Ubisoft has released Last Rites, a free update for Ghost Recon Wildlands, as the centrepiece of the series' 25th anniversary. The update is out now on PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, and adds a new story mission, a set of technical upgrades and a large batch of cosmetic items at no cost.
The headline addition is a story-driven mission arc set after the events of the original campaign, in which the Ghosts return to Bolivia to face a new antagonist called La Llorona and her followers, Los Penitentes. Video Games Chronicle reports that a teaser for the mission stops just short of showing the character's face.
Creative director Olivier Leonardi described the character during Ubisoft's anniversary presentation.
We wrote quite a dark backstory for her – she's on the path to redemption, but she's also on a mission to take revenge on the people who caused her suffering, starting with the cartels, the CIA and ultimately La Unidad.
PCGamesN, which played the new content, describes it as significantly harder than the base campaign, with armoured enemies and an aggressive Unidad response from the opening minutes, and characterises it as built for returning players rather than newcomers.
The Predator mission returns after six years
Last Rites also reinstates the game's Predator crossover. Video Games Chronicle reports the mission first appeared in December 2017 as bonus content called The Jungle Moved and was removed in December 2020 when Ubisoft's licence for the character expired. It has now been restored, having spent longer out of the game than in it.
On the technical side, the update raises the game to 4K resolution and 60 frames per second on current-generation consoles and PC, alongside other graphical work. GameSpot notes the upgrade is free and does not require repurchasing the game on newer hardware.
Customisation shaped by community feedback
Ubisoft Bordeaux has also widened the game's options for players who want a stricter simulation. Game director Benjamin Rousseau Lemaire told Xbox Wire that players can now hide impact and trajectory previews for thrown items and the shader on interactable objects, and that hiding a UI element also disables its associated audio cue.
A group of settings Ubisoft calls "Ghost Parameters", drawn from the game's existing Ghost Mode, can now be used in other PvE modes. These include tactical reloading, which discards whatever ammunition remains in a magazine, along with friendly fire, weapon-slot limits, and controls over time of day and weather.
The update additionally makes hundreds of in-game cosmetic items free, including previously gated content. GameSpot reports that PlayStation Plus subscribers can unlock a further set of items themed on the new villain.
Wildlands and its 2019 sequel Ghost Recon Breakpoint are free to play across the weekend, and Ubisoft has said a new Ghost Recon game is in development, with a separate Insider Program recruiting players for closed tests.
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