Just Cause 3: a highly anticipated game for many gaming enthusiasts. A game that crosses numerous platforms, contains a massive open-world, and a multitude of objectives. Any Just Cause fan must be elated by the demo- I however am not a Just Cause mega-fan. In fact, I have never played the series before. This interesting approach to a first impression is just that- my first impression of anything Just Cause. 

First off, the great thing about the demo is that there was no direction nor time limit. This model gave me the chance to fully explore what I want to do. If you want to walk around the mountains, go for it; if you want to hijack a motorcycle, be my guest; kill some dudes with guns, don’t give it a second thought. I chose to go for some less “risky” activities.

The gameplay runs extremely well. There’s no delays, obvious glitches, nor  vastly awkward moments. Controlling the character seem very straightforward and natural. Being someone, like I mentioned earlier, who isn’t a “shooter” guy, I quickly was able to play at a competent and enjoyable level. In full transparency, I didn’t really get into too many gunfights, but when I did, it was fun and exciting. The other aspects of the gameplay ran just as smoothly. Hijacking machines, climbing the mountains, and swimming in the ocean were all fun little tid-bits. One item that I found very intriguing was the grappling move where you can hook to almost any item and quickly maneuver to the location. I had a LOT of fun with this just being silly and seeing how far I could push it.

Graphics were unsurprisingly impressive. The colors, visuals, and NPC characters were highly sophisticated and continued to push the limits. In addition, the score offered numerous realistic sounds and accentuated high tension moments, further allowing players to get immersed in the experience (playing with great headphones also helped with this).

The one thing that I wish I learned more about was the storyline- the short time I played offered nothing to my curiosity on this matter.

Overall, I found myself forcing myself to stop playing. There was so much more to do in the game, but I wanted to make sure others at NYCC got a chance to play (that and I wanted to stop flaunting my noob-ness).

Just Cause 3 is set for release on December 1st for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. If I were to get a PlayStation 4 this holiday season (hypothetically of course) you can bet that I’d be picking up Just Cause 3 as well.

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Follow Harry Loizides, an Executive Editor, through his life of video games, obstacle races, and other adventures with Instagram, Twitter, and IGN.