The other day I was in my local game retailer and was pleased to find a 3 for $45 sale. This kind of pricing might be normal for your fancy overseas folk, but in Australia it’s gangbusters. Having grabbed Ghostbusters and Max Payne 3 I rounded it out with the already played Just Cause 2 because I remember it being fun and expansive and I was in the mood for silly sandboxing.
Within 30 minutes of play I was in an airport located in the dense rainforest of Panau. I wasn’t heavily armed and enemy troops were swarming out from every corner. The end of the runway was a sheer drop off a cliff. There was a lorry near by. I jumped in and hit the accelerator, figuring that the cliff was a better bet than the wall of bullets closing in. Shots zinged off the trucks chasis as I picked up speed. Checking behind me I noticed a fighter jet had emerged from a hanger and was turning onto the runway. Snapping on the handbrake I spun the truck 180 degrees and considered accelerating in reverse as the jet caught up. As it thundered past I flipped onto the top of the truck and, at the right moment, launched the high powered grappling hook launcher to hook onto the jet and propel onto the top of the plane just as it took off. As the jet accelerated away from the ground and left the gunmen behind I scrabbled up to the cockpit and flung the pilot out into space, took the controls and jetted away.
This happened over the cause of a minute and, as exciting as it was, it was pretty standard Just Cause 2 gameplay. And that’s why everyone should play it. It’s not the best designed gameplay, the graphics aren’t up to GTA standard and the story is laughable but you are unlikely to have this much fun while holding a controller.
The landscape is enormous. Massive jungles, snowy mountain regions, deserts, marshlands, cities and oceans are available to get lost in. You can play for hours and not see the same scenery twice. In addition to the genre standard of cars, motorbikes, planes, helicopters and the like there’s the games unique grappling and parachute combo. Hero Rico has the grabbling launcher attached to his wrist and can hook onto any wall and fling reel himself in, grab onto a passing vehicle, pull enemies over or fling about explosive drums. You can attach items to other surfaces as well. Linking an pesky guard to a passing jet is something that will never, ever get boring, or there’s the ability to tow pursuing cars onto trees and watch them flip over while connecting their driver to a nearby windmill.
Then there’s the endless supply of parachutes that spontaneously sprout from Rico’s butt. While free falling through the air (something you’ll find yourself doing a lot off) you can launch a chute with the press of a button, set it loose and use another. While the chute is deployed you can combine it with your grappling hook your can propel yourself across the landscape.
Story wise the game is wacky. The finale is a fist fight while jumping between in flight missiles. It’s fun but it’s secondary to just exploring the world the game offers you. You might find a washed up whale, a hot air balloon, a field of hovering rocks or even the island from Lost (check the NW of the map).
If you haven’t play it, it’s worth checking out before leaving your trusty old 7th Gen console behind. Or it’s cheap as chips on Steam. It’s a great way to kill time.
