2.11.2020

Sleeping Dogs puts you in to the shoes of Wei Shen, a troubled undercover police officer tasked with infiltrating the Triads in order to take them down from within. Wei partly does this because it's his job but there's also a very personal reason at play, which I won't spoil, for taking down this gang, which adds a nice layer of complexity and tension in seeing whether Wei can hold it together to do the job or if his personal gripes will win over. This is then combined with Wei trying his best to do both the required police work and listen to his handler and superiors versus doing what the gang wants in order to move up the ranks and win them over, keeping that tension nice and balanced throughout the story,managing to keep me interested throughout.This is punctuated with a game that presents itself well. The voice acting is of high quality here, even by what are minor characters, and they pepper in Cantonese words and phrases here and there that make it feel more like Hong Kong than just an anglicised knockoff, and the sound effects are good too like with the way Wei's shoes tap on the pavement as you're sprinting. Visually it's more of a mixed bag however as while the environments look nice the character models do look dated even for what was originally a PS3 game. The same goes for the soundtrack as while it has a varied amount of music in it I didn't really find myself gravitating towards more than a couple of songs. There area also some issues here with subtitles being too small and unnecessarily difficult to read and cutscenes being unskippable that make replays feel like a drag, though the former is admittedly a small problem, if you'll pardon the pun.The main focus in terms of combat is melee rather than the gun fights, which makes sense since this is based in Hong Kong, and luckily it tends to be satisfying. You get a good variety of moves to start off with and along the way you can learn even more that give you more ways to dispatch enemies and that consistent evolution never makes it feel dull. Guns themselves also start showing up through the latter parts of the game, and while they too feel good to use the actual gun system seems to be deliberately hobbled in order to force you towards the melee side all the time - for instance, you can only holster small arms like pistols, and having any other gun out in the open makes everyone respond negatively to you which blocks you from doing even basic things like retrieving cars from your garage. This is emphasised further by the game often simply taking away even holstered weapons from you without any explanation, which always felt annoying.Driving is also fun. Initially it takes a little getting used to, but it ended up having a surprising amount of depth to it, like using the brakes to do an immediate about turn or using it to drift around tight corners, or even having a dedicated ram button that allows you to ram enemies and police off the road instead of simply outrunning them. Funnily enough there's also the 'action hijack' feature where you can position yourself behind a car to jump on top, pull the driver out and drive that car yourself, which very much makes Sleeping Dogs feel like a ridiculous action movie.The general gameplay does have some issues though. The map system for example is awkward since marking something on it fails to check for things like whether you're above or below what you're looking for, which can cause some confusion. Equally the fast travel system is built around taxis, but plenty of places aren't going to have any if you're off the beaten path so that option is simply gone altogether, ironically when you need it the most. The levelling system is also poorly done since you can earn XP that grants you bonuses as a Face, Cop or Triad, but the former two are too easy to get to the max level while the latter one is too difficult, so the balancing leaves much to be desired.Sleeping Dogs is also an open world game so inevitably there's quite a bit to do in the open world. Favours for example work as mini missions where you're helping someone out and are usually varied enough to be enjoyable, while Cases are even better and essentially work as a fully fledged side storyline where you're putting criminals away and helping weaken the gangs of Hong Kong like the Triads or the 18k. You can also do racing with difference classes of cars and bikes and those are usually fun to do, especially since the AI often makes as many mistakes as humans do instead of just perfectly darting around the map like in so many other games. There's also the usual collectible fare where you can find different items around the map which help you unlock things like new fighting moves or give a boost to your health, and while the collecting itself isn't particularly interesting it is made somewhat better where you can go on dates with various women and completing the ones for a each girl unlocks the locations of a certain type of collectible on the map, cutting down on the tedium of manually searching for them yourself. If the concept of unlocking those locations via dates sounds weird and nonsensical, that's because it is, but hey ho.Unfortunately there's also quite a bit of filler too. The cop job system for example just consists of the same handful of crimes taking place all over the map and get repetitive quickly, while the drug busts are always the same thing of hacking a camera, defeating some criminals, then pointing out the leader through the camera so they get arrested, and while doing these things the first couple of times is fine, it's quite boring by the tenth. There's also a stat award system that's designed with high scores in mind so you can compete with your friends or just collect trophies, though most of that either comes naturally or is just something boring like needing to drive a certain type of car at max speed for a specific cumulative amount of minutes, which just isn't interesting.Finally this is the definitive edition so it includes all of the DLC that came out after the original game too. Some of it is just things like adding new cars or side missions like the aforementioned cop jobs, but there's a few which are basically just small story driven campaigns in their own right, and those are much more interesting. There's the Zodiac Tournament Pack which is essentially a fun homage to 70s Hong Kong action movies and focuses on the satisfying combat of the main game, though it did drag sometimes as it had a tendency to make you run around on foot quite a bit to get from place to place. Then there's the Wheels of Fury Pack which has you working for what is frankly a mad scientist who is working on what is by far the best car in the game, which was fun and and it was nice seeing the car get more and more powerful as the missions went on until it was something straight out of James Bond. There's also the Nightmare in North Point and Year of the Snake stories, though for some reason they're in a separate menu away from the main game. Anyway, Nightmare in North Point is mainly just more Sleeping Dogs except this time with a horror aesthetic, so a lot of the same positives and negatives are still present, like the satisfying combat and the dull stat award system. Conversely though the Year of the Snake DLC is poor, as it takes away things like the ability to change clothes and even removes a lot of your fighting moves from the main game in return for adding useless things like a taser which does nothing except stun the enemies and lay them out on the floor for a little bit, though the story is okay.Overall though Sleeping Dogs still a good game. The quality of the open world content and DLC might vary but the core story of Wei Shen's infiltration combined with the satisfying combat are good enough to carry it through and keep the game engaging, so I would still recommend it.

