Just Cause 2 Multiplayer

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Bolo finds this pleasing, but she would like more.

Just Cause 2 Multiplayer is a modification for Just Cause 2.

Just Cause 2 multiplayer jethud — Type "/jethud" into the chat to enable the jet HUD.

Summary

While JC2 multiplayer is technically a mod, it's less of a modification and more of a face-lift of the entire game. The mod removes the base game's artificial intelligence and story elements, leaving only the island itself. However, objects from the game's files including vehicles, character models, weapons, effects, and dynamic audio can be spawned in to the game world at will. This leads to the creation of scripts by server owners who are able to put these objects to use. The vast majority of servers feature the classic freeroam script, which very basic by itself, though things like vehicle/player spawns can be added to the server's scripts folder to make the freeroam experience feel more like the one featured in the testing stage of development.

Differences from the full game

It should be noted that JC2 multiplayer sacrifices Just Cause 2's sense of progression and features an "everything is unlocked from the beginning" type of gameplay experience on many servers. However, a sense of progression once existed to a limited extent through a currency system that was implemented during the beta testing stage. Today progression exists primarily in roleplay and survival servers. The concept of introducing parts of the game to players all at once is a steep contrast to those upheld in the base game, which saw players being introduced to various gameplay elements incrementally rather than all at once.

Vision

A game developer in reply to a post questioning the implementation of teleportation: "Because people blowing each other up or driving cars into each other, rather than spending most of their time driving to their destination, tests way more features, is more likely to cause crashes and stresses the server."

The developers' primary concern has always been testing new possibilities and moving from one stage of development to the next. The beta testing stage was strictly intended to collect feedback for the developers to use as new versions of the mod were produced, and though one might argue that the beginning, middle, end, or the entirety of the testing stage was superior to the final "product", the point remains that the testing stage was intended to help move the mod closer to its eventual release. Presently, the developers intend to continue adding features, though the process of doing so has changed as the mod has been released.

History

2010: The idea for a multiplayer mod for Just Cause 2 came about when Trix, the mod's lead programmer, envisioned Just Cause 2's game world packed with other players while playing the game's demo version before its release. He and his friend jaxm had worked on the multiplayer mods of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas in the past. Just Cause 2 in its released state was seen by Trix as a perfect opportunity to use his acquired knowledge of multiplayer mod development to create a mod like no other; one that would see players packing an entire island nation, rather than just a small city as was seen in the Grand Theft Auto multiplayer mods. Trix began development by attempting to reverse engineer Just Cause 2. Unfortunately the developers of Just Cause 2 offered no official tools with the game's release, so Trix had to use those created by Rick, an experienced game modder who, in creating this set of tools, had spawned a fan-made Just Cause 2 modding website. Trix, jaxm, and a few of their friends recorded videos of Trix's progress and posted them on the mod's YouTube channel. It should be noted that some of the earlier videos of the mod have been set to unlisted. The mod's website first appeared for a brief time in 2010, but was taken down until 2012 when the mod resurfaced.

2011: In mid to late 2010 the developers of the mod disappeared and were not seen again until June of 2012. Whoever was managing the mod's YouTube channel at the time stated that their current goal was create an artificial stream-in distance so more than just a few players could occupy the map at once. Soon after these claims were made the team vanished and was not seen or heard from again until 2012. Few know that during the year 2011 a second team based in Germany began attempting to create their own version of the mod, posting a few sync tests on their own YouTube channel. Before the revival of Trix's mod, they even opened a website for their mod and released its source code to the public. When Trix's mod returned they gave up as their progress wasn't even close to that of Trix and his team. The lead developer of the German team has spent over 6,000 hours on the website of Trix's mod, making him the person with the most time spent online out of all the registered users on the JC2-MP website.

2012: On June 16th of 2012 the JC2-MP YouTube channel released a video entitled "JC2-MP - We're Back!" to the surprise of the unsuspecting community. The developers ran many public beta tests throughout the year, during which they collected data, crash reports, and community feedback to improve stability and add new features. This stage of development saw the implementation of a custom UI which featured name tags over other players' character models and the notorious chat function. Unlike in the "We're Back" video, the name tags used in the public betas didn't utilize the tags that are built into Just Cause 2's UI due to a limitation regarding the amount of tags that could be displayed onscreen at once and the overall difficulty of tying in the UI of the mod into that of the game itself. The this stage of the mod's development (early to mid 2012) is considered by the mod's dedicated community to be the pinnacle of the mod's development, being the stage during which fans of Just Cause 2 got together to test a highly broken and out of sync mod that held itself together just enough to remain functional. On August 11, 2012, the most successful beta test was held. It peaked at 1,800 players at once before a limitation was implemented within the server and client that prevented the mod from ever seeing more than 1,600 concurrent users again.

