Did you know Rico's birthplace? Well it's about Medici, a fictional archipelago whose landscapes are strongly reminiscent of those of the Mediterranean coasts in general, and of Corsica in particular. Life being well done, Medici has fallen for a few years under the yoke of General Di Ravello, a dictator like our hero likes to bring them down. But we will not dwell too much on the details of the scenario, which obviously does not have much importance. Just like its predecessors, Just Cause 3 is to be taken as a pure action game, populated by caricatural characters who would not look out of place in an 80s film, from the Z series moreover. Let's remember all the same that the treatment applied to Mario Frigo, Rico's childhood friend, and Dimah Al-Masri, a disturbed scientist, is relatively interesting, and that we generally appreciate seeing them intervene in the cutscenes that punctuate the missions. main. Besides, the French version, although a little overplayed and lacking in southern accents, is generally quite good. Nevertheless, the story boils down to bringing down an evil dictator, who is at the head of gigantic deposits of Bavarium, a powerful ore with mysterious properties. Not enough to rack your brains, but that's not what we're here for. Besides, the introductory scene of the game sets the tone, nag and explosive, since we find ourselves directly immersed in the action. Your first few minutes will be spent controlling a Rico poised on the wings of an airplane, firing missile launchers at installations below! Thereafter, the rhythm remains sustained since the progression in the adventure revolves around the liberation of villages and military bases, liberation which is obtained quite simply by destroying the various installations of Di Ravello (propaganda trucks, high -speakers, tanks, transformers, silos, statues bearing the effigy of the general, satellite antennas, etc., all suitably tinted red in order to be quite easily identifiable.
RICO, HOME, RICOCHE
Obviously, many weapons and military vehicles are at our disposal to explode all this. But sometimes destruction is just a phone call away. No, we're not referring here to the rebel delivery system, which lets you instantly drop any (previously unlocked) gear anywhere, but Rico's grappling hook, which isn't just for him to move with speed and velocity. It is indeed possible to use this grapple to connect different objects together, then to retract it in order to bring these different elements closer together. Concretely, we can just as easily attach a cow to a wind turbine blade, tow a car out of gas or even propel an enemy into the skies by connecting it to a rocket, as send an explosive barrel on a tank, lift a sliding door or bring down the lightest military installations. With a little imagination and preparation it is therefore possible to overcome enemy bases even when you run out of ammunition.
But in parallel with the destruction, an open-world such as that of Just Cause 3 must also offer a quality exploration component. And from this point of view we are served...
This freedom of action reinforces the sandbox aspect of the game, which never takes itself seriously. But in parallel with the destruction, an open-world such as that of Just Cause 3 must also offer a quality exploration component. And from this point of view we are served, since in addition to the grappling hook and the parachute already present in the previous episode, Rico is now equipped with a wingsuit, thanks to which he can hover in the air. But the best thing is that these three accessories can be combined with each other. From the ground, we can therefore launch the grapple on a high ledge, trigger the opening of the parachute just before landing in order to gain height, continue with the opening of the wingsuit in order to begin gliding, s hang temporarily but regularly with a grappling hook on the ground or nearby walls in order to restore speed to the winged suit, and re-trigger the parachute from time to time to avoid crashing miserably on certain decorative elements. After a short period of adaptation, you manage to link all these movements with fluidity, and therefore to move at very high speed and with agility, like a real uninhibited Spider-Man.
VERY FREEDOM CABRON
It's obviously very pleasing but, in return, we find ourselves abandoning most land vehicles, which do not support the comparison. Admittedly, some scripted missions, timed challenges (almost mandatory since they allow you to unlock additional abilities) and random events force us to use them, but in the end, cars and other motorcycles fall by the wayside in this episode. Even though they are numerous, and more manageable than in the previous parts! Good point on the other hand for the level design, which relies heavily on verticality and which therefore allows the permanent use of Rico's three miraculous accessories. From a technical point of view, the game blows a little hot and cold. Very beautiful from a distance, but far enough from being beautiful up close, Just Cause 3 displays splendid Mediterranean landscapes as soon as we gain height, but never dazzles us when we are on the ground. Moreover, we are never given the opportunity to visit the interior of the many buildings present on the islands. This does not prevent the developers from imposing many long loading times on us as soon as we leave the exploration itself (launch of a main or secondary mission for example). Another disappointment is the lack of a true multiplayer mode, even though the Just Cause 2 community managed to create one a few years ago. It will be necessary to be content with simple online rankings, which will nestle into the most innocuous actions (greatest distance covered with a grapple, highest height reached by parachute, number of enemies killed in a few seconds, etc.). For this, the game regularly tries to connect to Square Enix servers, which can be annoying when you don't have a very stable Internet connection. Despite these few small flaws, the balance sheet remains extremely positive. And if it is still far from being at the height of a GTA 5 for example, Just Cause 3 still becomes the best Just Cause that has ever seen the light of day. And that's already a lot!