9.8.2015

Sleeping Dogs is a story about Wei Shen who is an undercover cop working as a spy in a Triad gang. Game play is a combination of Wei living two lives, one as a Triad and the other as a cop following up leads learned from inside the gang. As soon as game play starts Wei is already in the thick of it, but he conveniently finds himself with a foothold in a Triad gang, and once inside he has to prove himself.The setting is a fictionalized modern Hong Kong consisting of four bustling districts. The streets are alive with local city dwellers and tourists, and the roads are policed and congested with everything from a simple moped to the fastest super car.You eventually have free rein over the entire island and to get around it from district to district you can drive a multitude of cars, bikes and other vehicles. The more money you earn you can buy your own collection which are stored and can be accessed from any parking lot and if you end up stranded somewhere you can steal/hijack any vehicle to get you to your destination, even including a double-decker bus. Driving is very sensitive, you only need a light touch on the right trigger to get around the cities, but on the freeways you can give it more throttle, although other cars on the road drive more slowly than you, so at speed you need good hand-eye coordination to weave through them. Driving around the island at normal speed gets easy with practice, but when you’re in a high-speed car chase it’s unlikely you’ll complete your objective without crashing into something and probably several times. Every vehicle has many radio stations to tune into with types of music ranging from authentic Chinese music, to cool hip-hop tracks, to indie, rock and metal music. My favourite station is Sagittarius FM which plays classic rock songs from the likes of Queen, Deep Purple and Thin Lizzy. A map and its features can be accessed just by simply pressing the touch pad on your controller where you can set a GPS route to quickly help you navigate to your mission destination, and if you want to get somewhere fast a motorbike is your best option.Once Wei is accepted in the Triad gang it’s not long before he’s sent out on his first missions to take out rival gang members using his supreme martial arts skills. As the game progresses you get to learn different fighting moves and combos, giving you a range of options to take out each opponent. You can even kill enemies by using different objects around you like mincing a hostile’s face into air-conditioning fan blades or even ramming someone down onto a pallet of erect sword fish heads… plus there are many other objects you can use around you to instantly eliminate or subdue your enemies. Sometimes in the game you are surrounded by ten enemies at once, some have knives or other weapons and some don’t. With so many hostiles against you they can easily overpower you, so it’s not a case of trying to dispatch them all too quickly. I find it’s best to take out unarmed enemies first and counter attack armed enemies and in the process try to disarm them, if you disarm an enemy you can pick up that weapon and use it against them. The weapons you get to use include: wrenches, knives, meat cleavers and even pistols to machine guns later on. As you upgrade and practice your fighting skills the combat becomes fluent, strategic and extremely enjoyable.As well as the main story there are lots of side missions to complete, which include helping people out to raiding drug operations and collecting objects around the island will reward you with money and upgrade your health meter. There’s also lots of outfits and clothes to add to your wardrobe including the legendary outfits which have special enhancements. During the game there are many different missions and events to attend, so it pays to choose the right clothes or outfit for the job or occasion. There are food stalls, shops and massage parlours around each district that will top up your health, sharpen your senses and make you feel a whole man, and you can buy furnishings from shady looking characters that will enhance your apartment. There are loads of things to do across the island over the whole course of the game like entering races, entering martial arts competitions and even karaoke.There is only one thing I loath about this game and that is simply a sound effect of an old man coughing. I don’t know why the programmers/developers have included such a vile guttural cough that every time I hear, it makes me feel sick to my stomach. On a number of occasions when walking along the pavement on the way to buy food to replenish my health or to buy a vehicle the mentioned old pedestrian walks past me and loudly coughs his lungs up in such a vile way that my response is to immediately beat up the old man to a pulp. This coughing sound effect is not just limited to a pedestrian on the streets, the vile coughing appears everywhere you go, even in nightclubs. You’ll know what I mean when you hear it, it is just disgusting.After finishing this game I ordered Grand Theft Auto V and even though it’s an incredible game, I found myself favouring back to Sleeping Dogs, mainly because of the story, the Chinese city life setting, the nod to Bruce Lee and that the characters I feel generate more warmth and likability. GTAV clocks in at over fifty gigabytes of data, while Sleeping Dogs clocks only eighteen, but even though it doesn't have the same scale as GTA it is still a giant of a game. GTA also has the edge on overall graphics, but in Sleeping Dogs the graphics are very realistic too; the cityscapes and the changes in weather conditions from the afternoon setting sun to the sudden pouring down of rain are especially convincingly lifelike. A lot of attention to detail has also been given to the cut scenes, to the vast array of cars and to Wei’s outfits. There are some graphics that aren’t so next generation, but the majority is highly detailed and a kaleidoscope of colours. Along with its DLC I have thoroughly enjoyed playing Sleeping Dogs, which is now in my top ten best PS4 games. If you haven't played it yet you won't regret making it your next title and the limited edition packaging comes with an art book and a slipcase to keep it in. Very highly recommended.

