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It’s been ages since I’ve posted anything about video games, and I really miss it…

A few months ago I bought a new video game called Just Cause 2. It’s an Eidos game released under Square-Enix (Square acquired Eidos in spring ’09). The  game stars a secret CIA operative, code named Scorpio, tasked with destabilizing a small island dictatorship. You cause chaos by destroying government property and embarrassing the military.

The story is compelling, but short, and not very robust. The voice acting is laughable, but adds value through comedy. The character you play is absurd in his super-human capabilities. I’ve played games that had all of these features before, and they suck.

But Just Cause 2 is amazing! I’ve found it’s the ultimate game for wasting a couple of minutes here and there at home. It’s also incredibly fun to sit down with a buddy or two and pass the controller around while laughing hysterically.

What did the game do right? It’s a fantastic game experience. The physics engine is so well made that it allows you to experiment in totally ridiculous ways. As I mentioned, the story and voice acting are poor, but make the game quite funny. I’m glad they didn’t make it too serious, because it wouldn’t have been as much fun to play.

There’s so many things you can do in this game, and almost all of them end in you shouting “I can’t beleive this game lets me do this!” It’s a huge virtual playground. A physics laboratory.

And the experience is amazing if you like to muck around with physics in a game. Or if you like to share a few absurd laughs with friends.

Here’s a “Race Mission” where you have to pilot a vehicle through a series of check points. In this race, you don’t use a vehicle, but rather base jump from a skyscraper. What other game lets you do that!

I finished of the video with a little highway chaos, and then shooting some bubbles using an easter egg “weapon”.

Anyways, experience is important when making games, designing apps, writing stories, organizing events, and so much more. Have you played any games that had little going for them apart from a fantastic gaming experience? Have you used any applications that you’ve used over a similar app simply based on the UI and user experience?