Review by Sam on Sunday 01st of July 2007
Introduction
After seeing the magazine preview's of Just Cause I knew I had to get myself a copy. I'm a loyal fan of the Grand Theft Auto series and when I found out this would be similar with much better scenery, tense action and vast landscape to discover I had to purchase this extremely anticipated release.
You are the flamboyant Rico Rodriguez, an undercover CIA agent sent into the San Esperito, to overthrow the corrupt government. This amazing South American island is jam packed with amazing scenery and vast open land to discover but don't judge a book by its cover. On landing on the Island you enrol in an exciting shootout on the white beach, I found this fun and although it was a little too easy I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Corruption...
San Esperito is suspected of stockpiling WMD's and it is your mission to find and stop them from tempting a full scale world uproar. Just Cause offers you more than you could ever expect. Not only does it have beauty in its landscape but the map itself is colossal and it isn't to long until you realise it. Like Grand Theft Auto you will have an array of different vehicles at your disposal with easy access, from cars, watercraft and even aircraft. The driving is pleasant and although in other games driving from a to b can be like watching paint dry, Just Cause offers you a variety of different routes and ways to get to your destination.
Just CauseThe graphics are breath-taking and it isn't long until you realise you're playing a Next Gen game. The cut-scenes and movies are very realistic and gives you a good framework on what to do in your next mission without needing to look at the tips that come up on your screen, that I thought, was indeed what all games need. The island consists of 1,225 sq. miles of road, cities, mountains, beaches, jungles and villages which you can freely explore by land, sea and air. No game has ever given the player this level of freedom and simplicity towards the hardest of tasks. I completed the game in 1 night and although I was glued to my 360 for the whole 6 hours of play I have never completed a game with so much ease and if I was to pick a downfall for it then that would be one of them.
Storyline...
The main mission in Just Cause is to take down Salvador Mendoza; it is quite a short storyline and can be easily completed in less than 6 hours. There are rarely any big turning points in the story line and can become rather boring unless you use the many ways in which to approach missions. Nevertheless I found the missions and storyline satisfactory as a whole and would certainly recommend the game to someone who wants a quick but interesting experience of a Next Gen game.
Crazy physics...
The game has certain characteristics and mechanisms of Pursuit Force (PSP). Hanging from helicopter tails and jumping from tail to tail is highly un-realistic but surprisingly fun to do. After a few missions, you get hold of a grappling gun, which you can use to hook onto vehicles from a hundred metres away or so. Once you grapple onto your chosen vehicle, your parachute will deploy, this way you can parasail behind the car whilst being pulled, this sometimes doesn't last very long though and you're soon back on the ground waiting for another car. Another way you can use the grappling hook is by grappling helicopters and planes while they're in the air, this way you can 'skyjack' them and take control of the plane/helicopter.
Using these techniques of getting around the map will take some getting used to and will often result in a certain death or painful loss of health which is never inviting. The most preposterous example of this defiance of physics is the ability to jump back and forth from your helicopters/planes cockpit to the stunt position on the helicopter's tail, each time jumping right through the spinning propellers. You can go directly from a high-speed vertical freefall into a stunt position on a vehicle near by, even going in a direction completely off course to your momentous free-fall as long as the car you want to jump to is near by.
Once you master these techniques it can be used to a great advantage although it looks ridiculous most times. Grappling on to a passing car, hi-jacking it and driving up to the top of a cliff where you jump to stunt position out the door to the top of the car whilst it drops into the jungle below you deploy your parachute and land in the tropical
Caribbean waters leaving satisfaction smothered on your lips.
Conclusion
The sheer capacity of things to do in San Esperito is enormous and usually overwhelming, a definite buy if you need a game with beautiful scenery, tense action and sheer enjoyment. I recommend this game to anyone who wants to test out a Next Gen 360 game. The game overall is a great enjoyment and is certainly one for the GTA fan, although in some ways it doesn't have the atmosphere and humour Grand Theft Auto brings it is still exciting and engaging for the risks it takes and overall over-the-top approach that is has got away with.
