Just Cause - On this day

Following the success of GTA games in the 3D environment, several competitors have emerged, including Saints Row, True Crime, Mercenaries, and Just Cause, the latter of which came out on this day 15 years ago. The action-packed Just Cause was the debut game of the Swedish studio Avalanche, and it appeared on PC, PS2, Xbox, and X360 platforms.

Just Cause put us in the role of Rico Rodriguez, a Latin operative sent by the Americans to the fictional South American state of San Espirito. In that tropical paradise, Rodriguez was to lead a resistance movement that would overthrow President and dictator Salvador Mendoza. It was a simple template that didn’t change even in later games in the series.

Just Cause was not remembered for his story but the freedom of gameplay. San Espirito offered a vast territory of over a thousand square miles, traveled on foot, by vehicle, by boat, and by air. Exactly the way he moved was what set Just Cause apart from similar games. Namely, Rico had a parachute with him at all times, he could jump from vehicle to vehicle and hook himself on a moving vehicle hook while flying in the air with a parachute.

The game managed to interest players and has sold more than a million copies in three years. The rights to the series later went to Square Enix, which launched an even better sequel in 2010. Later, we got two more games, and a film adaptation is in preparation.