10.5.2013

"Sleeping Dogs" manages to be a game without a single trace of innovation or any sense of personality and still be an amazingly fun experience. The game has not a single shred of originality. The fighting is taken from Rocksteady's Batman games. The shooting from Max Payne. The clothes and cars from Saints Row. The story from every cheesy B movie about undercover cops with a touch of Kung-Fu thrown in. What is surprising about all this is how masterfully the developer, United Front Games, manages to tie all these elements together to create a highly satisfying mix.The fighting is visceral, brutal and so gratifying you will spend hours just beating goons up all over town. Once you learn the key to the combat,blocking, and unlock more fighting moves, Wei Shen, our character becomes an unstoppable fighting machine and its just a blast to destroy waves of enemies, breaking arms and legs and pushing people into all sorts of deadly environmental traps like stoves. Yes you can push some poor guy's face into a burning stove. Charming. Wei can also use all sorts of fun melee weapons like cleavers, crowbars, tire irons and of course knifes. In one of the final missions a machete comes into play in a most enjoyable sequence. There is also shooting which is decent enough but never as amazing as the melee. Still while the shooting is average, with the same old cover system, Wei can leap in slow motion over obstacles and rain down death with time slowed down and people just falling dead all around him."Sleeping Dogs" is just a spectacle of violence and mayhem. Even in the cutscenes the game manages to push the blood and realistic brutality to new and incredible heights. Unfortunately the story fails to engage which is perhaps the game's biggest flaw. Wei Shen is a very likable protagonist but the plot never seems to rise above mediocrity and never seems to have a clear direction. Time seems to move without the player's knowledge, relationships grow off-screen and while in the previous mission a character suspected Wei was a cop and was ready to kill him without mercy in the next mission they are best friends. Wei's rise in the triads while working undercover is also meteoric without any sort of effort to explain how quickly these hardened criminals are to trust Shen with so much and how easily he gets to the "top of the food-chain". I understand that its not fun to play as a lowly thug (yes GTA IV i'm talking about you) or to clean urinals as part of a mission (why Mafia 2, why????) but the way after only a few missions Wei has made contact with all of the triad's bosses is going too far.The main draw of SD is the open world. The missions are short, a bit on the easy side and only really pick up in the final third of the game. The rest of the missions are average mixing fighting and shooting with some car chases but without a good plot as motivation it all falls a bit flat.The open world however is lots of fun even if not original. We have the usual activities, like car and bike races and hidden collectibles which are easy to find and after a few side missions even show up on your map to help you. The side missions are also the usual stuff, like stealing cars and driving them back to a garage or maybe romance some girls in a few silly missions which fade to black when Wei is getting "the goods" and then the girls never show up again and there's no development whatsoever to these relationships. You can also do some "drug busts" that involves beating a bunch of enemies and then hack a camera with a pointless mini-game (one of many put there just to make you waste time). Then you drive home and watch the feed on your tv and point out the main dealer and cops arrest them and you get more cop xp. Yes there's an upgrade system here and in pretty much every game in the world these days. You have cop upgrades and triad upgrades but they are pointless. What you want is the melee upgrades which unlock more and devastating moves and are acquired by finding jade statues and getting them back to your old "master" to learn the moves. The cop and triad upgrades offer little value in the gameplay and are more of a "me too" feature. There are also a few police investigations you can pursue using your triad contacts and they are fun, with little plots that are actually interesting and well written but they are small side missions that end too quickly. Still I enjoyed these "cases" immensely.The rest of the features are also competent enough. The cars are more arcade than realistic and they are fun to drive and you can buy them all and have different paint-jobs. You can drive as an absolute maniac and kill all the pedestrians you wish! We all do in these games, you know it! Here the police is a small nuisance at best. You can easily escape them and create more havoc and destruction.You also acquire a few safe houses, from a dump early in the game to a high class apartment later to show Wei's rise in the triads and you can even customize them somewhat by buying some furniture but its all very basic to be honest. There are loads of clothes to buy and make Wei look ridiculous or tough or classy or just goofy. The soundtrack is Asian but not "too much" with enough international flavor. The graphics are good with a few glitches here and there, which is expected with open world games and the models are highly detailed and charismatic. Wei Shen especially was just excellent design. The voice acting is of superior quality with a special mention to Will Yun Lee which is just magnificent as Wei Shen.The city could be bigger but its full of personality and detail. I felt like I really was in Hong Kong and I think that's the biggest compliment you can give an open world game."Sleeping Dogs" is "good enough" in everything it does. You might say it doesn't excel in nothing but in return its never bad in anything. Its a game that "plays it safe". It takes ideas from other titles and reproduces them with care and competence. It needed a better story and a bit of audacity, flair and originality to reach higher. As it stands its a satisfying, fun and remarkable action game and one that i'm happy got released and that I enjoyed thoroughly.

