Is Far Cry 3 length?

When focusing strictly on the critical path and main story objectives, Far Cry 3 comes in at around 15 1⁄2 hours according to aggregated data on HowLongToBeat. For completionist gamers aiming to fully complete all side content, the average playtime rises to about 37 hours total.

Placing Far Cry 3‘s Length in the Franchise Context

Compared to more recent entries in Ubisoft‘s long-running open world shooter franchise, Far Cry 3 offers a sizable adventure but falls slightly below the completion lengths of modern sequels.

Far Cry 6 is the longest entry officially, with a 23 hour critical playthrough that balloons up to almost 60 hours for a 100% run. And the panned Far Cry New Dawn spin-off stands as the shortest game at just 12 hours main story and 21 hours for full completion according to aggregated data.

Far Cry Series Game Length Comparison

So in the context of the franchise, Far Cry 3 provides a solid and sizable single player experience, but doesn‘t quite measure up to the complete runtimes of the past two numbered sequels.

Delving Into What Sets Far Cry 3 Apart: Story & Villain Greatness

But what some may not immediately realize is that Far Cry 3 does more with less hours. Even a decade after launch, it remains one of most critically acclaimed entries thanks to phenomenal execution around storytelling, characters, and its charismatic villain.

Respected outlets like IGN and PC Gamer have continued to highlight Far Cry 3 on "best of decade" lists, with IGN specifically calling out Vaas Montenegro as gaming‘s best antagonist of the 2010s. When diving deeper on why Far Cry 3‘s shorter runtime has resonated for so long, the biggest piece is the gravitational pull of Michael Mando‘s Vaas.

"Fluctuating between moments of menace, manipulation, and eloquent monologues, actor Michael Mando helped craft one of gaming‘s most intriguing and terrifying bad guys." – IGN

Bolstering Vaas is the hero‘s journey undertaken by protagonist Jason Brody. Venusian from InsideGaming praised how Jason evolves throughout the experience from spoiled rich kid to hardened jungle warrior:

"He starts out as kind of an entitled jerk, he ends the game as ‘the boss.‘ You see that progression very clearly […] from him just being kind of a spoiled rich kid to having to survive and rescue his friends." – Venusian, Inside Gaming

Layered on top is Far Cry 3‘s tight first-person shooter gameplay featuring stealth, action, hunting, and exploration systems that interweave to make conquering each base and region an engaging strategic challenge according to Shooter Forever.

So Far Cry 3‘s alluring island sandbox of violence and mentally unstable villains coalesce around a core revenge thriller story arc filled with iconic moments seared into gaming‘s collective memory.

Does Far Cry 6 Surpass Far Cry 3‘s Brilliance?

The latest 2021 release in Far Cry 6 does boast the longest critical path and completionist campaign Ubisoft has delivered yet according to aggregated data. Set in the fictional Latin American island of Yara, Far Cry 6 introduces the vicious dictator Antón Castillo played with menacing gusto by Breaking Bad‘s Giancarlo Esposito.

And while Esposito‘s Antón anchors a solid antagonist experience, the narrative and character depth around dictator and freedom fighter Dani Rojas doesn‘t quite reach the same organic emotional heights according to SkillUp.

"Vaas Montenegro is such an iconic villain. Nothing in FC6 comes close to matching it." – SkillUp

The core 60 hours experience delivers the expected dose of chaotic open world guerilla warfare centric to Far Cry. But based on aggregated review analysis, Far Cry 6 doesn‘t ultimately subvert or revolutionize the proven formula enough to dethrone Far Cry 3 as the apex of the long-running series.

The Verdict: Why Far Cry 3 Stands the Test of Time

Despite a shorter primary story length of 15.5 hours and completionist duration of around 37 hours, Far Cry 3 utilizes its compressed runtime for a tight, focused narrative journey centered on megalomaniacal villain Vaas Montenegro.

Critics and fans widely hail Far Cry 3‘s storytelling, performance capture, and maturation of protagonist Jason Brody as a compelling evolution matched by few games of the era like Red Dead Redemption. The island sandbox supporting framework filled with anarchic combat arenas crisscrossed with stealth paths perfectly complements the psychological tension of Vaas and his reaching influence.

For completionists and replay seekers, the 37 hour full game experience and New Game+ mode offer plenty of bang for buck. Yet the staying power and greatness of Far Cry 3 across the past decade rests on superb artistic execution rather than solely quantity of content.

And with a new numbered sequel in Far Cry 7 potentially on the horizon for a 2025 release according to early reports, the pressure mounts for Ubisoft to recapture Far Cry 3‘s potent alchemy of performance, narrative, and gameplay. Because even 10 years later, Vaas and Jason‘s dark odyssey through the lawless islands stands tall as the apex of Far Cry’s peerless mayhem.