During The 2018 Game Awards, Ubisoft officially announced Far Cry: New Dawn, a spin-off title acting as a narrative sequel to 2017's Far Cry 5. While the upcoming release takes place in the same fictional Hope County, the story has moved forward 17 years to a post-apocalyptic Hope in which civilization has reemerged, though new dangers have surfaced thanks to the fallout of radiation set in place nearly two decades ago.

Xbox Wire recently sat down with the game's Creative Director, Jean-Sebastien Decant, who outlined the key differences of Far Cry: New Dawn that set it apart from its predecessor. Despite dealing with the aftereffects of a brutal nuclear bombing to Hope County, most screenshots and gameplay footage appear to show a more vibrant and colorful world, though much remains from the previous game in terms of key locations and landmarks, according to Decant.

"The map has been transformed by the events, for sure, and some elements that were very recognizable are gone. But some things remain...the remnants of the statue of the Father are still there, and John Seed's ranch has become the home-base "Prosperity" for the good guys."

Speaking of "good guys", Decant shed some light of what some of the game's factions and key figures will bring to the table when Far Cry: New Dawn launches in a couple of weeks. In addition to a new enemy faction and the return of a familiar face from the previous game, players will frequently encounter twin sisters Mickey and Lou, who stray away from working with other factions in an attempt to scavenge as many resources as possible by any means necessary.

"They see the world with two categories of people. You're either a problem maker or a problem solver, and you don't want to be a problem maker."

With the lack of resources throughout the world, weapon crafting will be vital to the player's survival chances in Far Cry: New Dawn. All weapons can be crafted and upgraded at the game's new home base, Prosperity, according to Decant. By finding resources, players will be able to not just create and modify their loadouts, but by being separated into tiers, weapons can also be upgraded with improvements to there respective stats over time.

While the scare human population is left fighting one another, Hope County's wildlife also has been changed quite a bit thanks to radiation exposure following the events of Far Cry 5. That, combined with the fictional in-game drug Bliss used in Far Cry 5, have given a new shape to nature which players will need to look out for. These are new creatures, Decant says, that will be "more bulky, more aggressive, almost like the primal days", meaning it could lead to some memorable encounters with the local wildlife.

Far Cry New Dawn releases on February 15th for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Source: Xbox Wire