2013: As development progressed the community expanded, and by 2013 the mod's website had substantially increased in overall activity. Fans of the mod flocked to the forums and IRC channel to discuss upcoming features and the mod in general. During this year the mod's developers became increasingly busy with their lives outside of JC2-MP, so it was largely the community that kept the mod relevant throughout the year. During this stage of development the developers synchronized vehicles' stunt positions, added more color to the UI, and much more. The developers also scripted simple game modes to spice things up during public beta tests. These scripts also allowed he developers to test the possibilities of custom scripts on servers at the mod's eventual release. Some notable highlights of the mod's development during this year were the community organized roadtrips, dreadmullet's new racing script, and the beta version of jaxm's extensive game mode "The Battle for Panau", which was hosted alongside the normal freeroam server during a beta test. and In late 2013 the developers announced their plans to release the mod to Steam to the surprise of the community. Following this release, Steam and Avalanche Studios put Just Cause 2 on sale very often to attract attention to the mod, and it definitely paid off. These sales along with the growing popularity of the mod on YouTube led many people to buy Just Cause 2 exclusively for the multiplayer mod, and therefore their impression of the game would be forever shaped by their experience with the mod.

2014: While the amount of updates from the developers have been limited, this year has seen substantial growth in the field of independent server development. Since January server owners who have produced unique scripts are able to apply for their server to be highlighted on the server browser in game and on the website via this thread. From mid to late January through mid July three servers were highlighted, though recently dreadmullet's "Racing 1.0" server was replaced by "Invasion Co-op", "Gaveroid's Explore, Discover, Destroy!" and "Problem Solvers Freeplay".

2015: The announcement of Just Cause 3 was a big surprise to the developers and the rumored Steam Workshop support has still not been confirmed. The developers have not revealed any plans for this year.

Current situation

Quote from the official site: "It's finally out! Check out the links above and get yourself ready to go. There will be several servers running at launch, and the number of servers will only go up! Each server will have a unique experience specific to that server; simply join and you can be trying out something entirely different. Thanks for staying with us - we hope you'll enjoy JC2-MP 0.1.0. :)".

The latest version is 0.3.1 (Build 1390)

The same development team has started work on Just Cause 3 Multiplayer but later canceled their plans due to lead programmer Trix being hired by Avalanche Studios to bring multiplayer experiences to other games developed by the studio, and due to the time constraints which arose from that.

Known features and game modes

Enabled features differ by server. On some, players are also able to create their own features by writing their own scripts in the .lua file and loading them onto the game. Known game features and modes are as follows:

Number of players

Counting the main player, there's never more than 6 players in the first demonstration video.
A screenshot from a later time shows a total of 40 players.
The test in February 2013 involved over 1000 simultaneous players. That server could hold 3000 players at a time.
Currently some servers list their capacity as 10000 which is wrong and not possible, it is a method used to falsely attract more players, the maximum is 5000, but there's usually never over a few hundred players on any one server at a time.

Other

Originally all other players had visible green markers that showed their name and distance from the player, like a single player checkpoint marker would. Due to limitations on the amount of checkpoints, these markers were later replaced with custom Lua-scripted ones, which would show players' health and names, and allow a greater amount of customization.
Medicine cabinets are present wherever they appear in the normal game, but may not be interactable or have no effect upon use on a few servers.
Weapon boxes that could usually be found in military bases in the single player, do not exist in multiplayer due to weapons being obtained through scripted mechanics (e.g. buy menu UI). Happy Bubble Blaster can still be found in its single player location and picked up, however.
Its possible to change the character model on most servers. 0.1.4 update introduced client-side static objects which made it possible to "attach" objects to players and vehicles, allowing to add character accessories like hats and sunglasses, or visual vehicle modifications like additional turrets or parts.

The following varies by server

Not all servers use the same commands and scripts. the following is a guideline and will change depending on the server you are connected to.

/ commands

There are various commands that allow the player to perform various actions. These commands can be used by being entered into the chat. Different servers can allow different combinations of commands and some servers have disabled them all.

"/tp (location)" will teleport you to a certain location in Panau.
- "/tp airport" brings you to Panau International Airport.
- "/tp dish" teleports to PAN MILSAT.
- "/tp skull" teleports to Pulau Berapi.
- "/tp mhc" teleports to Mile High Club.
- "/tp racetrack" teleports to Bandar Selekeh.

See the sections below for other commands.

Vehicles

H-62 Quapaw Transportation — "JC2RP" (a multiplayer server) features a H-62 Quapaw which can transport other vehicles inside a shipping container.

