I have gone back to the future.
We began Today I Played last year with Far Cry 3. Today, we revisit the franchise with Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon.
Blood Dragon defies traditional descriptions of mainstream video games: it's not a sequel, nor is it a downloadable expansion; it can be played without a copy of Far Cry 3, but assumes the player has some experience with its namesake; it is set in the future, but of an alternate past.
There's a lot to chew on if you want to, but you probably don't. Blood Dragon is best experienced on its most base level, rampaging through the neo-future island, detonating gas tanks, stabbing cyber-sharks and flashing the bird to the hundreds of robo-corpses left in your wake.
I must say, I have one lingering complaint. Blood Dragon scraps Far Cry 3's inspired loop of hunting and crafting. Without the loop, I wasn't motivated to leave the game's main path, a path that lacked my favorite Far Cry nemesis. Goats. Explosive bullets and lazer puking dragons are great. No question about it. But we can all agree, standing front-and-center, should have been a herd of robo-goats, ready for hand-to-hoof battle.