A spear, a sabertooth at your heel, and ten thousand years before the first gun.

The community profile is split in two. With a controller in hand, Far Cry Primal ranks ahead of 97% of games, and its art style ahead of 87% of the rest, though both lines rest on very few votes and remain to be confirmed. Attachment, on the other hand, sinks to the bottom, ahead of only 4% of titles. That is the tension: people love playing it, they keep almost nothing from it. The rest floats around the middle, desert island and rediscovery near the median, sound a little below.

That is the classic fate of the Ubisoft open world, except Primal makes a real gesture: it strips away the firearms, strips away modern dialogue, and puts a reconstructed language in its characters' mouths. That bet shows up in the feel and in the visuals. It does not turn into a memory that sticks.

So, who is it for? For you if you like tracking, taming a wolf, lighting a fire and feeling the valley breathe around you. Much less if you want characters to hold on to or a soundtrack you will replay.