Each player can control their own vehicle.
Most servers use a custom vehicle spawn list put together by jaxm, which adds over 8,000 vehicles to the settlements.
On most servers players can press a specific key to boost the speed of their vehicle, which allows them to reach ridiculous speeds. The nature of the function allows most land and sea vehicles to fly, albeit without much control other than increasing thrust, this is done by holding the shift key when the vehicle is at a high enough angle. If you're in the stunt position of an enemy controlled vehicle doing this, it's advised to grapple, or parachute off immediately to avoid death. Aircraft can reach the speed of about 740 km/h, which is a realistic airplane speed.
Planes (and, for some reason, also helicopters) can have a special HUD that has an artificial horizon, shows speed in km/h and altitude in meters. By default, this is off, but it can be enabled by entering "/jethud" in the chat.
Cruise Control. Enabled using "/c #", with # being the preferred speed in km/h. Can be disabled by typing "/c" again.
As of 0.1.4, it is possible to make vehicles amphibious by creating invisible client-side object(s) underneath them, and moving the object(s) along with said vehicle, essentially preventing it from drowning. Similar can be done to players, which can be seen on some servers in form of the /jesus chat command that allows player to walk on the water.
As of 0.1.4a, client-side point lights can be added, enabling creation of vehicle underglow.
Lua scripting allows "attaching" client-side objects to vehicles, and creating special features which can vary from firing lock-on missiles and dropping bombs to tampering with enemy players' ability to use minimap and allowing teammates to respawn nearby.

Money and the store

The in-game store can be accessed by pressing "b". The store allows the player to spawn vehicles. Even DLC vehicles are available, if the player has that DLC in their normal game. The store can also let the player replace the default Rico by any other model. As of 0.1.4, it's even possible to buy hats.

On some servers all store content is free. Money is earned in different ways (note that the ways differ in different servers):

Killing players & bounties.
Destroying submarines.
Winning races.
Finding cash crates.
Completing derbies (higher place = more money, but never a 4-digit number).
Lottery. Entering the lottery ("/lottery") will contribute $1000 to the prize.
Tron Game (see the section below). Win it and get $5000.

Some servers can have a custom name for money, like "trollars".

Factions

Some servers are about players joining a faction and battling for domination of Panau. All settlements can be taken over, by a player who's at the settlement marker. This activates a timer (loading bar) at the top of the screen. Factions are also able to customize the appearance of their members and vehicles.

"/f join (faction name)" or "/f leave (faction name)" will cause you to join, leave, or create a faction (if possible in that server).
"/f goto (player name)" will cause you to teleport to a certain player in the faction you are currently in.
"/f tp (base name)" will cause you to teleport to a certain base captured by the faction you are currently in.
"/f players" will give you a list of the current members of the faction you are currently in.

Skydiving

While Skydiving, a special HUD tells the player the following:

In-flight time.
Speed in km/h (can be changed to m/s and mph through "/skydivestats").
Angle.
Distance to the ground, starting from 100m.

Races

It's possible to opt in the next race in the server (only one race at a time). The races are custom made by the developers. The limit to how many players can race is the max amount of players there are allowed in a server. In a less crowded server it's possible to have a race alone.

"/race" will enter the player into a race.

Derby

This puts players in an arena with other players to have a demolition derby. During the derby, it is prohibited to leave your vehicle. Derbies are being held in multiple locations and there is a maximum amount of players that can enter each derby. For example, "Circle Island" at X:12490; Y:30300, is only able to hold 12, while PAN MILSAT is able to hold 144.

"/derby" will enter the player into a derby.

Tron game

A tron game is when players are teleported to an arena, where they'll ride motorcycles. The motorcycles each leave a colorful sort of like a fence behind where they just drove. The fence is about 100 meters long and as tall as the motorcycle. Opposing players are eliminated when they're forced to drive through a fence. The motorcycles are set to automatically accelerate.

This event is a parody of a similar game in the 1982 movie "Tron". The event in the movie was itself based on the extremely primitive digital games of that era. In those old games and in the movie, the motorcycles were only able to turn in 90 degree corners and drove at a constant high speed.

"/tron" will enter the player into a tron event.

Nuclear submarines

Several nuclear submarines patrol Panau. The subs position and distance from you can be seen on the minimap. Do it alone or join forces with other players and try to destroy them. Money is given to each player that is involved in the attack based on how much damage they cause. Whoever gets the last shot and causes the destruction of a sub gets the most money. Be careful the subs will retaliate a shoot back with laser weapons if under attack.

Contests

Some servers hold contests and mini games. Players have the chance to win in game cash to use in the buy menu or sometimes actual PC game prizes that are normally sent as gifts through Steam.

Hacking and trolls

As with most multiplayer games, there have been a number of cases of people finding ways to bring mods and hacks into the game, to provide themselves with unfair advantages in combat.

In a few cases some players have reportedly gotten confused by the use of DLC weapons and vehicles that they have misidentified as hacking. People who don't have a specific DLC might not even see the DLC item when it's used, so for example if one player has the Agency Hovercraft and drives it around, another player who doesn't have it might just see them as operating an invisible vehicle.

In any case, if an actual case of hacking is discovered, it is rumored that they end up with "VAC bans" on Steam.