31.12.2012

S T O R YYou play as Wei Shen, an undercover cop for the HKPD tasked with infiltrating a powerful Triad clan. Wei's role as a cop is to dismantle the Sun On Yee's organisation from within and fight against Hong Kong's Triad dominance. Things are not as easy as it seems, as Wei's loyalty will be tested by obeying the codes of his Triad's brethren, but also not forgetting that his true path remains with serving justice to Hong Kong's crime underbelly.Wei's journey is powerful and the conflict within the Sun On Yee is a strong aspect. Wei has presence whenever he is in the spotlight, and there are plenty of connections that link him to some of Hong Kong's nasty individuals.G R A P H I C S & S O U N DHong Kong is an incredibly immersive world,divided into a number of districts, jazzed up by its bright lights. The vibrant neon-lit style of the city is the strongest component throughout the experience. The artists have done an amazing job creating Wei Shen's playground. At first glance, the map size may seem underwhelming, but it serves the needs of the campaign extremely well. Each district within Hong Kong carries its own identity. The slums and working districts linger around the harbour areas, home to dangerous hobos and rotting shacks.The Sun On Yee Triad are a mean looking bunch and this is further exemplified by the stylistic character models. Wei displays great tattoo design, smothering his torso and arms. Add some cool outfits and players can create some outrageous fashion motifs. Animations are fluid and Wei reacts with surrounding environment in a competent fashion. The combat animations are extremely slick in motion, and the environmental are not only brutal, but the violent pay off is pretty awesome.NPCs go about their daily business, shopping in fancy stores, trading at busy markets and enjoying the busy nightlife. The voice acting is backed up by some serious celebrity talent, including Kelly Hu, Lucy Liu, Tom Wilkinson and Emma Stone. Sound design is strong throughout the game, especially during the hard-hitting combat sequences. The soundtrack is a mix of funky Chinese pop, backed up by a sweet selection of radio stations.Unfortunately, the presentation is tarnished by NPCs which look like plastic dolls, but this is upon closer inspection. Certain textures and surfaces can seem a little rough around the edges and jagged when panning the camera in different directions.G A M E P L A YThe story missions are varied and Wei will engage enemies in a number of brutal ways. Wei will be tasked with chasing down criminals, engaging in fist fights and raging across the streets in frantic car chases. Play style is important and will determine how your actions are affecting the city. Killing innocents and causing damage will increase your Triad points, and acting more like a 'cop' will help increase your Cop status. Players will have several 'apartments' where they can change outfits and complete certain mission objectives.The combat system serves up a great selections of martial arts moves and bone-crunching takedown. The combat system revolves around counter-attacking and timing each strike. Stringing together combos is great fun and some of the finishing moves are pure eye candy. The environments can be used as weapons, allowing to perform such carnage as smacking an enemy's head against a solid surface, or even dicing one up by forcing their head into a high-speed fan. As players progress, new combat moves can be unlocked and deadly finishing attacks will radicalise the gameplay. Martial arts clubs are available as a way of players to test their fighting resolve and go up against waves of enemies.A decent selection of bikes and cars are available for Wei to get stuck into. Vehicles can also be purchased and stored for easy access. You'll feel like a Hollywood action star when taking jumping behind the steering wheel, which allows to jump from car-to-car, going Rambo-crazy with firearms and gunning down pursuing Triad gangs. Vehicles feels sturdy and stable, which applies to both bikes and cars. Sleeping Dogs takes a more subtle approach when it comes to guns and shoot 'em up style gameplay. Firefights are usually controlled affairs, which involve large scale shootouts between Triad gangs and providing support during these encounters. Slo-mo shooting options allow Wei to target multiple enemies and dish out plenty of bloody mayhem. A cover system is also in place, but enemies can approach from any direction and make your life hell.Away from the story missions there's plenty to do, including: busting drug dealers by ridding territories of gangs, helping citizens and Triad buddies around the city, taking part in street races, and helping the HKPD track down naughty criminals. Wei will also put his detective skills by hacking surveillance systems, opening secure locks and collecting evidence to help convict criminals.The vehicle handling can feel a little underwhelming when it comes to drifting and cornering at breakneck speed. The combat system lacks the free flow quality of the recent Batman games, it's brutal, but it left me wanting more at times.O V E R A L LSleeping Dogs is brimming with content and this fictional Hong Kong has been realised to great effect. The story depicting the inner quarrels of the Sun On Yee is gripping, but support characters offer very little to the events at times. The graphics boast colour and promote Hong Kong's glamorous setting, but the texture quality needs a little more gloss. The gameplay is diverse and there is plenty to keep players occupied, especially with the adrenaline fueled car chases.

