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True Crime: Streets of L.A
by Jolex Del Pilar
Sunday, May 30 2004
Nick Kang makes his PC debut, and it even has online play.
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Title:
True Crime: Streets of L.A
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Platform:
PC Windows, Pentium II 750, 128MB Ram, 1.5 GB of HD space, 64 MB video card.
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Publisher:
Activision |
Developer:
Luxoflux |
#
of Players: 1, plus online play |
Genre:
Action
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Origin:
United States
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Expected
Release:
May 2004 |
Grapevine:
True Crime on the PC is a solid game, especially with the lack of true action games for this particular platform. |
When True Crime: Streets of L.A was released on the Playstation 2 last year in November, most said it would be a Grand Theft Auto clone with little redeeming value. Most were wrong however as the game, although short, was a fun action game that featured deeper gameplay variety than GTA, as well as a branching storyline.
The story of the game follows the exploits of an L.A cop named Nick Kang. Kang is a smart mouth cop whose part of L.A.P.D's elite E.O.D (Elite Operations Division) unit. While he shoots off at the lip almost as much as with his pistols, Kang is known as the best E.O.D has to offer. Throughout the story, Kang takes on Chinese Triads, Russian Mafia, and other criminal elements, as he tries to unravel a devious plot that may be broader than he expects.
Plotwise, the game's story is structured in a mission based setting spread throughout 7 main chapters, with 5 optional chapters. True Crime's storyline, as might be implied from the previous sentence, is a branching storyline. This means that certain missions, depending on how they are completed, may swing the storyline into radically different directions. The game features three different main paths, each ending with different results to the story. I won't spoil anything here, but there are three different endings, not all of them good. The actual mission selection is fairly varied involving fighting missions of both the hand to hand and gun fighting variety. More covert missions such as sneaking into warehouses or tailing suspects are also featured. I didn't really enjoy the tailing missions so much, but they weren't unbearable. Other missions ask you to get to a certain location in L.A within a certain amount of time. These missions can be either hit or miss depending on what kind of car you're in at the time the missions begin. Usually though I was stuck in a 4 cylinder compact and sometimes missed my deadline by seconds. Still, given a decent car, the time based driving missions aren't impossible. Even if you do decide the main quest missions aren't really your thing you should remember that there are a lot of crimes occurring in a large city like L.A. and you being a cop, there are always criminals to take down. Much like in GTA 3, there are numerous mini-missions that you can partake in as a dispatcher will warn you about a possible car jacking, armed mugging, or rape happening in your general area. You can either rush to the scene, or simply go on your way. It's your choice. Completing these missions are in your best interest though as they are easy ways to get "good cop" points. Good cop points help turn your character to the "light side" of law enforcement and allow you to view the better endings in the game. Though you could slaughter every perp in the game and get "bad cop" points giving you the worst ending in the game. Most gamers will try both sides of the tracks.
L.A in its entirety is free to explore in the game.
However, most gamers won't be looking to buy this game based simply on the fact that it's a cool map interactive map of L.A. With games like True Crime, it's all about the action, the run and gun. In this arena, True Crime is a mixture of many other previous games, most notably Max Payne, Grand Theft Auto, and the aforementioned Getaway. The action missions, either consisting of gunplay or martial arts, are some of the best action sequences you'll see in a game. The gunplay missions have a distinct Max Payne/Getaway feel to them, featuring diving shots, and the ability to take human shields. When the lead is flying, it's often chaotic, and bloody, just the way we like it. One level inside a towering skyscraper had great gunplay sequences, the paper, and computer monitor pieces littered the floor. I tore through that office like an animal. Martial Arts sequences require quite a different tact however. They require patience, timing, and sometimes a little bit of luck. This is actually the one aspect of True Crime that sets it apart from GTA 3 and The Getaway. It's a complex hand to hand fighting system that forces the players to use a bit of finesse. You have to be mindful of the stance your enemy is using. If he's hunched into a low stance, go for a head kick, if he's fighting with both hands up, kick at his knees. If he's overwhelming you with superior speed, go for a grappling move and break his arm. The system is very fluid, and one might say intuitive, after a while. When it's all put together, the hand to hand sequences seem like an action sequence from the Matrix or Jet Li movie. There is some very exciting stuff here on the whole.
There is a small online mode included with the PC version of True Crime. It feature four players, one of which is "the criminal" and must outrun the other three who are cops. Chases can take place on foot or on wheels. I tried this mode out for about an hour and thought it was sort of cool, but not amazingly deep. Definitely not something that I see becoming very popular but still a nice addition.
On the visual side of things, True Crime is a great looking game. If you have the right hardware, this game looks a lot better than its PS2 incarnation, especially for you GeForce 5900/Radeon 9800 owners. The sound experience in the game is not too shabby either featuring a distinctive hip hop soundtrack from some of the industries most recognized artist including the Dogg Father himself, Snoop Dogg. Other notable artists include E-40, Westside Connection, and Bone Thugs N Harmony. It fits the game completely and I found that the developers of Luxoflux were able to merge the visual and audio experience in the game very competently, something that cannot be said for a great many games.
After you beat the game, or in between quest, True Crime actually features a sort of RPG element. You can upgrade your weapons, martial art moves, and even you standard police car. While these upgrades are needed to complete the game, they offer a nice distraction if you're not digging the current mission, or just want to explore what else the game might offer.
True Crime does have a few flaws. While it does feature a dozen playable chapters each featuring anywhere from 5-8 missions each, I still felt as though the game fell a little on the short side. I completed the game in less than 15 hours without the aid of the provided tip guide. Although I suspect others, without my magical adeptness at action games, might get a good 20 hours out of True Crime. One thing I still haven't done however is unlock Snoop Dogg, a hidden secret character in the game. That I imagine might add a few more hours scouring the city for his patented "dogg bones".
Notwithstanding the apparent shortness of the game, True Crime is a great action adventure that a lot of gamers will enjoy. It's full of action, emotion, and even instances of humor. I can't really see many gamers not liking this game unless they have some weird, almost clinical aversion, to violence, action, or hip hop music. True Crime on the PC is a solid game, especially with the lack of true action games for this particular platform.
--- Kit
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