Review: Just Cause 2

Game: Just Cause 2 (2010)
Genre: Action (Sandbox)
Developer(s): Avalanche Studios, Eidos Interactive
Publisher(s): Square Enix
Platform(s): PS3, Xbox 360, PC (Windows)

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Rating: 7.5 out of 10
Pros: Vast sandbox, spectacular graphics, intuitive controls, large selection of vehicles and weapons, varying types of missions.
Cons: Limited story telling, limited upgrade system, recycled cut-scenes (but skip-able), lack of mission rewards.
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    Just Cause 2 revolves around Agency agent, Rico Rodriguez, as he is heli-dropped into the South-East Asian island of Panau. Panau, a former US ally, has recently undergone a shift in power and now is under strict military rule. Rico allies himself with the leading gangs of the island in an attempt to gather information and loosen the military's stranglehold over the island's innocent inhabitants.


    Now, I'm not sure if the game is called "Just Cause" or "Just Cuz", because the main premise of the game is to cause as much chaos on the island as possible by destroying military property and disrupting military operations. Apparently, the reasoning behind causing all this chaos is to gain the gang organization's trust in an attempt to gain information. What it actually feels like, however, is that you are blowing stuff to bits just because you can. Mechanically speaking, causing chaos enables you to progress through the main plot by unlocking agency missions, expand gang territory by unlocking faction missions, and unlocks new equipment through the black market.


   From the very beginning of the game, Rico is a proposed badass. He leaps from helicopters or buildings without a moments hesitation, takes on the entire Panauan military single-handedly, and is the buzz of the gang world. He is armed with a retractable grappling-claw, which can be used to traverse the game's terrain, yank around enemies, and solve some puzzles. As a side note, you can also use the grappling claw to avoid falling damage. I am not sure how the physics work out here, but apparently yanking yourself faster toward the ground while free-falling allows you to land on your feet, completely unscathed. He also has a limitless supply of parachutes, allowing you to grapple-glide your way around the island. Of course you could also hijack a car, truck, helicopter, boat, or plane in order to get around, but piloting vehicles can be a tad twitchy at times and it is more scenic to just glide around the massive island.


    The game's sandbox environment is freaking massive. You could literally spend hours just traversing the island and taking in the scenery. With several modes of transportation, there is practically nowhere you can't explore.


    I did, however, notice a few bugs here and there. Random object floating in midair, a few pathing issues, some graphics clipping. I would have liked to see a little more clarity in the game's story telling, though. And it would have been nice to buy more than one thing at a time from the black market (having to endure the obnoxious cut-scene each and every time you use it). Otherwise, the game is crazy fun, especially if you love to just jack around. The graphics and environment are spectacular, and combat can be a challenge at times.

    Over all, I would recommend devoting a weekend or two to playing this game. After playing this game for about a week or so, I had only about a 30-35% completion score. The lack of multiplayer functionality kind of deters me from purchasing the game, but otherwise there is tons of stuff to do in the game and countless hours of gameplay to be had, so you may have to rent it twice.

Review: Super Mario Bros.

For my first review, I will start off with a game almost everyone is familiar with...

Game: Super Mario Bros. (1985)
Genre: Platformer
Developer: Nintendo EAD
Publisher: Nintendo
Platform(s): SNES

   While the main premise behind the game isn't immediately evident, you eventually learn that brothers Mario and Luigi are on a mission to rescue the captive Princess Toadstool from some dragon-like monster (later to be known as Bowser). The game has no dialogue or narration, so from playing this game for the first time, you would have no idea that the evil mushroom dudes were called Goombas, that the evil turtle dudes were called Koopas. that the boss of each level was named Bowser, King of the Koopas, or even that you were traversing the Mushroom Kingdom. It is not until later games that these things are described in greater detail.

   The goal of each level was rather simple, traverse each level by running, jumping, and dodging while collecting coins and power-ups and aiming for a high score. If you collected 100 coins, you would gain an extra life. If you collected a red mushroom, you would grow bigger (or the world would grow smaller, depending on which hallucinogenic mushroom you took). If you grabbed a fire flower, you could shoot balls of fire from your arse.. er.. hand. Obtain a flashing star and you would turn invincible for a brief time. Get hit while you were big and you would shrink. Get hit while shrunk and you'd die. Die, and you'd return to the start of the level and lose a life. Lose enough lives, and you'd have to start the game all over again. As far as I could tell, getting a high score had no apparent reward aside from a slight feeling of accomplishment. Each level also had secret bonuses, which would award you with extra coins or extra lives.

    The levels themselves didn't vary too much, with several aspects of each level being recycled in future levels. After completing three levels in each world, you would face off against Bowser. The goal of each fight was simple: grab the magic axe to cast the dragon into the lava (loony toon style). Each boss fight varied in the obstacles you had to dodge in order to reach the magic axe. As a side note, I would just like to point out that the magic axe never reappeared in any future Mario games... After completing all eight worlds, you'd finally rescue the seemingly ungrateful Princess Toadstool. (Seth MacFarlane's Mario Parody)

    To say the least, Super Mario's gameplay was, to sum it up in a single word, unforgiving. That is to say that your mistakes had severe consequences. A mistimed jump would send Mario diving into the void (or on the castle levels, the "spaghetti sauce of doom", aka lava), cause him to collide with an evil mushroom or turtle, or singeing his Italian buttocks with fire; resulting in a dramatic, yet comical death.

    Despite how frustrating the game can become (maybe because I suck at it), it is undeniably fun. At the time of its release, it was innovative, which made it an instant classic.

From a design perspective, I would have liked to see more narration or story telling during gameplay. If the game's setting was spelled out on its box, then I couldn't see it as I don't have the box. Without the  game's story being presented throughout the game, the immersion factor just wasn't there.

The Beginning...

So recently I decided to start publishing my reviews of the video and computer games I play. The reasoning behind this decision is two-fold: 1.) To strengthen my writing, reviewing, and quality assurance skills, and 2.) To create works for my portfolio. What you can probably expect from this blog are my reviews of the video games I play, my views on new and upcoming games, and possibly just my random thoughts and rantings about anything game related.

I would first like to start off my blog by thanking you, the reader, for taking the time to check this out. I will try to make these reviews as informative, professional, and entertaining as possible. If you guys have any games you would like me to review, just let me know.

The gaming consoles I own are: PS3, Wii, PC, PsP, and Nintendo DS. So that means I can't review Xbox-only games. If you want me to review old-school games, I might be able to find an emulator version of it somewhere.


With that, you can probably expect my first review within the next couple of days, so stick around!