9.10.2012

A mix of gunplay, break-neck speed driving, and sandbox world exploring provides an enjoyable gaming experience here in the style of the "Grand Theft Auto" franchise. Think "Grand Theft Auto Does China"...this is what "Mafia II" really should have been.Protagonist Wei Shen is a former San Francisco cop who moves back to his native China and is pulled into helping the Hong Kong Police take down the Triads (the Chinese mafia). Wei is still reeling from the overdose and death of his sister Mimi, who was led to drugs by the very same men Wei is intent to take down one by one.Just like other games in the same vein (GTA/Saint's Row), this game is completely open world,and you can either focus on the primary questlines (tasks for the Triads, or the Police), or you can go around looking for collectables, taking down random gangs just for the hell of it, or helping people through random encounters. There are various races (both bike and car), and there are also new martial arts moves you can unlock by finding statues. Hilariously, there is also a Karaoke mini-game where you can control Wei in trying to sing some well known tracks by artists such as Air Supply and Pat Benetar (although there aren't many missions this is required). In this game, rushing is ill-advised as exploring and taking the time to participate in side-missions and expanding your skills will help much more in the eventual outcome (not to mention, focusing on the main storyline will get you through the game at a ridiculously quick pace leaving the ending feeling a little anti-climatic and you feeling cheated).The graphics here aren't exceptional, but with a game with so much content, I couldn't expect anything more. While not as graphically beautiful as GTA IV, the games' Hong Kong is beautiful and rich with things to look at, colours are rich and vibrant, and there is no shortage of NPCs wandering around to make the world feel more "alive". Occasionally, you will see the odd NPC here and there looking a little 'boxy' in shape, and the draw distance is quite hazy at times, but then, the content more than makes up for it.I've played a few games in the same style (Mafia II, GTA IV, L.A. Noire, etc) but never has the driving element felt so natural and fluid (I don't know how to explain this, other than in the other games, driving occasionally felt a little clunky and resistant regarding movement and turning corners). The only thing about driving in this game that really irked me is that there isn't any allowance to change the camera angle while driving. You CAN see behind the car by pushing down on the right stick, but however, you cannot see from above, nor the side, making it sometimes tricky with reversing in tight spots.The martial arts element of the game is excellent but not overly tricky. Instead of having the gamer learn longwinded combo keys (those who've played fighting games will know what I mean), a lot of the combos are usually based around the "square" key (on PS3, anyway) and it's usually just a case of remembering the tap sequence (for instance, tap the key, then hold it down for one move to break a leg, or tap, tap, hold to stun an opponent). I found this a much easier way to learn the special moves than sitting there hitting triangle, square, x, x, triangle in the right order). Generally speaking, the martial art element of the game is easy to learn, but takes a while to properly master (be sure to note which enemies do what to you - certain enemies can't be efficiently counter attacked for instance). Take your time and hit up random gangs and the fight clubs to give you the opportunity to learn how your enemies operate, it's truly worth it in the end.The voice acting is decent (a few characters do have rather questionable accents and sound horribly stereotypical but try to overlook it), the cut scene acting is pretty naff at times (characters move a little stiffly) but never mind.As with other games like this, there is a radio feature in the cars and on the bikes, but there isn't much to offer in the way of music on them and for the most part, it's in Chinese (no surprise there, lol). The music in the game I found to be rather unmemorable and not really enjoyable (to me anyway) but this is only a perk to the game and not really vital to the gameplay itself.To be honest, the game is exciting, and entertaining and offers a lot to keep you occupied. For people looking for a sandbox driving game that really offers similar to what GTA IV does, then this is for you (but don't expect it to be as massive, challenging and as time consuming as GTA IV all the same). Well worth the asking price and very entertaining.

11.3.2013

I was sceptical at first about this game and put off buying it, as I wasn't sure I'd enjoy it as much as the two and a half kilos of Jelly Beans I could get for the equivalent price. Luckily for me though, my girlfriend put this under the tree a few months ago and I can honestly say, I have never been so excited about kicking triads in the face. For those that also might be as coy as I once was, here is my advice for you - stop reading this review and buy the game.For those remaining few who are still unconvinced by my streams of eloquent rhetoric, here are the reasons you are missing out without this game.--Gameplay---Driving-The game is somewhat like the lovechild of Saints Row the Third and GTA4 that moved to Hong Kong at a very young age.The driving is not overly arcadey, as in Saints Row, nor is it as stiff as GTA4, but a pleasant balance of the two, leaving little to be desired in that department.-Combat-This game has a heavy emphasis on close combat, rather than gunplay, given that guns are somewhat restricted in Hong Kong, which is refreshing, but when the guns do come out of the bag the mechanics are fairly good. The close combat handles in a relatively similar way to the two Batman Arkham games, which is an incredible compliment, and as you progress, you can unlock different combat moves, which can be quite a lot of fun.-The Graphics and Physics-Not earth shatteringly wonderful, not much to say, but absolutely nothing to complain about, but the game is very vast. As a sandbox game, it's pretty good and I found very few glitches or bugs throughout. Also, the map doesn't seem to be locked at the beginning, so of the four areas, you can access the entire map if you want to straight away, which is kind of nice.--The Storyline--I'm convinced that Wei Shen may be one of my favourite characters of all time , his inner conflict is well explored and his turmoil is a fantastic exploration of the human condition, his personality one of the greatest portrayed, up there with the likes of Luke Skywalker, Dexter Morgan and the Cookie Monster. I enjoyed playing as Wei, a man with a conscience and a concern for the value human life, unlike too many of today's gaming protagonists. This said, there are still scenes of incredible violence in the game, but this is an exploration and infiltration of one of the most notorious gangs ever recorded in the history of the world, so it should be expected. The game is well balanced and explores a great deal of a world I knew little to nothing about. The storyline is fantastic, but I would like to avoid revealing anything, just due to the fact I had so much fun going in blind, any information might spoil it.Whilst I loved the game, like any game it's not perfect, there are downsides. The side missions can become a little tedious or repetitive, but that can expected with a lot of games these days.This game gave me a good 25 hours of enjoyment, and there are elements of the game that flop, (see cockfighting), but they're optional, so don't worry too much.If you like GTA, you'll like this game, perhaps even more, but if you're expecting GTA, you'll be disappointed. It's not as gritty, dark or sadistic as GTA, it's not funny, like Saints Row, but it's got a relatively original storyline, a fantastic protagonist and a great combat and driving system.If you can pick this game up for £20 it's a steal, it might even be worth a £40 price tag. I wholeheartedly recommend this game, played it through start to finish without touching another game, and a small crisis with what I was to do with my life when I reached 100% completion.I usually only leave reviews on the games I thoroughly enjoy, and of the 20 odd games of the past year I have played, Sleeping Dogs has earned that 'honour'.

