Sleeping Dogs for PS3
Price: Rs 2,799
Welcome to Hong Kong's underbelly, a bizzaro world where you, Wei Shen, an undercover police officer, have to infiltrate the ruthless Sun On Yee triad and take them down. Being an open world game you have to forgive us for comparing the game with the iconic Grand Theft Auto. Many pretenders have come and failed - does Sleeping Dogs hold its ground?
To begin with, Sleeping Dogs differs from Rockstars' famed game in its captivating John Woo-like cinematography. Also this game doesn't let you wander around the city freely in the initially stages. This is a good thing as you get to focus on your basic combat movements. It is quite evident that the hand-to-hand fight moves are influenced by Batman: Arkham City's "Freeflow" system which makes it easy to defend against a flurry of kicks and punches from Wei. Also there is a counter attack option making fights real rather than just a random busting of skulls. The gamemaker has worked extremely hard to ensure the street fights are as realistic as possible. You can use whatever object lies close by as a weapon.
If blazing guns is your style of play, you might feel let down. The action is sluggish and you have to adjust to it gradually. The stand-out feature of this game has to be when you're behind the wheels. The racing cars handle responsively and drift the way they are supposed to. Each feels different in terms of handling and even in weight difference. Plus, the feedback is mindblowing. With GTA, all cars felt the same.
The single biggest party pooper in this game is the restrictive camera view. It can be tilted, but it automatically repositions itself to the centre so manoeuvring a car in tight spots can be tricky.
This game gets an interesting experience-point system. This is divided into three parts: Triad XP, Face XP and Police XP. After each mission you earn points that help you upgrade your disarming skills and combat manoeuvres. If you go on a killing spree and gun down innocent people then your police points will suffer, so play sensibly and use aggression when needed. Face XP helps you get snazzy cars, better clothes and even people around you look at you with respect. There are plenty of side missions like street racing, carjacking, gambling, street fighting and even dates with hot. All this rewards you with points.
BAG IT OR JUNK IT? Among the best in open-world games. And driving is a better experience than in GTA.
