The Far Cry series has always inhabited a world that comes close to reality with just enough fantastical scenarios and a setting far away from home to make it feel like believable fiction. The upcoming Far Cry 5 has a very interesting, but eerie, setup. Taking place in the fictional Hope County, Montana in a modern era, the game features a cult called The Project at Eden’s Gate and bears striking similarities to many militant “old-testament” cults that appeared in the late 80’s and 90’s. Gun control, religious extremism, and more filled the world then and continues to this day. The Far Cry 5 political issues, while fiction, find themselves resembling these events more that Ubisoft had intended.

We started building this game three years ago. We could have never imagined, and to be honest I wouldn’t have wanted to, that in some ways, it’s echoing out in the real world.”

The militant cultist surrounded by guns and ammunition is a fear that is all too familiar in today’s society. One which brings to mind recent events such as the Las Vegas, or Sutherland Springs church, shootings. Not only are these topics relevant to controversial discussions being had even now, but the location is set very close to home – in fact for many, Montana is their backyard and the militant cults and neo-nazis are a real issue. In a recent interview, Far Cry director Dan Hay explains this a little further:

Sometimes you’re working on a game with dragons or robots, and you go for a slice of pizza, you go for a break or a beer, and a lot of the conversations that you hear are completely different from what you’re making, that’s not the case with this game. With this, you go out for a slice of pizza and it just feels like people know some of the different things that we are making. That is a strange feeling, and it’s why we build that separation, it’s why we make it ours, because it is a work of fiction.”

Hay’s also explains that it’s important to remember that the game is fiction, a piece of entertainment and that it’s a fictional place. The Far Cry 5 political issues which dominate the game do bear a striking similarity to ones seen in today’s news, but they aren’t real within the game. You can’t hop onto a plane or a car and find yourself headed to Hope County, no matter how close to reality it might seem. Even the cult of Eden’s Gate and their leader are fictional, albeit very believable.

Similar to Wolfenstein II, it seems the next in the Far Cry series may have an unintended side effect on society. Far Cry 5 will be available on February 27th, 2018 for PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4. Let us know your thoughts on the Far Cry 5 political issues and more in the comments section below. As always, don’t forget to follow Don’t Feed the Gamers on Twitter for 24/7 coverage of all things gaming and entertainment.

The author of this story lives in Montana.