10.10.2014

This was a no brainer of a purchase to be honest, having played the game on Xbox 360 and thoroughly enjoying the cut throat nature of the game, it seemed logical to get it again for Xbox One considering this version includes all added-on content that was available (24 dlc packs) in total. Granted many of them are small add-ons such as character packs but there are three main ones which include additional missions.So what is Sleeping Dogs about for those that never played the previous generation version? Sleeping dogs is Square Enix's take on an open world, 3rd person shooter and action game based in Hong Kong, think of it as a SMALL scale GTA but with a much more linier storyline.You play the part of an undercover cop attempting to infiltrate the triads that run the city. Unlike many games these days this one has a great storyline which is well scripted and many of the cut scenes are just crazy in every sense of the word. You can decide whether you want to be good or bad throughout the game and the decisions you take will affect your reputation. The whole story and indeed many of the side quests are fun and enjoyable to play including betting on cock fights or racing, when coupled with the dlc missions this game is very good value for money and I must commend them for setting the price lower than the usual £45+ that all new next gen games seem to be priced at.Graphically the game has taken a sharp upturn in quality (now in glorious 1080p), the scenery as you drive around the city is beautiful and I have to take my hat off to the developers for giving it the next gen treatment. That isn't to say that there aren't a few issues. Hair for example can look slightly blurred at the edges rather than being sharply defined in a few of the cut scenes and there are a few issues with the voice not matching the mouth when they talk at certain moments but that's a relatively minor issue and to be frank I'm nit picking, given the game is a remake rather than a new game it would be wrong to expect perfection, albeit it does come close!Hand to hand brawling is the way to survive this game as many of the weapons don't become available till later on but to be honest you don't really miss it, instead it puts a greater emphasis on not starting fights that you can't finish and remember, picking a fight with someone for no reason has an impact on your reputation. In fact I challenge everyone to play this as a good guy and make the right choices, it's harder than you think, it's much easier to let the triads slice and dice people and put them in the soup!Pros: Same fantastic storyline with good variety in the missions * All the DLC is included on the disk * Graphics look a whole lot better and the audio including the music and mix of both English and Chinese voices in the game does make it more realistic * Some of the cut scenes are fantastic to watch * Hong Kong looks beautiful * driving around is a blast * hand to hand combat Chinese style * Well over 20 hours worth of gaming here plus loads more if you want to explore and collect everythingCons: It may be open world but it's very small compared to GTA * already had a save file corrupt so make sure you save regularly and have more than one save * No multiplayer or co-op gameplay * some may argue they should be making a sequel rather than a remakeVerdict: A great remake for the next gen and huge amounts of fun to play from start to finish, the fact that all the dlc is included in the price simply makes this a bargain in my humble opinion. I was hoping they would bring in a new online section so you could roam around the streets of Hong Kong with your friends but I guess that was asking too much.A great story, good gameplay, fantastic value and perhaps most importantly, it's just fun!

2.5.2013

Having really enjoyed Yakuza 4, I thought I'd channel my Hong Kong gangster this time with a bit of Sleeping Dog action. However, whilst I didn't do much sleeping and didn't spot one dog (apart from Dog Eyes), I really enjoyed this all the same. Combat is excellent, often pretty vicious as you shove an opponents head into an air con unit for example but also improves as your skills do. The story is good (but not great) and the driving is absolutely fantastic. Your character Wei shun, is quite likeable despite his head-cracking actions as he struggles with his dual roles of undercover cop and triad. You gain respect or "face" as you complete missions or do favours for people and this brings its own perks such as new moves or groovy threads,cash and motors. Sad I know, but I was actually well pleased when my guy moved out of his skanky bedsit to a swanky apartment with valet parking. He obviously felt homesick though as he would often return there. This game isn't without it's slight irritations such as saving in one location only to re-appear in said appartment on reloading but nothing too major.The Hong Kong setting is excellent, and whilst bigger than Yakuza's slice of Tokyo it is not intimidating in its scale and getting around is aided by excellent maps and the ready availability of a huge selection of cars, taxis, buses and even boats. Gameplay is generally pretty straightforward, the RPG element is not too in-depth just limiting you to two branches in your triad/cop and face tree so you won't be deliberating for hours on how to progress. You can earn cash gambling or racing to get you faster wheels and fancy clothes to aid your climb up the cops and robbers ladders. Just three items of (clearly marked) clothing are required for a bonus set that gives you extra XP, damage or shop discounts etc set so that's pretty easy too.Being a third-person game, the shooting is a bit like Uncharted and like that game you don't get to keep your gun but its still good fun. The driving in this however is immense - each car feels and responds as you'd imagine it would, takes damage (explodes if you take too much) and gives it back to anything in your path! Hijack or buy a class A motor and you're in for a lot of fun (and smashes). I actually enjoyed the racing in SD more than dedicated racing games probably because each race has a purpose and you stood to gain from it in cash/face or character/story development. Nicking a trawler and going for a sail around the island with the 80s (English) soundtrack playing makes it worth the purchase price alone too :o)Back to Yakuza 4 comparisons - Y4 has the better story and pretty epic cut scenes but also more fluid combat IMO. The ability to use street furniture/bikes etc also made it a more fun. In Y4 however you cannot drive (anything) or change your threads but you have more offline activities including golf, fishing and the classic "sexy ping pong" which makes you feel more integrated in your environment. The SD story is good but quite generic and whilst it does does the job it has been criticised for being quite short although there are two additional (but pretty poor IMO) DLC missions. Plenty of collectables to find and a bit of grinding to do if you're a platinum hunter though in a game I'd quite happily recommend.

