Far Cry 6 has been officially revealed, and with it, two of the game's main characters: the father and son duo Anton and Diego Castillo. Anton, portrayed by Giancarlo Esposito, is Far Cry 6's primary antagonist, a ruthless dictator ruling over the island of Yara. Diego, on the other hand, is Anton's teenage son.
The Far Cry 6 reveal trailer establishes the relationship between the characters well, and particularly just how menacing Anton really is. Giving Diego a live grenade and speaking to him about what it means to rule, the twisted – but somehow soothing – nature of Anton is immediately apparent. But there are more elements to the relationship than what players have seen, and as Game Rant learned in an interview with Far Cry 6 Narrative Director Navid Khavari, it's a critical element to Far Cry 6's story.
Diego Castillo
Diego is just a teenager in Far Cry 6, an awkward point in anyone's life, but particularly so for someone with an especially tyrannical dictator for a father. According to Khavari, Diego is "riding the razor's edge" between taking after his father and becoming his own man, character development that players can expect to see throughout the game's story.
Anton, despite being a horrible person, loves his son. What players saw in the Far Cry 6 reveal trailer is just the "first of many lessons he's passing down to Diego," hinting that fans are going to see far more interaction between the two characters before all is said and done. The notion of watching Diego's destiny evolve throughout the story, fueled by the lessons his father imparts on him and bearing witness to what will be a bloody revolution, sets the character up to be one of the most complex seen in a Far Cry game to date.
The question now is how large of a role Diego will play in the story, and whether or not players can help shape that role. The relationship is "crucial to the story and the game," so players can, presumably, expect to see a fair bit of it throughout the game's story. That being said, the x-factor here is the protagonist, Dani Rojas, and how they're actions might have an impact on Anton and Diego's relationship, if they do at all.
Anton Castillo
Fundamentally, Anton wants to see his son succeed. His plan for Diego is for him to be his successor, but that means imparting Diego with lessons to ensure that Diego rules as he would. The lesson in the CGI trailer, which fans got a brief peek at during the Far Cry 6 teaser, mostly pertains to keeping a firm grip on one's subjects, and while Anton loves his son, having a teenager carry a live grenade is a needlessly sadistic way to convey that lesson.
Anton is described as intelligent and charismatic, a powerful combination for anyone, but especially so for a dictator. He has a distinct vision for the future of Yara, originally coming to power on the promise of "rebuilding paradise." But paradise doesn't include everyone in Anton's eyes, and those that speak out against him are sent away to do forced labor. It isn't clear if Diego is privy to this information or if he's blissfully unaware of just how evil his father is. Surely, the revelation would be a significant moment for the character and have a large impact on the father-son dynamic of Anton and Diego.
The end goal for the player is to overthrow Anton's oppressive rule and liberate Yara, which likely means killing the dictator in the end. That leaves a big question mark for Diego's future. As Anton's son, there's a seemingly strong likelihood that Diego is as much of a target for the revolution as his father is. After all, Anton's father was also a dictator, killed in a separate uprising when Anton was still a teenager. If the revolutionaries don't want to repeat history, and Diego takes after his father, that may mean getting rid of him too.
The Father-Son Duo
Diego presents an interesting new way to humanize Anton. While players will likely have Anton painted as a cold, calculated figure throughout the game, being able to see the same character share intimate, warm moments with their son is a way to bring them back down to earth, and that gives the entirety of the game more weight.
Of course, that all depends on what sort of "lessons" Anton continues to teach Diego. If the grenade really is just one of many lessons that Anton tries to impart, there may be plenty else for players to pass judgment on when it comes to Anton. The grenade was needlessly sadistic, and it's possible that the worse has yet to come. Anton may love Diego, but from the reveal trailer, it also seems like Anton is testing Diego.
Anton could very well be one of Far Cry's best antagonists if his character is shaped properly, in large part due to his relationship with Diego. Of course, Diego's own future is the biggest question mark players have so far. Diego is bound to have a unique view of the world and the revolution, but those world views will largely hinge on how aware he is of his father's actions, and whether or not he recognizes that they're evil.
Far Cry 6 is trying hard to capture the essence of a true revolution, and Khavari and his team even spent about a month in Cuba, which Yara is based on, talking with locals and real guerrilla fighters to nail down what a revolution really means. The game seems to be bringing a much greater human element to the table, a natural product of telling the story of a revolution in intimate detail.
There's still a bit of a wait until players can get their hands on the game, as it isn't set to release until early next year. That being said, it's one of Ubisoft's most exciting releases in some time, so it's certainly worth looking forward to. Fans can expect gameplay in the coming months, but until then, they'll just have to settle for the reveal trailer.
Far Cry 6 will launch February 18, 2021, for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.