True Crime: Streets of LA

"An excellent alternative to Grand Theft Auto!"

When True Crime: Streets of LA was released in November 2003, there was mixed reactions. It was almost exactly like the Grand Theft Auto games that had came out way before. Most people thought that it was a great alternative to GTA.

Now, there is one genre of videogames that was recently started, only in 1999. That would happen to be free-roaming, or sandbox games. Those are the video games where you can go wherever you want and do whatever you want; whether it be bad or good. You get to steal cars, kill cops, run over people, and wreck havoc across the place. The TC games and GTA games both fit in that genre of games.

Storyline: 5/10

You are Nick Kang, a former cop. You are trying to find out why your father died. You go around LA to have shootouts and karate fights with random bad guys. It all happens too fast, and nothing is explained well enough. The cutscenes are sometimes funny and amusing,

Graphics: 8/10

Some things in this game don't look that good, but others look great! The cars look detailed, have realistic reflections on them, and even have license plate numbers! But the pedestrians and people look blocky, and their heads are pretty much boxes with noses and mouths. You also might want to look at the sunset while you have the chance.

Another thing you might ask 'how do the streets look'? If you want to see for yourself, you can look at some screenshots of this game. If you would like it described in words, then read this. Sometimes you will see some advertisements, billboards, and signs when you are on the streets. They look cool and make the streets seem more realistic. But what about the pedestrians? Since there is only 10 different models of each sex, you will see the same ones walking around all the time. It is like everyone is a clone! Where is the diversity!?

Sound/Music: 8/10

There is music that plays when you are driving a vehicle. You can not turn it off, or even switch the song! All of the music that plays is rap. Since rap is not good to begin with, it seems even worse when you have to listen to it if you are driving. NONE of the rap songs that play are well-known, and actually none of them were released on albums or CDs previously. Voice acting and sound effects are well-done and sound realistic.

Gameplay: 8/10

The gameplay is very similar to the gameplay of any of the Grand Theft Auto games. You go around the streets, shoot people, and steal cars. Except this time, you are a cop!

You gain points if you kill or arrest criminals when patrolling the streets, and you lose points if you shoot innocent people. You can use those points to buy health refills, weapon upgrades, and new cars. The point system encourages people to play good.

The control system they put in does not seem to work out well. Instead of having one kick button, one crouch button, one shoot button, they instead put in something where you switch modes. So, in shooting mode, you would use button # to shoot. But if you switch to karate mode, you will use button # to kick. That makes things a lot more complicated than they need to be. Not to mention, it gives you more things to remember.

Overall: 8/10

True Crime: Streets of LA is a fun pick-up-and-play game. You will give the disc a spin and cruise the streets of LA as long as you desire, with not much on your mind except on how to catch the drunk driver. The plot is a bit shallow, but that does not make it not fun to play. It is like a Grand Theft Auto game polished up a bit. Considering how much free-roaming fun this game offers and its small price tag, TC: LA is definitely worth every penny you pay for it.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 06/22/06