9.5.2013

Having really enjoyed Yakuza 4, I thought I'd channel my Hong Kong gangster this time with a bit of Sleeping Dog action. However, whilst I didn't do much sleeping and didn't spot one dog (apart from Dog Eyes), I really enjoyed this all the same. Combat is excellent, often pretty vicious as you shove an opponents head into an air con unit for example but also improves as your skills do. The story is good (but not great) and the driving is absolutely fantastic. Your character Wei shun, is quite likeable despite his head-cracking actions as he struggles with his dual roles of undercover cop and triad. You gain respect or "face" as you complete missions or do favours for people and this brings its own perks such as new moves or groovy threads,cash and motors. Sad I know, but I was actually well pleased when my guy moved out of his skanky bedsit to a swanky apartment with valet parking. He obviously felt homesick though as he would often return there. This game isn't without it's slight irritations such as saving in one location only to re-appear in said appartment on reloading but nothing too major.The Hong Kong setting is excellent, and whilst bigger than Yakuza's slice of Tokyo it is not intimidating in its scale and getting around is aided by excellent maps and the ready availability of a huge selection of cars, taxis, buses and even boats. Gameplay is generally pretty straightforward, the RPG element is not too in-depth just limiting you to two branches in your triad/cop and face tree so you won't be deliberating for hours on how to progress. You can earn cash gambling or racing to get you faster wheels and fancy clothes to aid your climb up the cops and robbers ladders. Just three items of (clearly marked) clothing are required for a bonus set that gives you extra XP, damage or shop discounts etc set so that's pretty easy too.Being a third-person game, the shooting is a bit like Uncharted and like that game you don't get to keep your gun but its still good fun. The driving in this however is immense - each car feels and responds as you'd imagine it would, takes damage (explodes if you take too much) and gives it back to anything in your path! Hijack or buy a class A motor and you're in for a lot of fun (and smashes). I actually enjoyed the racing in SD more than dedicated racing games probably because each race has a purpose and you stood to gain from it in cash/face or character/story development. Nicking a trawler and going for a sail around the island with the 80s (English) soundtrack playing makes it worth the purchase price alone too :o)Back to Yakuza 4 comparisons - Y4 has the better story and pretty epic cut scenes but also more fluid combat IMO. The ability to use street furniture/bikes etc also made it a more fun. In Y4 however you cannot drive (anything) or change your threads but you have more offline activities including golf, fishing and the classic "sexy ping pong" which makes you feel more integrated in your environment. The SD story is fairly generic but does does the job although it has been criticised for being quite short. That said there are there are plenty of collectables (and a bit of grinding) to do if you're a platinum hunter in a game I'd quite easily recommend.

23.1.2015

I'm so glad I picked up this game, I've enjoyed every part of it and for this price it's a bargain. Before buying it I was quite far into GTA V (and the Online mode) and thought this would compare unfavourably so ignored it. Certainly on quick inspection anyone would likely say Sleeping Dogs was a lesser version of GTA. But delve deeper and you find a game built on having lots of fun in a big very detailed Hong Kong map, with a really engrossing imaginative story and amazing hand-to-hand combat. It's at that point I stopped comparing it to GTA and started to see this game as very separate.I loved the undercover cop setting,allowing you to be an upstanding man of the law sent to do a dirty job and at the same time delve deep into the world of the triads and become an underworld boss. The mechanics of the game are great, driving at first seems clunky, but after a while becomes a lot of fun. The ability to drift round corners, jump onto enemy cars, ram cars right off the road or shoot out tires and watch the car fly into the air, may not be realistic... but it's a lot of fun.Combat is where this game gets even better, so much so you'll be picking a fight with just about anyone. Although it uses block and reversal ala Batman it's so much better than just button mashing. Here you can string together combo's which you learn at the dojo. You can also grapple and use pretty much any part of the environment as a weapon. Throw enemies into the trunk of a car, through windows, into air vents, over ledges. Sometimes you will be surrounded by 8-10 enemies, each with different abilities and perhaps weapons too, so patience and a bit of strategy are needed. There's also gun fights in this game, which offer a fluid cover mechanic and a nice 'slow-time' feature to pick off your enemies with precision. However the game is definitely balanced more towards hand-to-hand than fire fights.There's not a huge amount of customisable features, cars and bikes are just standard and can't be changed bar the colour. You can change your characters clothes, and unlock cool custom outfits though. Vendors around the map also sell food and drink which can give damage boosts or health boosts. Side games like karaoke, majong poker, shoalin fighting tournaments or arresting perps using surveillance offer extra fun away from the main action.Included in this 'Definitive Edition' are too stand alone DLC chapters. One has you assuming the 'cop' role to take down a cult. I thought this was average, but had its moments. The other has you fighting an evil spirit who possesses the whole of Hong Kong, I thought this was much better.Overall I really loved this game. I would recommend it to anyone who's bored with the usual Ubisoft, Activision franchises and wants something better. It may borrow from GTA but it's very much it's own game, at times (especially in the story) it far exceeds GTA V. Now I'm off for a bowl of noodles, a pork bun and then off to the cock fighting on the docks.

