Stranglehold

So, the other game I have out from Gamefly right now is Stranglehold. I have been wanting to play this game for a while, and had it about midway down on my GameQ. I was hoping to nab Madden 09 or Too Human the most, but my next game fell all the way down to like 12th on my list. So I was a little disappointed. I guess that's my one major gripe with Gamefly, is that it is hard to get new games you want unless you time your returns with a game's initial release, which is what I did with Fallout 3 and The Force Unleashed.

Anyway, I got Stranglehold. This game is actually meant to be a story sequel to the movie Hard Boiled, which is directed by John Woo and stars Chow Yun-Fat. I downloaded this movie, but never got the subtitles working correctly so I didn't get to watch it. Anyway, there's some plot or something, but it probably just gets in the way of Chow Yun-Fat kicking major ass. Much like elements of this game... but I'll get to that.

So, the basic gameplay of Stranglehold is ripped straight out of Max Payne. Third-person action game with lots of guns, and you can can slow down time to slaughter people more effectively. Diving to the side will automatically slow down time, allowing you to mow down enemies in mid air, creating a very cinematic (and satisfying) effect. I loved Max Payne. It is my favorite action game of all time. It was everything I wanted in a game at the time of release (and still is really). The gameplay and atmosphere especially were wonderful. A bit B-movie, but I loved every minute of it.
Stranglehold tries to do the same thing, but misses the mark a bit. First, you face waves upon waves of enemies. I realize China has people to spare, but they will be taking a population hit here with the amount of people you kill. It is pretty fun to slaughter enemies 20 at a time, but eventually it ends up feeling like each enemy isn't some new obstacle to get around, like it felt for me in Max Payne. Don't get me wrong though, it is still a blast. Also, the game feels a bit more loose than Max Payne does. The controls aren't as tight, and it is more difficult to hit multiple enemies while diving, since you don't get as much air time. Also, you automatically slide over low platforms when you get near them. Things like table and counters. Sounds like a cool concept, but when you are in an area with a lot of these things around, like a bar, you end up sliding this way and that when you don't want to, and it's hard to aim when you are sliding at an odd angle away from an enemy. A bit frustrating, but those few times when you slide nicely across a bar, time slows down and you line up a few headshots in a row are very satisfying.

The environments are also highly destructible. Wood splinters, tiles shatter, and things explode around you in the middle of an intense fight. It creates quite a nice experience with things blowing up and shattering around you. One bar fight takes place around some tiled pillars. Think The Matrix lobby scene, which I'm sure was what they were thinking of. It was fun.

Another cool aspect is the "Sniper" ability. You don't get an actual sniper rifle, it's not this game's style, but rather you can activate an ability with any gun that slows down time and zooms in your aim. When you shoot, the camera follows the bullet (again, a la Max Payne) towards your target. You then get a nice bit where blood splatters over your enemy and you watch him writhe in agony for a few seconds before snapping back to your character. Nice.

Anyway, in the midst of all this fun in killing people and blowing things up, a snake rears its ugly head.... Gaming Conventions. I get to the second level, after the first is a straight up run to the end fight in the middle of a street/marketplace. Now I also have to destroy 10 drug tables along the way. I rolled my eyes when I first saw this. Stupid "do that, this many times" objectives. Ok, we will see how this goes. They were relatively easy to find, but I did spend some time at the end trying to find the very last one. Its frustrating to get to a point in the level that you can't get though because you haven't found everything. These lapses in action are usually expected in a game, but since the action is so heavy throughout the other parts, these portions are all the more glaring. Kind of takes you out of the intense battles. I wish they would just get rid of these altogether. In the next level, I got to the end and realized I couldn't actually finish the level, because the bomb I need to plant was back in an area that was now blocked off. Frustrating.

Another gaming convention gripe: only carrying two weapons. You start out with pistols, then eventually find the standard Rifle, Shotgun, Machine Gun, etc. But you can only carry two at a time. Why, because Halo said so? This is so stupid. I am taking 15 bullets to the face every minute and shrugging it off, but god forbid I carry more than two weapons. Come on people, Halo is not God's gift to gaming. Wake up. Halo says "Thou shalt not carry more than two weapons. Two weapons is the max, and the number of the maximum weapons to be carried is two." Stop with these stupid restrictions.

Anyway, Stranglehold is really fun to play, even if it is hampered by unnecessary game conventions. If these elements were removed completely from the game, I think the overall experience would benefit greatly. Just full on action and killing. It is good fun until World at War and Mirror's Edge next week. Funny this has taken the time completely away from Fallout.

Anyway... where the hell is Max Payne 3? Now please!