FC3: Tips and Tricks

[Dweller_Benthos]

Keeping your car or other vehicles

Like in FC2, you may keep the same car or boat and the likes as long as you don't use a different one after that. I stole a camouflaged technical which was cool and wanted to keep it for exploring. No matter where I went, when I came back it was still there. I shouldn't have careened over a wooden bridge, though..

The next car was a pastel light blue with a .50 cal mounted gun. I parked it on the Southern island, swam to the Northern island, did some exploring, swam back and it was still there. Even better, after I saved and quit the game, the next time I fired up FC3 that blue car was still in the same spot I had parked it before. :)

I don't know, very early in the game I took a jet ski from Valsa Docks to the Temple Of Stone island. I left the jet ski there and I think took a boat back with some locals or swam, not knowing about the dang sharks at the time. Much later, after having used many different vehicles, I was taking another jet ski from the Welshore Wrecker outpost all the way around to the southern edge of the island (which got interrupted when I found out FC3 doesn't like SLI) but I had been intentionally running into sharks along the way because the thump they make when you run over them is nicely satisfying, and my jet ski was starting to smoke, so I needed a new ride. Lo and behold, as I rounded the bend, there, sitting on the island shore was that same jet ski I had left there a long time before. At least I think it's the same one, I don't think one appears there by default.

:-D

There's a Path of the Hunter mission in the south island where you have to kill an albino crocodile with a blade, then skin it. You only get money for it, no upgrade or anything. The only way is to find the croc and jump in with him, then it's a matter of letting him get his gob around you so you can do the button-mash thing to defeat him by stabbing him in the head.

The first time I failed as I didn't know what button would be the designated mashing one (it turned out to be "c", and by the time I'd taken my eyes off the screen to hunt for it I'd lost those all-important first couple of seconds). Reloaded, I went back to try again, this time I confidently jumped into the water with my finger poised above c, ready to mash. Instead, a different key was designated - "<up arrow>". Failed again. Tried again - "<Right Shift>". This time I made it - just. Sneaky blighters.

Same thing happened to me. The first croc that got me, the space bar was the "mash" key, so the next time, I was mashing the space bar and didn't notice until I was dead that the prompt said "S" key. Ooops.

[Art Blade]

cool, need to keep that in mind regarding vehicles, see if some more stay where you leave them. :)

And I too had the experience with mashing one key and later get a different prompt which I realised too late. Now I first wait to see what exactly I have to mash before mashing the wrong key like mad.  :-D

[PZ]

And I too had the experience with mashing one key and later get a different prompt which I realised too late. Now I first wait to see what exactly I have to mash before mashing the wrong key like mad.  :-D

This "feature" of changing the keys is unnecessary and annoying.  That would be akin to me forgetting which hand I shoot with, i.e., a bear comes upon me in the woods and I shoot it with my right hand - all fine.  However, the next time I encounter a bear in the woods it kills me because I didn't know that my holster was now on my left hip, and I needed to use my left hand.  What kind of stupid is that! :D

[Art Blade]

hehe yes, indeed :) Looks to me as if they thought some extra challenge was needed to increase the frustration factor just that much so we're likely to mash the bloody key into the desk below the board while calling Ubi's devs names.  :-D

[PZ]

I don't know what kind of moron thinks that increasing the frustration factor will make people like the game more(on).

[Art Blade]

Me neither but apparently they even get paid for it.

[durian]

They're confused frustration with challenging

[Art Blade]

absolutely.

[PZ]

I don't know about you guys, but it is plenty exciting enough to be running away from a bear while you hear it huffing right behind you.  Makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck.  If I decided to turn around and fight, having to look at the on-screen prompts to determine the correct key (that has changed from the last time) to push is just plain stupid and takes you completely out of the immersion.  There is no excuse for that kind of stupidity.

[Jim di Griz]

I think they all borrow ideas from other games. As has been mentioned, the escape from the burning building and the lost expeditions segments are plainly inspired by Uncharted 3 and I'm afraid that the key prompts were rife in that game too, as well as the end boss fight in U2. I dislike them as you have perfectly good functions already in place for such situations, so why mix it up just because another dev thought it was cool and their game seemed to sell lots.

Perhaps it's the retro thing - truth is, it was annoying as hell in U2 and 3 and just as annoying in FC3.

[fragger]

I agree with you guys, that variable key-mashing thing is just a cheap and dirty way of making the game "challenging".

[fragger]

On another note, I took out a pirate with the blowtorch. I ran up behind him and set him on fire with it >:D

[Jim di Griz]

I haven't tried that yet - sounds like fun  :)

[Art Blade]

nice one, need to do that, too :-D

[mandru]

Many of the large carnivores can be baited by shooting one of the herbivores that populate the same area .

