Written by: Mark

 

 

 

In this review we take a look at the sequel to the much flawed (yet still enjoyable) sandbox game Just Cause. With four years between games Rico Rodriguez returns for what promises to be a much improved sequel in every way.

 

 

The action in "Just Cause 2" takes place on the fictional Southeast Asian island of Panau which has seen it’s president assassinated and replaced by his evil son whom stops oil supplies to the US and seemingly encourages criminal activities.

 

The lead character Rico Rodriguez is sent to the island to uncover what is going on and put an end once and for all to the evil dictatorship.

 

Personally I found that the game progresses pretty well although the levels of action far outweighs what essentially is pretty light on the plotline. With this in mind it is obvious that the game is going to be all about action either through following the main story of through any of the numerous side missions.

 

 

 

One thing that I will say which is impressive is that throughout the Just Cause 2 experience everything flows far better than it’s predecessor which was let down by too much time exploring miles of empty island and unlike the first game this one focuses much more on throwing action sequences at the player rather than exploration.

 

From the very start the action comes thick and fast with the first level acting somewhat as a tutorial although setting the scene well for what is to come with the massive amount of explosions, use of various weaponry and the superb grappling hook which soon has you swinging between buildings and various moving vehicles.

 

Once through this initial introduction things never seem to let up which proves that a lot of time and effort has been put in to making the game much more enjoyable for the player despite it’s wafer thin plot.

 

 

In the original Just Cause game I felt somewhat let down by it’s overall graphical appearance. Yes the island was massive in size however it was all just too much alike with an awful lot of greenery and not much variety. This is where the developers have done a sterling job with the sequel which has improved ten fold.

 

 

The island of Panau has been superbly animated with so much diverse scenery which can be interacted with well and although enemies can look very similar it is somewhat of a joy to behold of how good the game actually looks.