2.4.2013

What first appears as a cheap Grand Theft Auto knockoff turns out to be a really solid, well made, great fun game. It doesn't have the huge budgets of the GTA series (GTA: IV rumoured to have cost $100 million to make) but it looks good, rarely glitches and is very fun. There are limited types of weapons and they handle great but what you'll get most fun from is the melee martial arts combat. This handles great and evolves nicely as you learn new moves though it isn't overly complex. You can grab people and interact with the enviroment such as wall slams, throwing them in furnaces, pits and vents ect. Objects such as umbrellas, crowbars and even fish can be used as weapons.There is a minimal RPG element that allows you to gain experience and unlock new moves which is basic but addictive. Slow motion is used nicely, only activating when vaulting over walls and jumping from car to car. In terms of gameplay it is a solid 5 out of 5 and offers a wider variety of play styles than GTA: IV though the driving is not as smooth and satisfying as GTA:IV it is still enjoyable and not as bad as was initally reported. Lots of mini-games and side missions such as fight clubs, street races, collectibles, mahjong, cock-fights, dating girlfriends, Karaoke and random side missions.Visually on a technical level it is not as strong as GTA but it makes up for it with great designs. These include the rich colours of Hong Kong and by creating a wide variety of gangsters with different tattoos, hairstyles, clothing, glasses and looks ect. You can change your clothes and you have a very wide selection from punk, gangster, smart suits ect and also some special unlockable outfits based on Kill Bill, Ong Bak ect. Sadly you can't change tattoos, hair or beards which is a shame when it offers so much customization in the clothing. There are weather changes, it goes from day to night and people in the busy streets react to you.The storyline is a little generic John Woo action movie cop thriller so it has the typical character archetypes and the plot develops the way you expect. However, it has lots of great set pieces such as a funeral that turns into a shootout, speedboat chases, hunting down serial killers and sex traffickers, gangsters crashing a wedding and many others.The best aspect of the game is the voice acting and dialogue writing. Having Tom Wilkinson and Emma Stone aswell as some clearly highly talented voice actors means that you really invest in the story and care about the characters a lot more. Same goes for the high quality of writing that is consistently funny, witty, clever, dramatic and thrilling.Overall it's great fun, with lots of variety and never boring. The quality of writing and voice talent make you feel like your interacting with a Hollywood John Woo movie and you care about the characters. When the credits rolled I realised I had really enjoyed it and it was one of my favourite games of 2012.

6.9.2012

Ok, firstly, I only got to play a demo of this game last night at a friend's place. I ended up buying it just today then. Already, given how much of the game I've played (not too much at all), I can safely tell you that this game is absolutely fantastic value for money and really showcases EXACTLY what GTA IV should have been four years ago.The Plot - very interesting indeed. You play 28 year old Wei Shen, born in Hong Kong itself, raised in San Francisco. He moved to San Francisco with his family in order to try and help his sister kick a drug habit (you discover this pretty early on in-game). While living in San Fran, he became affiliated with the Triad, a crinimal organisation based in Hong Kong (and worldwide).

1.11.2012

I've been following the progress of the new True Crime game was glad to hear that somebody else had picked it up and sure enough Sleeping Dogs emerged as it's new shiny name and appearance.The game puts you into the shoes of Wei Shen, an Americanized Undercover Cop who has recently returned back to Hong Kong from the US. The undercover aspect is very much the center point of the plot with Wei having to infiltrate the dangerous Triad family and bring them down from the inside.The game plays like an open-world sandbox much like GTA and the previous True Crime games though the game itself has abandoned the whole Good/Bad Cop system and replaced it with a more linear Cop/Triad tree of abilities.

15.9.2012

First of all, as a sandbox game this doesn't offer you anything new to GTA or Saint's Row etc. but what is truly different is the unique storyline of the game. I personally loved it from start to finish and although I don't think it's a masterpiece, I can understand why Square Enix decided to save what was to become "True Crime: Hong Kong" from being cancelled by Activision and turn it into "Sleeping Dogs". IGN said this themselves that Square saw something special about this game and they were damn right!I finished the game in full 2 days of playing because of how wonderful the storyline is, something that I never got from GTA or Saint's Row or True Crime. The ending was also decent,

6.3.2013

In many ways GTA has been dethroned by this game. Sleeping Dogs is a lot of fun, and seriously addictive. It may lack the complete freedom of GTA IV (no flying vehicles available), which I guess is still considered the benchmark for open world video games even 5 years on, but Sleeping Dogs is far, far more refined with superior graphics and details, as well as featuring a much more likeable protagonist.As I began to play I felt that the game was very similar to the True Crime games. I later learned that it was actually planned as True Crime: Hong Kong, before Activision cancelled it and passed it over to Square Enix who continued to develop it as a new title. So this really is the 'spiritual second sequel'

Sleeping Dogs - Reviews

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