Kane and Lynch 2: Dog Days - Limited Edition (Xbox 360)

I played the first installment of this game which was pretty well universally slated and loved it. Although this game faired well in previews and slightly better in reviews it was still regarded as a bit crappy by most.

I really enjoyed this though and the co-op mission and multiplayer made it totally worthwhile. Great story, great selection of weapons - good cover system. One of the best things for me is the overall polish and the inventive style used throughout the game - youtube, mobile, security camera videos.

For the price you can get this now you'd be silly not too!

This game is a letdown, as the brilliance of the first three hours degenerates into a real 3rd rate stinker.

The selling points for me were Shanghai at night filtered through Michael Mann's action sensibility and a cheapo DV camera. Brilliant! For a while, the developers deliver 100% on this concept. The night stuff opening the game is amazing - it's a mad chase through the backstreets of Shanghai, and the sound design, visual design and action are just superbly wrapped together. I played it with my mouth open the whole way. The story moves on to a daytime highway shootout, then into a multi-storey car park - again, brilliant, with the echoing gunfire pulled straight out of the Michael Mann realism playbook.

But after one more trip through shanghai at night, the story starts to funnel you through ugly generic hotel corridors, and that's pretty much where it stays. My overwhelming impression of the game, then, is not of shanghai at night, but of being stuck in a non-descript hotel somewhere. A real, real shame. They threw it away.

The gameplay is great, for a while, but you never have the feeling of mastering a system, the way Gears of War rewards precision and timing. Overall, the hit detection is poor (by design, they say - in which case they should have killed their darlings, it's just annoying), the shooting starts to feel muddy, and the AI is dumb. Enemies take position and wait. Duck hunt all over again.

The characters are good fun in theory, but have nothing to do but slaughter everyone in sight and complain. The game's ending is hilariously abrupt, it almost felt like they wanted the player to get angry. They succeeded.

Tried multiplayer, it's okay, but there's just so much better out there....

Rent it.

I found many reviews of this particular title to be quite inaccurate, more often than not exaggerations, and to be honest, bias. I found one review that gave it 3/10, which is just absurd, the game is worth far more than that just on it's visual merit, so please pick the right reviews to read.

I didn't take to the first game, it had very dated graphics and poor shooting mechanics which killed the experience for me. Lo-interactive have really stepped up their game here, improvements all round from the weapons handling , cover system, to the very realistic looking visuals.

Presentation
The visual style brings a very unique, refreshing look, but more importantly an atmosphere and real intensity and grit to the entire experience.

Story
It's dark, disturbing and also simple, which is just what I like. I just don't like over complicated stories in video games; no matter how epic they are, so this was great.

The Weapons
The Guns are plentiful, and well varied from silenced pistols,sub-machine guns to shotguns and assault rifles. The sounds are meaty, and add real heft to the weapons. They also feel perfect in handling, yes perfect, with a good amount of recoil, so that shooting actually requires a little bit of control to hit targets accurately

Multiplayer
Fragile alliance, undercover cop, and cops vs robbers are something which I have always wanted to do in game, and finally it's been done, and done very well indeed. The game modes will inject you and your mates with total paranoia, greed and distrust, which makes for hilariously tense game play. One of the most distinctive and fun online games I have played in a long time. The only problem is sometimes getting into a game quickly can be a problem.

Co-op / Single player
I thought this was genuinely entertaining, however play it on extreme. It's quite tough but more of a challenge and makes the game last longer, as it's a little shorter than what I expected. That said, the length works well for the scenario, as dropping in locations just to stretch the experience out would simply dilute the narrative and drama, it's about quality, not quantity. There isn't a massive amount of co-op actions to perform, just the basics; lifting shutters, kicking doors, climbing walls etc.

Combat
The combat is streamlined with little variation, but remember this is a crime shooter, not a military shooter; you literally move to cover and shoot, using everyday objects such as acetylene bottles as makeshift explosives. There's no hand held mini-guns, mounted grenade launchers, night vision goggles, flash bangs, thermal scopes for a reason, and it never pretends to offer them. Basically if you like over the top gameplay, this is not for you. This is purely about the gun fights.

Cover System
I actually found it to be one the most responsive, less complicated systems out there, which is one of the main reasons why the game works so well. Your character moves to the correct cover, moves in and out of cover swiftly all at the touch of a button. Furthermore, the cover actually covers you!

A.I
The A.I seems solid, they use cover constantly, some pushing slowly forward as others attempt to keep you engaged. Other enemies will attempt to flank you from alternate routes.

Summary
With all the cinematic intensity of a Michael Mann film, Kane and Lynch 2 is a dark, obscene and gritty experience which is definitely catered toward the more mature gamer. It has one of the most entertaining and original multiplayer's I have come across, and features an intense, if not a little short, co-op campaign. As for it's visual direction it's nothing short of genius. So is it worth £10? Are you kidding? Do you really want me to answer that? Go buy it! DO IT!