Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon® Wildlands Review Summary

Last updated: 2026-02-16
  • Great overall gameplay experience
  • Large and immersive open world
  • Fun and enjoyable co-op mode
  • Game stuck on loading screen
  • Gameplay is boring and repetitive
  • Poor vehicle controls
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon® Wildlands header

Emotions

What players like:

Common complaints:

Gameplay feedback:

Performance notes:

Recommendations:

Other player notes:

Review evidence

Why players say this

What players like

Great overall gameplay experience: The game is highly praised for its enjoyable and solid gameplay. It offers a good mix of combat, exploration, and mission variety, making it a well-rounded experience for fans of the genre.

Large and immersive open world: The game features a vast and detailed open world that is both diverse and engaging. Players appreciate the large map filled with various missions, side quests, and activities that make exploration rewarding.

Fun and enjoyable co-op mode: Cooperative gameplay is a major highlight, offering fun and strategic experiences. Players enjoy the tactical depth and teamwork required, making it a great game to play with friends.

Beautiful and immersive graphics: The game is visually stunning with detailed environments and diverse biomes. The graphics contribute significantly to the immersive experience.

Excellent tactical shooter experience: The game is praised as one of the best open-world tactical shooters, offering a mix of tactical planning and fast-paced action.

Common complaints

Game stuck on loading screen: Many players report that the game does not progress beyond the loading screen, often freezing or getting stuck indefinitely.

Gameplay is boring and repetitive: The gameplay is criticized for being dull, repetitive, and lacking variety, with an uninteresting story and minimal cutscenes.

Poor vehicle controls: Vehicle handling and controls are widely criticized as awkward, problematic, and generally poor, detracting from the overall experience.

AI teammates are inconsistent: Players find AI teammates to be inconsistent, with complaints ranging from lack of intelligence to being too perfect, affecting gameplay experience.

Incompatibility with modern CPUs: The game has severe incompatibility issues with modern CPUs, particularly Intel's latest generations, requiring BIOS changes to run.

Gameplay and performance

Open-world gameplay focus: The game emphasizes open-world mechanics, allowing players to explore and engage in various activities within a vast environment.

Co-op and multiplayer modes: The game offers cooperative gameplay and multiplayer modes, supporting up to 4 players for coordinated missions and teamwork.

Tactical combat and strategy: The game includes tactical shooter gameplay, requiring players to use planning and strategy in combat situations.

Progression and customization: Players can upgrade their abilities and weapons, with a variety of customization options for characters and weapons.

Smart AI behavior: The game features intelligent AI behavior, including detection systems and realistic squadmate interactions.

Game fails to load: Many players report that the game fails to load beyond the logo, resulting in infinite loading screens or crashes. This issue prevents players from even starting the game.

Compatibility issues with modern hardware: The game has compatibility issues with modern CPUs and hardware, often requiring players to disable E-Cores or Hyper-Threading in their BIOS settings.

Splash screen issues: Players frequently get stuck on the splash screen during startup, which can last for several minutes without progressing.

Performance issues on high-end systems: Despite having high-end hardware, some players report that the game does not launch or crashes frequently.

Visual and graphical issues: There are various visual issues reported, including problems with anti-aliasing options, lighting, and transient graphical glitches.

Recommendations

Recommended for specific genres: The game is highly recommended for players who enjoy military simulations, open-world games, and co-op games. It is particularly suggested for fans of tactical shooters and open-world shooters.

Enhanced co-op experience: Playing with friends or in co-op mode is strongly recommended for a better and more enjoyable experience. The game is considered more fun and lengthy when played with others.

Wait for discounts: Several reviewers recommend buying the game on sale or waiting for a promotion. Specific suggestions include purchasing it at a significant discount or for a low price.

Worth the price: The game is considered worth its price, especially due to the amount of fun and content it offers. Some suggest it provides good value for money up to a certain price point.

Technical issues and refunds: Some players had to refund the game due to technical issues. Others advise to refund before it's too late or to wait for official updates from Ubisoft.

Platform notes

Steam Deck: The analysis of user feedback reveals significant issues with the Steam Deck experience, particularly concerning the Ubisoft Connect launcher, anti-cheat and multiplayer problems, game crashes and stability issues, performance and optimization, and DRM and licensing issues. These problems create a high level of friction and negatively impact the user experience, often requiring extensive tinkering or rendering the game unplayable.

Extra review signals

Monetization: The game exhibits several predatory monetization practices, including pay-to-win mechanics, aggressive DLC policies, and confusing currency systems. These practices significantly detract from the user experience and create frustration among players.

External guides: The game suffers from severe technical issues, including long loading times and widespread bugs. Players also report a lack of in-game guidance, forcing them to rely on external resources. These issues significantly impact the user experience, leading to frustration and dissatisfaction.

Other review notes

Ubisoft acknowledges bugs: Ubisoft developers acknowledge the presence of bugs in the game but are no longer supporting the title, indicating that no further updates or fixes will be provided.

Criticism of additional app requirement: Players express strong dissatisfaction with being forced to download another app just to play the game, finding this requirement unreasonable.

Compatibility warning for players: Players are advised to be careful when using the game with Steam Deck or other machines, indicating potential compatibility issues.

No CPU adjustments needed: An alternative version of the game starts immediately and does not require any CPU-related adjustments.

Comparison to other launchers: Players compare the game or its launcher to the EA app and Rockstar launcher, suggesting that they are evaluating the user experience relative to other platforms.