Just Cause

An open-world sandbox game on a fictitious island.

Just Cause is an action-adventure game set in an open world sandbox environment. It was first created by Avalanche Studios, and is the first game in the series. It is a little like the 3D versions of GTA mixed with FarCry.

A CIA Agent That Has To Overthrow The Government

You play as the CIA agent Rico, and you can explore the island, which includes the beaches, forests, cities and even under the water. It is a lush place full of interesting features and is good fun to explore despite a few repetitive areas.

What Are The Missions Like?

It is a sandbox game, which means you can explore and find missions to play and tasks to do. Some of the missions progress the plot and the story, but most are there for something to do. There are hundreds of missions, and many of them are fun, but there are a few that are quite similar to each other. This is not a deal breaker, nor is it something that is particularly negative.

The Story Missions Are Lots Of Fun

The smaller tasks and side quests may be repetitive and may grind on some people, but if that is the case, then you should take up the main story quests. They are far more complex and different, and there is a lot of enjoyment to be pulled from them if you have the free time to get through them. There are plenty of twists within the game and the storyline, which makes playing the story missions more rewarding.

The Grappling Hook Is Brilliant

One of the best features of the game is the grappling hook and stunt mechanism. For example, you can jump out of a plane and grab another flying vehicle and be pulled along, or you can latch onto a car and fly behind it with your parachute up. You can unhook yourself and latch onto another car to follow that too. It is very entertaining, and it allows you to jump from helicopter to car and into the sea.

What About The Vehicles?

There are lots of vehicles, which includes boats, planes and helicopters. Getting around the island is a lot of fun. It is a shame that more isn’t done with the vehicles. For example, when you hop into the monster trucks it would have been nice to be able to crush things as you drive. Also, if you drive your car into the sea then it explodes, but if you fly your plane into it then you can move underwater and take off again, which doesn’t make much sense. Hitting solid objects with your vehicles is not very entertaining because you just stop dead.

Pros

• A very entertaining game
• Graphically, it is not bad for its era
• Getting around the island is easy
• The grappling stunt is amazing
• The story missions are good

Cons

• There are a few bugs in the game
• The vehicles have the potential to be more fun
• There is only around six hours of story mission(s)