You start by creating a custom avatar, then recruiting a minimal team of mercs – each with their own stats, gear, personalities and weekly salaries then go straight to work. Your team is inserted into the Omerta village, where the army is about to assault the rebel hideout. You are to clear the initial sector, deliver your letter of credentials to Fatima, a local contact, and be led to meet the rebel leader.

Your dialogue skills will be used for the first time here, giving you the chance to recruit rebels into your squad and place the sector under your control, making it clear that JA2 offers much more than “just” an incredibly deep tactical combat.

After Omerta, you gain acess to the world map and can plan your next steps. There's the “normal” route of liberating the town of Drassen, gaining control of its resources and assigning your mercs to train a militia that will defend it from Deidranna's army (you can also find the local helicopter pilot and weapons dealer there). But you can try alternative routes, especially during a replay. A 7.62 mm bullet might stop you, but the game won't.

In each of the main sectors you also get to indulge in a bit of RPG exploring and questing. Benefits can lie hidden in any cupboard or dialogue option. It's where the kindred spirit with the Fallout series is most evident in JA2 – whether you fight for cash in San Mona or rescue a hooker from a brothel, quests are fun, rewarding and not at all politically correct.

Depending on how close you get to the capital, or how irate Deidranna gets with your actions, the game throws at you a range of enemies, rising in difficulty from “yellow shirts” – the local police –, to army “red shirt” regulars, and ending with the “black shirt” special forces, who bring everything to the table: snipers, LMGs, mortars, even tanks.