True Crime - Streets Of Hell A (True Crime - Streets of LA (PS2))

Member Name: mattydalton

Product:	True Crime - Streets of LA (PS2)
Date:	10/01/04 (335 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Take you anger out on a video-game, Highly playable

Disadvantages: Sometimes dodgy camera angles

I'll start with a disclaimer in that I am reviewing the X Box version of this game, but there was no category available for it. That is why it has been posted here. Right then, formalities out of the way, I will begin.

"Hell has been unleashed on the City of Angels by merciless gangs. The only hope to restore order is an out-of-control ex-cop whose unconventional methods leave him rejected by the police and feared by criminals. Drive, fight and shoot your way through 240 square miles of LA and a branching storyline where you never have to repeat the same mission twice."

That's what it says on the back of the box. Now let's see what I say.

The Stars of the Show

Nick Kang

Having recently been suspended from duty due to his brash manner and repeated use of excessive violence the lead character, Nick Kang, has been hired by the E.O.D. (Elite Operations Division) as their first field agent. His recklessness is the quality that has gotten him the job, as this division takes into account his arrest rate. He is highly skilled in martial arts, handles a gun as if born with one in his hand and drives like a taxi driver who is on something.

Wanda Parks

Wanda is the chief of the E.O.D. and is the woman responsible for putting Nick back on duty. She has been in the job for over twenty years and commands respect from all quarters. Well aware of Nick's reputation, she is willing to put her job on the line as she knows he is the only man for such a dangerous job. You could say she knows he has got the balls that no one else has.

Rosie Velasquez

Once involved in the underground world, Rosie is a reformed character and her experiences on the wrong side of the law are often very helpful. She also knows how to handle herself. Having heard of Nick's rep, she is a bit worried for her safety when partnered with him.

Upon starting the game you see a video introduction see
ing Nick being hired by Wanda,
and then you have to do some shooting practice. With this out of the way, you are free to play the game in any way you want.

Once in the car, there are several icons displayed on the screen and it is just as well to learn their meanings sooner rather than later. In the top left of the screen there is a car damage icon. Basically, the more red, the more damaged your car is. If it starts flashing then its time to get a new car, or drive to a garage to have it fixed. This costs you reward points which will be explained below.

To the left of the car icon is Nick's health bar, which needn?t be explained, and to the right is your ammo bar, again self-explanatory. Below the car icon is a distance meter, which shows how far you are away from a suspect you are chasing.

On the top right hand side of the screen is your enemy's car icon. This shows how damaged their car is with the same principles as above. Below this icon is your tail meter. This shows the distance between you and the enemy that you are tailing, not chasing. It is colour coded to show you if you are too close, or even falling too far behind. To the left of the enemy's car icon is the 'spook' rating. This shows how spooked the criminal is by you. Once all the question marks turn grey, they will do a runner.

The bottom right hand corner shows your rewards points and badges. By being a 'good cop' and solving crimes with minimal casualties you will earn reward points. For every 100 reward points you are awarded a badge. If you are a 'bad cop' and kill civilians you will lose points and badges.

Next to the reward points and badges icon is your good cop/bad cop rating. Unlike most games, if you are a bad cop, you can get a minus rating, which can take some time to turn positive again so be careful. As the game progresses, the story will altar depending on how good or bad a cop you are.

In
between these two icons is the civil unrest meter. Depending on how you play the game the city may become disgruntled with the way in which you operate, and can even start riots if you are too forceful. Keep an eye on this bar if you want to keep the public happy. In extreme situations the civilians may even sporadically attack you.

At the centre of the screen along the bottom is a countdown timer when you are on a specific mission. To the left there is a mini map showing the surrounding area, with a compass neatly included, handy if you are trying to get somewhere in particular, but don't want to have to keep pausing the game to see where you are.

