Be Prepared to be Wooed
| Platform | OVERALL |
|---|---|
| PlayStation 3 | 9.00 |
| Overall | 9.00 |
|
Licensed games suck right? Yes, indeed they do and have ever since E.T. The Extra Terrestrial for the Atari 2600, but there have been licensed gems of games that come along that make the most of their license by embracing their subject completely and using the uniqueness of an intellectual property to make the game better than it otherwise would be. John Woo Presents Stranglehold is such a game, perfectly suited to the third-person action shooter that it is. Though it would be natural to suspect that the game is based on a movie it is not. At least not directly. Stranglehold was made under the close direction of John Woo, and as widely reported, he considers the game to be the sequel to his film Hard Boiled. Actor Chow Yun Fat's image is used (brilliantly) as that of the protagonist adding to the cinematic feel of the game's presentation. Like the films it is based on, the visual impact (represented using the Unreal Engine) is greater than that of the story which follows typical action film themes such as kidnapping, betrayal and revenge. Even so the game succeeds in always motivating the player along to the next plot point. The visuals in the game are strong, with gloriously destructive environments that traverse tropical islands, metropolitan penthouses and slums. There is a strange visual glitch involving baskets of fruit in the first level which was off-putting and a shame since every other aspect of the games visuals were flawless, I mention it only so that upon seeing it you are not distressed for what follows. The play itself is mostly unvaried involving clearing areas of enemies using one of the two guns you are able to carry. While the levels themselves are linear they are wide, in that while you are ultimately getting to the end of a level there are many different paths to follow within each levels. At the end of each level you will face a boss-like challenge which are always impressive in their visual impact and variety. The artificial intelligence of all enemies is above average as are their various reactions to damage depending on where they are hit. Play is made even more interesting by giving the player three shooting upgrades which are earned over time by pulling off skillful kills. These upgrades start with a precision shot (rewarding the played with bullet point-of-view and skippable impact cinematic), "barrage" which enables you a brief few moments of invincibility and extra lethality and a spin-attack in which you see Chow Yun Fat firing while spinning, clearing the area of all enemies. With all of these gun-play gymnastics Stranglehold has been compared to the Max Payne series of games. In reality though the Max Payne series was built in large part on the directorial styling of John Woo who invented "bullet-time" and many of the other visual effects that series uses. Fans of third-person shooting and action gaming will find no fault with Stranglehold, an enjoyable game with delightfully diverse settings, compelling play and plenty of destructible eye-candy along the way. |
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Posted by aspro Sun, 12 Apr 2009 02:33:37
Mon, 22 Jun 2009 03:51:38
Detailed review.
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