I noticed last night that I had shot a goat near the Break Point Docks on the South Eastern coast of the Southern island.  The corpse of the goat remained for a long period of time during which a dozen or so of the local komado dragons came to feast.  There was also a vulture some ways off from the goat corpse at that same vantage point I was camping that I'd caught on the ground and killed with the long rifle with explosive rounds.  The dead vulture also drew in many komodos.

The bodies of the goat and vulture remained far longer than I'd anticipated (they were still there when I got bored and wandered off) but by turning between the two distant baited target zones the dead komodos would vanish and I was able to speed up the respawn of new targets.

Let it be noted that one of my least favorite wildlife encounters in FC3 is a komodo in tall grass and no they do not always give away their location with their typical loud hissing.  Often seen working in teams of two, the komodos like the pirates or privateers only the one closest to you typically will make any noise.  FC3 komodos are far faster and more agile than any found in nature.  I've seen these stumpy damn buggers inexplicably leap fully off the ground (with their front ends) and grab a pirate, privateer or local (armed or otherwise) by the face. 

If you take the time to listen you'll overhear a privateer's comment "At least I'm not on that island with the dinosaurs" (does that describe a different UBI game?  ???? ) or at least something very much like that but you know what?  Dinosaurs have to obey the laws of physiology and physics.  Unless you're in an UBI game  :-\\

[Jim di Griz]

I think that might be a reference to the Jurassic Park game. If you look at it (currently being modded as Jurassic Life in the clip below) you'll definitely see the similarity.

I could of course be completely and utterly wrong  ^-^

Jurassic Life, 2012 December News

[Art Blade]

Guess what.. "unfortunately, this UMG music-content is not available in Germany, because GEMA has not granted the respective music publishing rights." :D

[Binnatics]

I guess it's understandable that UBI could foul up the name and appearance of our upgraded carry blade in FC3 when you consider the fact that they don't know the difference between the LMB and the RMB for the PC gamers to engage the skill tree's Gunslinger Take Down in their tutorial for that move.  ::)

After reading the other posts, about the keyboard-mashing stupidity, I think this phrase has even some extra valour :-X ^-^ :bow

[mandru]

Regarding button mashing in the predator close contact (to borrow from AC3's QTEs) "quick time events" where fragger said he was given first the "^" up arrow followed by the "R-Shift button".   :knockout

PZ's description "Moron" falls far short of carrying enough pointed and demeaning insult towards the slobbering self soiling imbecilic development team members that allowed that kind of crap into their game.

A simple rule of game construction for the PC market:

*The right hand should never have to leave the mouse* (other than possibly the "Enter key" during menus)
*The Left hand should never be expected to reach any button outside of an acceptable normal home row typing position*

By the way, the "7 and 8" buttons for ephedrine (sp?) and untouchable syringes clearly also violate this rule and has killed me more than once in the heat of combat.  >:((

[Jim di Griz]

Sorry Art - I did try and find a German approved version of the vid but could only find one focused on the Visitor Centre interior, thereby defeating the point of posting.

It must be a pain...but I suppose that is the direction we'll all be heading in the near future.

[Art Blade]

I'm used to it, Jim.. censored vids, censored music, censored games.. hell, it sounds like China.

[PZ]

I think they all borrow ideas from other games. As has been mentioned, the escape from the burning building and the lost expeditions segments are plainly inspired by Uncharted 3 and I'm afraid that the key prompts were rife in that game too, as well as the end boss fight in U2. I dislike them as you have perfectly good functions already in place for such situations, so why mix it up just because another dev thought it was cool and their game seemed to sell lots.

Perhaps it's the retro thing - truth is, it was annoying as hell in U2 and 3 and just as annoying in FC3.

You're absolutely correct; I see many elements of other games in FC3, including but not limited to JC2, Uncharted, AC series.  However, it disgusts me to think that some idiot in a Ubisoft think tank has the unmitigated stupidity to utter the words "Let's adopt the dumb button mashing idea from Uncharted!!" and think it is a good idea.  To make it worse, the rest of the morons in the group agree and slap him on the back for coming up with such a profound idea.

[fragger]

True you guys, somebody must have thought it was a good idea or it wouldn't have ended up in the game ::) How sad.

[PZ]

Many of the large carnivores can be baited by shooting one of the herbivores that populate the same area .

I noticed last night that I had shot a goat near the Break Point Docks on the South Eastern coast of the Southern island.  The corpse of the goat remained for a long period of time during which a dozen or so of the local komado dragons came to feast.  There was also a vulture some ways off from the goat corpse at that same vantage point I was camping that I'd caught on the ground and killed with the long rifle with explosive rounds.  The dead vulture also drew in many komodos.

That's cool; might be kind of fun to bait a corpse with C4, then wait for the Komodos to come in.  I hate those disgusting lizards, but they do come in handy for a pouch or two.  :-()

[fragger]

That's a neat idea PZ :-X

And forgot to mention, thanks for the tips and info mandru :)