Contained on the mini-map are several icons. These include icons for your next mission destination, a green arrow/dot, the location of a crime, a small red dot, the location of an enemy car you are in pursuit of, a large red dot, garages, a yellow gas pump, health clinics, a yellow cross, your garage, a yellow P, a 24/7 shooting range, depicted by a blue target icon, a 24/7 gym to hone your martial arts skills, a blue barbell, and a 24/7 driving test location, shown as a blue car.

Upon pausing the game there are several options you can choose from.

Stats

Under this menu you can find out almost anything you want about your performance throughout the game. A record is kept of how many arrests you have made, how many street crimes you have either attended and arrested the culprits or how many you have decided against chasing or if they have got away. You can also find what upgrades you have unlocked, such as better fighting moves, shooting upgrades and extra cars you have earned for your garage.

City Map

Not much explaining needed here. This is a map of LA showing your current position in the city. It also shows major highways, yet disappointingly doesn't show the location of 24/7s or garages etc..

Controls

Like most games, you do not
have to stick to the controls set, but I have not bothered to change any of mine. I have been happy so far with the default ones.

Left Trigger - Get in or out of a vehicle
Right Trigger - Shoot. If you hold this button for a second or two, you can use the manual aim facility
White Button - Block when fighting
Black Button - Reload your gun
Y Button - Jump when on foot, or look behind when driving
B Button - Grapple in a fight, handbrake when driving, pick things up
A Button - Kick in a fight, take cover when in stealth, or accelerate whilst driving
X Button - Punch when fighting, brake/reverse when driving
D Pad Right - Gun mode on foot, siren whilst driving
D Pad Left - Fight mode on foot, horn whilst driving
D Pad Down - Centre camera on foot, rear view while driving
D Pad Up - Return to normal mode on foot, car camera toggle
Left Stick - Movement on foot and in car
Right Stick - Look around or change your target

Within the control menu you can activate inverse aiming where up is down, down is up, left is right and right is left. You also have the option of toggling the controller vibration on or off.

Audio

You can adjust all settings related to audio. You can toggle between Dolby Pro Logic II, stereo, mono or muted outputs. Also here you can change individual sound settings such as the music, sound effects and voice volume. You can decide whether you want to play a continuous mix selection of tracks, purely cruising tracks, fast action tracks and slow action tracks. You have the option here to select which songs you do or don't want to be played.

Radio Dispatcher

Here you can decide if you want to hear all crimes broadcast over your radio, or if you would prefer you can just keep an eye out for the red dots instead.

Display

You can toggle between high and low resolutions, depending on the quality of your TV, there is also an option for
a wide screen view. Also here you can change the radar type. A rotary radar turns the mini-map as you drive round corners and a fixed radar means the map stays still. Subtitles can also be toggled on or off.

Like most games, if not all, the pause menu also gives you the opportunity to have a look at the credits and see who was involved in making the game.

Right then, back to the in-game features.

24/7 Facilities

There are three types of facility which are driving, shooting or fighting. By completing the set challenges you earn upgrades in the relevant departments. To take part in these challenges you need to forfeit one of your badges, which you can only acquire by being a 'good cop'. Therefore, if you are a 'bad cop' you will not be able to earn upgrades which kills the enjoyment if you ask me. To earn these upgrades you either have to pass a shooting test, a combat test, or win a street race. By completing the combat tests, a whole host of new moves are unlocked, including some pretty cool finishing moves.

All in all I think this is a very well made game. It struck me at first as being like GTA, but you were the cop instead. Having played it for some time though, I quickly realised it is much superior. The soundtrack is huge and of a very good standard if you are into rap or r n b. At certain points of the game you have to follow strict missions, and time targets, and at others you can go on patrol in a free-time scenario. The graphics are sharp and although the camera angles can be dodgy sometimes, I find the controls and the playability to be far superior to games like GTA. If you asked me to give this game a rating I would say 93%. There are a couple of niggles, but mostly it is an enjoyable and entertaining experience.

Summary: