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Honour is his code. Vengeance is his mission. Bloodshed is
his only option. Take on the role of Inspector Tequila from
John Woo's influential action film, Hard Boiled starring
Chow Yun-Fat. Engage your enemies with intense cinematic gun
battles and cause massive environmental damage in real-time
or revolutionary slow-motion Tequila Time...
Action
director John Woo presents Stranglehold, a 3rd-person
action adventure video game and a sequel (of sorts) to Woo's
action movie Hard Boiled. Chow Yun-Fat reprises his
role as Inspector Tequila by providing his vocal talents for
this game.
Gamers'
take on the role of Inspector Tequila, a take no-prisoners
cop waging a personal war against Hong Kong crime lords. Tequila's
loyalties to the force are tested when his ex-wife is kidnapped
by the Russian mob in Chicago. Tequila struggles to balance
his duty to uphold the law with doing what it takes to save
his family.
Stranglehold
is a pretty impressive game, and one that you'll certainly
come back to time and time again even after you've finished
it. The story is pretty impressive and seriously blurs the
barrier between movie and game.
The
game is your standard 3rd person shooter, but with a few frills
tacked on. You start the game with no real abilities, other
than Tequila Time (which for a short amount of time slows
the action down to allow you to quickly target and take down
multiple targets). Eventually you can unlock four action abilities.
There's the power to heal yourself; Precision Shot (where
you can take out your target in one hit by being able to line
up in your sights enemies that are far away or in hard to
reach places); Barrage Attack (for a limited time you are
indestructible and your weapon is more powerful than normal);
and finally there's Tequila Bomb (where you spin 360 degrees,
taking out everyone in your immediate vicinity).
To
gain enough power to use these abilities you need to earn
power points by take out your enemies. You are marked on each
one for originality and accuracy - for example take out an
enemy in one shot while rolling towards them on a trolley,
or diving through the air, and you are likely to receive more
power points than if you just run at them spraying bullets
everywhere.
The
environments are pretty impressive too. I've heard the term
"truly destructive environment" before on numerous
games and very rarely does it live up to the promise. Stranglehold
handles this much better than almost any other game I've played.
And it's sometimes fun just to run around and see what happens
when you shoot things for the sheer joy of watching walls
crumble before your eyes. Items are so carefully constructed
that I got quite a bit of fun out of blasting some of the
statues in the museum - watching bits fall off and finally
crumble to dust. You can also use this to your advantage against
your enemies. Hit a wall near a shooter, and they will protect
their faces - allowing you to shoot them while their guard
is down.
If
there's one complaint it's that you do feel as though you
are being led through the game - there is very little option
to really explore your environment as you are shepherded around
the levels. However,
those who love 3rd-person shooters will find this pretty impressive,
even if it is a little over priced.
Darren
Rea
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£37.49
(Amazon.co.uk)
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£39.99
(Play.com) |
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£39.99
(HMV.co.uk) |
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£37.99
(Game.co.uk) |
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£42.49
(WHSmith.co.uk) |
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£35.93
(Asda.co.uk) |
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£35.93
(Thehut.com) |
All prices correct at time of going to press.
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