Ryan Bloom / Oct 17th, 2012

Ubisoft announced Tuesday they will be adding a map and texture pack based on Far Cry 3 to the PC version of Minecraft for free on Oct. 26.

In a unique marketing strategy, Ubisoft is allowing players to explore and survive the world of Minecraft through the warped lens of Far Cry 3.

The content pack includes modifications to all aspects of the game, including environments, weapons and tools. Key locations and characters from the Far Cry series will appear completely redesigned in the famous Minecraft style. Characters including Vaas, Jason and Citra will be available via the mod.

Minecraft enthusiast Michael Lambert created the maps for the mod. The modder, better known as Sacr3, created the NewCraft City project. Artists Axel Janssen and Yohan Delcourt made the textures. They included more than 50 Easter Eggs hidden throughout the island.

The official Far Cry 3 mod for Minecraft will be available for download on the Far Cry website.

[adsense250itp]It is interesting for Ubisoft to use Minecraft as a marketing tool to promote Far Cry 3. If the campaign successfully takes advantage of the popularity of Minecraft, it should be expected that Ubisoft and other companies will consider using the indie game as a promotional tool again.

Minecraft is a far cry from the gaming style of Far Cry 3. Minecraft is a sandbox building indie game developed by Mojang. Far Cry 3 is an open world first-person shooter with elements from role-playing games. It takes place on a remote island filled with violence as main character Jason attempts to rescue his girlfriend and escape safely.

It is not the first time other games have invaded Minecraft. Many structures built in the game pay homage to famous 8-bit characters. One modder has taken on the project of recreating the entire World of Warcraft landscape into Minecraft, using custom software that converts the game into Minecraft blocks.

Far Cry 3 is set to debut on Dec. 4 for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Windows PC.

tags: far cry , far cry 3 , minecraft , news , ubisoft