Demiath's New Computer (2011), Part #7 - Just Cause 2
2There's no denying that Just Cause 2 is a derivative and quite shallow game with repetitive mission design and unnecessary difficulty spikes. However, this technologically ambitious open world action game from Swedish developer Avalanche Studios can still be an entertaining and deeply satisfying experience - provided that you share the game designers' idea of what constitutes "fun" in a GTA-style action game, that is.
Once I finally got around to buying and playing through Just Cause 2's main missions (Xbox 360 version) the game had already been out for quite a while but still managed to impress me with its huge and varied game world, jaw-droppingly amazing draw distance, advanced physics implementation and stunningly beautiful explosions. While the story is almost non-existent and the "campaign" frequently caused me a lot of frustration, Just Cause 2 got me hooked for a good 20 hours on the strength of its few core gameplay mechanics alone.
Much like the Saints Row series, Just Cause 2 ditches the character development and social satire of the GTA games in favor of a cheerfully anarchic, arcade-like take on the basic open world game design by putting the emphasis squarely on engaging the player in a ton of satisfyingly creative destruction. JC2's combination of grappling hooks and parachutes ensures virtually unmatched flexibility and maneuverability (while simultaneously violating every known law of Newtonian physics with reckless abandon), and the in-game rewards for constantly going berserk are just substantial enough to keep the player's motivation up.
Just Cause 2 pushes hardware limitations on the aging currentgen consoles in ways which must surely have involved a whole lot of clever programming and painstakingly detailed optimization, and the PC version benefits most noticeably from higher resolutions, some wonderful new water effects and an even more solid frame rate.
GamersGate sale (25.06.11):
http://www.gamersgate.com/DD-JC2/just-cause-2