The beloved, unofficial sequel to True Crime comes up on 10 years without one of its own
Square Enix. A company known for as many classics as it is clangers. For every Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy sequel it feels like another gets canned for failing to find the dollar signs that these storied franchises do. Even when they are on to a winner. Their recent Embracer fire sale which included Eidos-Montreal demonstrated that, I mean Guardians of the Galaxy was great! Sure the pandemic and lukewarm reception to Avengers humbled the sales numbers but reviews were amazing, it will get more eyes on game pass and it even won awards. That didn’t stop Square from side eyeing the game’s profits during an earnings call which, as we know, is an was an unofficial announcement that there would be no sequel before the studio was included in the sale.
Which brings us to arguably, my least favourite decision from Square Enix. Canning Sleeping Dogs and it’s short lived plans for a sequel in 2013. Ironic given the original was a planned sequel to another classic series: True Crime. Square acquired the publishing rights minus the name from Activision and what was to be dubbed True Crime: Hong Kong became Sleeping Dogs.
Now, it’s forefather, True Crime: Streets of LA was a cool new approach to an open world game in 2003. You weren’t just a rampaging gangster ( I mean, you could be), you were an undercover cop and the game world reflected this. Missions were mixed with police jobs and side quests that gave you a real sense the player was being pulled in two directions. One mission your shaking down a shop owner, the next you are chasing a mugger down an alleyway, using your martial arts prowess to get the upper hand in either instance. New York did much of the same without focusing as heavily on the fighting element and it showed in the reviews. This stutter is what gave Square it’s “in” to buy the rights to the proposed sequel.
However, rather than follow the trajectory of the True Crime Series, the now shuttered United Front had an ace up their sleeves. 18-year old me had no clue what was coming, the marketing must have been grim because there was no way me, at peak gaming age hadn’t heard of a GTA-esque open world, beat em up with guns!? HOW!?
The story puts you in the shoes of Wei Shen, a former Hong Kong Resident who moved to the US to become a cop and get his sister away from the life of drugs she was wrapped up in. You come home to kick unruly amounts of ass and go undercover as a member of the Sun On Yee. You use a childhood friend: Jackie, as your way in and work your way to the very top of the Triad. Out of the gate, the story is leaps and bounds ahead of it’s True Crime predecessors, setting up an epic fight for Hong Kong and reinforcing it with some of the best voice acting choices in a game to date.
You aka Wei Shen are voiced by Will Yun Lee, best known as Takeshi Kovac in Altered Carbon as well as Sang Ming in Hawaii-Five-O. Rush Hour royalty really gives it an authentic feel for the genre as Jun Tao and Consul Han (Tom Wilkinson and Tzi Ma) show up. Liu Kang (Robin Shou) himself voices Winston’s juiced up side kick, Conroy. Legendary James Hong of Kung Fu Panda fame is Uncle Po. Every five minutes you ask yourself “where do I know that voice?” and it really emphasizes the Devs love for the genre they are building this world in. I mean even Lucy Lui and POST Superbad Emma Stone appear surprisingly briefly, as a popstar and love interest. The story and cast has clearly been assembled with care and it shines throughout the game.
If the story was carefully crafted the gameplay was a true labour of love. The open world is far more alive than some open world entries we see today. The streets of Hong Kong as bustling with people, open shops, street vendors, karaoke bars, massage parlours, most of whom react to you constantly. The fighting is far from mashing the square button, it has the Arkham Asylum flash and counter system with a little more bone crunching and in some cases impaling some poor triad on a pallet full of swordfish. It never feels like a chore as you constantly learn new moves at your old Dojo, though I wonder how the place keeps any students when you show up once a week to break six of their legs. The combat was so satisfying I felt like Obi Wan when a pistol was first put in my hands. That doesn’t last long though as the game just decides it’s adding Max Payne Slow Mo to the gun fights. Granted this has aged the worst of the gameplay mechanics but it's basically the same snap to cover style as Uncharted, common for the time and above average for an open world game. It just feels like anything the Devs have ever loved from any game, ever, has some representation here. I mean the GTA influence is obvious but not only does the fighting and Triad story mirror Yakuza, it has identical Karaoke mini games, love interests and food joints with ability buffs around every corner.
True Crime’s influence is everywhere with “cop jobs” having more depth as you go undercover, hack cameras and bust drug deals. You can also keep doing side jobs as a Triad which is anything from stealing cars, escorting criminals, join fight clubs, debt collection, race through the streets of Hong Kong, even drive a truck full of chickens into the harbor for insurance money. It just feels like a love letter to open world games as well as the martial arts genre itself. Want to run around Hong Kong in the famous yellow and black of Bruce Lee? Check. Want to become Donnie Yen from Legend of the Fist? IP Man? Check. If you aren’t a student of culture and gaming is all you know… Adam Jensen and Agent 47 make an appearance.
The Lead Gameplay designer himself, Steven Ferreira, said as recently as February this year that he’d love to see a sequel and the project “holds a special place in his heart” during a conversation with Gaming Bible’s Mike Diver. Sure, we got a “Definitive edition” in 2014. I played it to death. However, at a time when gamers are looking towards Square with a raised eyebrow after shifting Deus Ex, Tomb Raider and SOUL REAVER, it’s safe to say they could use all the good will they can get. Waking this Sleeping Dog may go a long way.
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