Just Cause (video game)/YMMV


 * Alas, Poor Villain: Most of the major antagonists in the sequel are without a doubt complete monsters. Reading through the intel for the Colonels, however, reveals some of them to be guilty of little besides working for Baby Panay, including some that either performed humanitarian tasks under Papa Panay (saving a great deal of the population from polio), are upset with what Baby Panay's regime change did to them or are even honorable citizens. Being informed that your assassination target has multiple medals for bravery and self-sacrifice and seven children that love him dearly, or that they were responsible for rural distribution of the polio vaccine under Papa, or that they're just pissed that Baby yanked their private business out from underneath them to add to his own assets, etc. may make you more hesitant to pull the trigger.
 * One of them is even described as "the nicest man in Panau."
 * Crazy Awesome: There might be a way to take over a country without car surfing, an infinite supply of parachutes, and a grappling hook gauntlet, but that's not Rico's way.
 * Just for the record, here're an example from the second game: Jump from a helicopter and catch up with a dead guy who fell out moments earlier along with a bunch of data cards. Land on the outskirts of a military base with no weapons but proceed to single-handedly infiltrate said base anyway and retrieve the data cards, killing dozens of soldiers in the process. Then hitch a ride on the helicopter you jumped out of by dangling from it on your grappling hook, climb the outside of a pair of twin skyscrapers, and take out an enemy helicopter with only your pistols, a grappling hook, and a rifle if you're lucky. Then make your getaway in a car chase involving about a dozen military hummers while carsurfing and jumping from car to car while gunfighting. Think that's insane? That's the tutorial.
 * Crowning Music of Awesome: This little gem, which has a completely different feel from the rest of the game's Bond-style soundtrack, but just makes you want to go out and shoot people FOR THE GLORY OF PANAU.
 * Dull Surprise: Baby Panay, particularly in action sequences.
 * Ear Worm: It may be somewhat generic as far as dance music goes, but the thumping music that plays constantly around the Mile High Club will stay in your head for days.
 * Excuse Plot: Despite the rich possibilities that the game's premise has for ruminations on United States foreign policy and the heavy price of western security, the plot of Just Cause is a homage to cheesy Hollywood schlock. Why? Just 'cause.
 * Follow the Leader: The first game was designed to capitalize on suckers that couldn't wait for Grand Theft Auto IV and Mercenaries 2. With the death of Pandemic and development of the next GTA title years in coming, there was less pressure for the dev team to make a "[game]-killer" within a certain time frame, and it shows in the sequel.
 * Good Bad Bugs: It's possible to steer some cars while standing on top of them.
 * Ho Yay: It's hard not to suspect Sri Irawan may have some special feelings for Rico.
 * Most Wonderful Sound: When you complete a base capture mission, the Mooks you've been escorting start chanting "SCORPIO! SCORPIO! SCORPIO!". It serves the dual function of letting you know that the worst is now over and making you feel like the biggest Badass on the planet.
 * Narm Charm / Memetic Mutation: The entirety of the voice acting, especially in the 2nd game.
 * MY NAME IS BOLO SANTOSI
 * She even has her own soundboard now.
 * "Oh no... I hate ninjas!"
 * "Try transporting fuel now, you pipeline jerks!"
 * "Real Americans hate commies." (cutscene ends abruptly)
 * Paper-Thin Disguise: It should take you roughly thirty seconds to figure out that, and that's if you spend twenty-nine of those seconds grappling a soldier to his own vehicle and driving off with it.
 * Polished Port: Just Cause 2's PC release is quite well optimized, running much more smoothly than most Wide Open Sandbox games released this generation in spite of its massive scale while continuing to look really good, and the keyboard and mouse controls are responsive and customizable. Other developers could learn a thing or two about porting games to the PC from Avalanche Studios.
 * Sequel Displacement: How many of you knew there was a Just Cause 1 before Just Cause 2?
 * Sidetracked By the Gold Saucer: And how.
 * So Bad It's Good: Bolo Santosi's fake accent is famously hilarious.
 * At least it's good enough to end up in the local news.
 * Spiritual Licensee: For its grappling hook action, has been called a better Bionic Commando than the 2009 game.
 * Surprisingly Improved Sequel: Just Cause 1 had some nice ideas, but it was overall a clumsily-made, somewhat awkward game, and was actually that development studio's first effort. They have obviously been brushing up since then, because while Just Cause 1 could have been easily forgotten, Just Cause 2 is awesome.
 * They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot: From the sequel's outset you are ordered to hunt down and even kill Rico's mentor, the man who taught him everything he knows, who has apparently betrayed his own country. This sets the stage for a white knuckle confrontation between two equally badass superpowered secret agents with the fate of a nation hanging in the balance.
 * The side mission "Stranded" could be made into an entire game all on its own. A pilot gets mysteriously downed on an isolated island that no one visits, is always stormy, and is rumored to be haunted by demons or the ghosts of dead cannibals. You are sent to pick him up, but get blown out of the sky by something. The island is actually inhabited by ancient Japanese soldiers from World War II who think the war is still going on, and are defending their territory with an EMP superweapon. You have to disable the EMP and escape the island. So much could have been done with this.
 * Travel Cool: Your parachute and grappling hook. Yes, in Just Cause 2, even traveling on foot is Crazy Awesome.
 * It had to be, otherwise you'd be going on 20-minute drives between locations.