G4TV

You're forgiven if you blew off Just Cause 2 up to this point. After all, the first game didn't exactly set anyone's world on fire with its slapdash combination of open-world gameplay, Mad Libs-awful dialogue, and the cultural obliviousness toward its Latin American setting that didn't seem to extend beyond straight-to-video action movies and repeated viewings of Scarface.

And then something surprising happened. Jake Gaskill got a chance to check the sequel out, and it's fun. It looks like Avalanche might've learned from its mistakes while producing a game sandwiched halfway between two console generations. I'm suddenly interested in Just Cause 2 thanks to blurbs like this one:

"A quick note about the game’s all-new grappling hook mechanic: it’s awesome. Not only can you use it to pull yourself to any surface (or pull any movable object towards you), you can also use it to pin objects to each other. For example, you can stick an enemy to a pressurized canister, shoot the canister and send the guy rocketing into the air."

Show of hands: how many of you out there don't like grappling explosives onto enemies and sending them sky high? Go check this out <span class="tooltip-content"> <span class='tooltip-tab-wrapper active' onclick='tooltiptab(this);'><span class='tooltip-tab Wii'></span></span> <span class='tooltip-tab-wrapper' onclick='tooltiptab(this);'><span class='tooltip-tab DS'></span></span> <span class='tooltip-active tooltip2 Wii'><div class='tooltip-name'><a href="http://g4tv.com/games/wii/52427/barbie-horse-adventures-riding-camp/index/" title="Barbie+Horse+Adventures%3a+Riding+Camp">Barbie Horse Adventures: Riding Camp</a></div><hr /><span class='tooltip-column'><ul> <li><h6>News</h6></li> <li><h6>Previews</h6></li> <li><h6>Review</h6></li> </ul></span><span class='tooltip-column'><ul> <li><h6>Videos</h6></li> <li><h6>Screenshots</h6></li> <li><h6>Cheats and Walkthroughs</h6></li> </ul> </span><div style='clear:both;'></div></span> <span class='tooltip2 DS'><div class='tooltip-name'><a href="http://g4tv.com/games/ds/52426/barbie-horse-adventures-riding-camp/index/" title="Barbie+Horse+Adventures%3a+Riding+Camp">Barbie Horse Adventures: Riding Camp</a></div><hr /><span class='tooltip-column'><ul> <li><h6>News</h6></li> <li><h6>Previews</h6></li> <li><h6>Review</h6></li> </ul></span><span class='tooltip-column'><ul> <li><h6>Videos</h6></li> <li><h6>Screenshots</h6></li> <li><h6>Cheats and Walkthroughs</h6></li> </ul> </span><div style='clear:both;'></div></span> </span><div class="arrow"></div> !

The rest of you, read Jake's preview!