Just Cause 3 on PS4 review: Does Rico's latest destruction derby fly or frustrate?

WHEN I was growing up there were a few things I wanted to be when I was older – an F1 driver, a world famous writer and, of course, a Hollywood action star.

 

Just Cause 3 can be a frustrating experience

 

Watching a diet of 80s films like Die Hard and Lethal Weapon made me daydream of what it would be like to be a haggard, one-liner spouting hero who saves the day against all odds.

Now, as I have reached adulthood, my desire to become the next John McClane has significantly reduced and the closest I get to thrill-seeking is going outside on a cold day without my jacket.

Which is why Just Cause 3 seemed like an ideal game – letting me live out my fantasies of starring in an 80s action film but all from the comfort of my own living room.

In it you play Rico Rodriguez, a one man dictator destroying machine who returns to his old idyllic home of Medici to find it run by the evil and power hungry General Di Ravello.

Like all the best bad guys, he is intent on world domination and it’s up to you to stop him.

 

Regions have to be liberated from the dictator’s stranglehold

 

Thankfully, Rico is armed to the teeth without enough gadgets to turn him into a one man army.

Key to this is the grappling hook – which not only can be used to help Rico travel large distances but can also spark huge levels of destruction.

Explosives can be sent flying towards gas canisters, enemy vehicles can be pulled towards each other causing a crash, or you can even pull yourself towards an enemy helicopter and blow it up mid-air.

Like its predecessor, the much loved Just Cause 2, the game prides itself on making sure virtually everything in the game can be destroyed.

 

Huge explosions level buildings with pieces falling around you in some of the most impressive destruction physics seen in a game for years.

It’s a huge thrill when you’re in the middle of a gun fight and you manage to cause utter carnage and take out streams of enemy forces and their vehicles by destroying a few nearby gas canisters.

The island of Medici is a vast place to explore. A staggering, massive map which is divided up into different areas General Di Ravello controls.

As you progress, regions have to be liberated from the dictator’s stranglehold – which involves destroying certain things like military bases and police stations he controls.

 

This is where the issues in the game first become apparent.

While the liberation missions are a destruction filled blast at first, it quickly becomes a repetitive task as liberating one region is much the same as another.  

Likewise, the main missions which are unlocked after liberating regions suffer but due to a different issue - clunky controls which are difficult to get to grips with.

Those Hollywood blockbuster style moments where you take on and destroy streams of enemies are difficult to replicate due to the vast array of button inputs and poor enemy AI.

Taking monster trucks to new heights... pic.twitter.com/pKOjyPXfv9

— Just Cause (@justcause) December 15, 2015

 

As a result of the clunky control system, main missions where you are stacked against huge enemy forces can be difficult to beat and often require multiple attempts.

Just Cause 3 currently also suffers from a number of technical issues, including slow frame rate, bugs where enemies disappear after retrying missions and extremely long load times.

The latter often happens when you try to restart a mission, leaving you with an excruciating long-time where you stare at the screen doing nothing.

Coupled with tricky missions where you need to repeat it multiple times to beat it, it becomes a real issue.

When Rico, explosions and @KasabianHQ come together… https://t.co/dcGGpjE1MH pic.twitter.com/jwqJgzHT7x

— Just Cause (@justcause) November 19, 2015

 

Developer Avalanche Studios are currently working on a patch to fix these performance issues but a release date has not been announced yet.

Just Cause 3 is a difficult game to review.

It has the potential to be a great game – one which in moments is an adrenaline filled joyride that can be exhilarating to play.

If a patch was released which fixed the technical issues and improved the clunky controls then Just Cause 3 would be an easier game to recommend.

But it is currently let down by a number of major issues which more often that not make it a frustrating experience.

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