Just Cause 3, game review: This is shallower than a child's paddling pool

But at least it wears its dumbness unapologetically on its sleeve

Just Cause 3 sees you play as Rico, a man trying to liberate the island of Medici from a morally bankrupt dictator, and levelling almost everything you see along the way.

The main draw of the Just Cause games has always been flat out destruction, and the latest iteration has it in spades. With almost everything you can see being liable to burst into flames in an instant, including cars, buildings and livestock (probably), it's a miracle that that the locals aren't nervous wrecks, too scared to brush against anything in case it should spontaneously combust. It's hugely satisfying to set off a chain of chaos that sees an entire outpost or town going up in flames, and it rarely gets old. That's just as well, as you'll be doing a lot of it.

Just Cause 3 

£39.99
Square Enix
Playstation 4, Xbox One, PC

Rico has an arsenal of weapons, gadgets and vehicles at his disposal, and you can upgrade almost everything to the nth degree. The combination of the parachute and wingsuit enable you to navigate the huge map with as much ease as Batman in the Arkham games.

There's a story here, but it's paper thin. It's nothing more than an excuse for explosions and destruction, and really, that's fine. Just like John McClane taking out terrorists in Die Hard, it doesn't need a rich back story or multiple plot twists to justify itself.

Ultimately, the game is shallower than a child's paddling pool, but it wears it dumbness unapologetically on its sleeve. Blowing up the world in more creative ways, and spouting Arnie-style one liners as you send goons to their doom is fun while it lasts, but forgettable when it's all over. The PS4 & Xbox One versions suffer occasional slowdown, and their load times are some of the longest on this generation of consoles, so if you have the choice, PC is the platform to go for.