Ubisoft is officially shifting gears. A brand-new Far Cry game, codenamed “Kodiak”, has reportedly entered early development. Reportedly, the publisher is abandoning the saturated extraction-shooter market. Instead, Ubisoft is doubling down on the classic emergent sandbox chaos that originally built the franchise.
Goodbye Extraction Shooter, Hello Sandbox
Previously, industry rumors pointed toward a multiplayer Far Cry extraction shooter codenamed “Project Maverick”. However, severe development issues recently forced Ubisoft to cancel that game. Now, Vantage Studios has salvaged Maverick’s technical and production foundations to build Kodiak. Importantly, this new project entirely drops the controversial extraction-shooter framework.
Consequently, Kodiak will focus heavily on player-driven narratives and unscripted encounters. Players can expect a deep reliance on hostile factions, unpredictable wildlife, interactive NPCs, and environmental chaos. In fact, the project just passed its initial conception phase earlier this month in July 2026. Therefore, the game remains several years away from an official announcement or full release.
Not a Replacement for Far Cry 7
Fans should note that Kodiak is a completely standalone project. It does not replace the next mainline entry in the series, Far Cry 7.
That mainline sequel goes by the internal codename “Blackbird”. Blackbird remains in active development today, despite facing a history of delays and internal hurdles. Furthermore, Vantage Studios co-CEO Charlie Guillemot recently teased Blackbird as an “Act One” for the franchise’s broader future. This clearly suggests Ubisoft has a massive, multi-game roadmap planned for the Far Cry universe.
Ultimately, Kodiak proves that Ubisoft is listening to its base. By scrapping a trend-chasing extraction shooter, the studio is betting everything on the unpredictable open-world action that longtime fans actually want.