Just Cause
Introduction
After seeing the magazine preview's of Just Cause I knew I had to get myself a copy. I'm a loyal fan of the Grand Theft Auto series and when I found out this would be similar with much better scenery, tense action and vast landscape to discover I had to purchase this extremely anticipated release.
You are the flamboyant Rico Rodriguez, an undercover CIA agent sent into the San Esperito, to overthrow the corrupt government. This amazing South American island is jam packed with amazing scenery and vast open land to discover but don't judge a book by its cover. On landing on the Island you enrol in an exciting shootout on the white beach, I found this fun and although it was a little too easy I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Corruption...
San Esperito is suspected of stockpiling WMD's and it is your mission to find and stop them from tempting a full scale world uproar. Just Cause offers you more than you could ever expect. Not only does it have beauty in its landscape but the map itself is colossal and it isn't to long until you realise it. Like Grand Theft Auto you will have an array of different vehicles at your disposal with easy access, from cars, watercraft and even aircraft. The driving is pleasant and although in other games driving from a to b can be like watching paint dry, Just Cause offers you a variety of different routes and ways to get to your destination.
Just CauseThe graphics are breath-taking and it isn't long until you realise you're playing a Next Gen game. The cut-scenes and movies are very realistic and gives you a good framework on what to do in your next mission without needing to look at the tips that come up on your screen, that I thought, was indeed what all games need. The island consists of 1,225 sq. miles of road, cities, mountains, beaches, jungles and villages which you can freely explore by land, sea and air. No game has ever given the player this level of freedom and simplicity towards the hardest of tasks. I completed the game in 1 night and although I was glued to my 360 for the whole 6 hours of play I have never completed a game with so much ease and if I was to pick a downfall for it then that would be one of them.
Storyline...
The main mission in Just Cause is to take down Salvador Mendoza; it is quite a short storyline and can be easily completed in less than 6 hours. There are rarely any big turning points in the story line and can become rather boring unless you use the many ways in which to approach missions. Nevertheless I found the missions and storyline satisfactory as a whole and would certainly recommend the game to someone who wants a quick but interesting experience of a Next Gen game.
Crazy physics...
The game has certain characteristics and mechanisms of Pursuit Force (PSP). Hanging from helicopter tails and jumping from tail to tail is highly un-realistic but surprisingly fun to do. After a few missions, you get hold of a grappling gun, which you can use to hook onto vehicles from a hundred metres away or so. Once you grapple onto your chosen vehicle, your parachute will deploy, this way you can parasail behind the car whilst being pulled, this sometimes doesn't last very long though and you're soon back on the ground waiting for another car. Another way you can use the grappling hook is by grappling helicopters and planes while they're in the air, this way you can 'skyjack' them and take control of the plane/helicopter.
Using these techniques of getting around the map will take some getting used to and will often result in a certain death or painful loss of health which is never inviting. The most preposterous example of this defiance of physics is the ability to jump back and forth from your helicopters/planes cockpit to the stunt position on the helicopter's tail, each time jumping right through the spinning propellers. You can go directly from a high-speed vertical freefall into a stunt position on a vehicle near by, even going in a direction completely off course to your momentous free-fall as long as the car you want to jump to is near by.
Once you master these techniques it can be used to a great advantage although it looks ridiculous most times. Grappling on to a passing car, hi-jacking it and driving up to the top of a cliff where you jump to stunt position out the door to the top of the car whilst it drops into the jungle below you deploy your parachute and land in the tropical
Caribbean waters leaving satisfaction smothered on your lips.
Conclusion
The sheer capacity of things to do in San Esperito is enormous and usually overwhelming, a definite buy if you need a game with beautiful scenery, tense action and sheer enjoyment. I recommend this game to anyone who wants to test out a Next Gen 360 game. The game overall is a great enjoyment and is certainly one for the GTA fan, although in some ways it doesn't have the atmosphere and humour Grand Theft Auto brings it is still exciting and engaging for the risks it takes and overall over-the-top approach that is has got away with.
|
Name: Just Cause Publisher: Eidos Developer: Avalanche Studios |
|
Audio: 70% Gameplay: 83% Graphics: 95% Lifespan: 60% Overall: 80% |
