amigos don't live up to expectations. Instead of vital parts of the world and the narrative like Far Cry 5's Guns for Hire, the Amigos feel like a tacked-on system in a game already overflowing with needless complexity.
Far Cry's companion system first appeared in Far Cry 5, letting the player team up with residents of Hope County to take on the cultists of Eden's Gate. There were six specialists in the open world with unique abilities alongside three animal companions called Fangs For Hire. Taking from RPGs like Mass Effect and Fallout, players could engage with specific missions to help out the Guns For Hire, diving into their backstory and gaining their loyalty in the process. It was significant side content, and the characters factored in heavily to the game's ending. The same system returned for Far Cry: New Dawn, but Far Cry 6 simplifies the system too much.
Much like the companions in the last game, Far Cry 6's animal friends all have their own role to play throughout the world. Chorizo distracts guards for more stealth-minded players while Guapo the crocodile has no qualms with devouring anyone in his path. While it's possible to order the animals into place during the initial stages of any level, they mostly fade into the background as the combat starts in earnest. They'll definitely still do their thing alongside all the other chaotic AI characters and wildlife, but they easily get lost in the shuffle. Far Cry 6's main character, Dani, has to deal with juggling powerful Resolver weapons and more aggressive AI enemies, so reviving a canine friend who's just going to respawn in a few minutes on his own falls to the bottom of the priority list.
Why Far Cry 6 Players Will Miss Guns For Hire
This same issue can happen with Guns For Hire in Far Cry 5, but the fact that they were humans contributing to the chaos with their own dialogue and gunfire makes them feel more vital to the overall combat loop. They were also much more of a factor in the open world, driving the player around if they got in the passenger seat or commenting on the current location. Far Cry 6's Amigos can't even load into a car alongside the player, something that Far Cry New Dawn's Timber could do. It's understandable that the back of a pickup truck is no place for a crocodile, but it almost feels mean that Chorizo has to dash alongside a vehicle.
Because Amigos fade more into the background during firefights and participate less in traversal, the tricks that Ubisoft developers use to keep them close to players become all the more apparent. For one example, during a side quest where Dani is swinging through a cave on a grappling hook, their animal buddy refuses to go inside. As Dani climbed up toward the top, Chorizo had teleported from the entrance to the top of a sheer cliff wall with no explanation. This is to be expected with NPC in an open world with as much freedom as Far Cry 6 provides, but the lack of utility throughout the rest of the game makes these immersion-breaking moments stand out.
At the end of the day, Far Cry 6's animal companions feel like a system that was ported over from Far Cry 5 without much forethought. It's possible that things will open up later in the experience, but it's doubtful that any of the Amigos will reach the same utility as the player companions from Far Cry's previous trip to Colorado. It's another system trying and failing to keep the almost ten-year-old formula feeling fresh, and Far Cry 6 probably would have been better off branching out in its own unique direction rather than trying to plug in a system from a past game where it doesn't belong.