Dead to Rights

"Is that a target painted on my forehead??"

-Intro-
I loved Max Payne. I thought that was the coolest game for the PS2. Then, when I found out that they're making another game, based off of Payne, I was over-joyed. When I heard it was going to come out, I immediately went down to my video store, and reserved it. I didn't get it the day they said I would. So, I went to the store, and just bought it. APPARENTLY, they didn't know who I was... Video game employees... grr. Anyway, I went home, and put the game in. I watched the opening sequence. I was wowed. The game looked so cool and so realistic. Max Payne all over again, I thought.

-Story-
7/10
Jack Slate is a cop, who finds out his father was killed. Does it always have to be family members?? Why not a pet? That'd be interesting. Oh yeah... your best friend is your dog, Shadow. He can jump on the bad guys, and practically rip them to pieces. You go through different levels, fight and disarm bad guys, sneak out of strip clubs, wrestle when in jail and more! Getting bored is not an option.

-Graphics-
7/10
Good graphics. Not as great as Max Payne. This game has good color, but you don't really feel it. Know what I mean? Probably not. It's cool when shooting your gun in slow motion, to see the bullets, and them dropping to the floor. The characters look nice. I liked Max Payne's graphics a bit more, though. Max Payne had the dark, bad cop look to it. This game has more color and is more lively. I don't know... I thought this game would have the same dark-type graphics. The texturing is smooth. Nothing sticks out and you can't see anyone through walls. Overall, graphics are very colorful, just not what I was looking forward to.

-Sound-
9/10
Grab your remote and put the sound up. Bullets sounded like bullets being fired, and not like a cork gun! You can hear the bullets dropping to the ground, and making that cracking noise. Jack Slate talks through the whole game. Mostly, to himself. For example, when he wants to sneak out of somewhere, he tells YOU what to do. Also, the sound effects are amazing. I liked it when you could pick up a fire extinguisher, (I think it was that) and throw it in mid-air, then shoot it, while in slow-motion. Then, the sparks flew in the air, and it looked like I was watching a fireworks show. The music is loud and exciting. In the strip club, it sounds exactly as if you were in one. Not that I know... ;) If you're under heavy attack, the music gets very loud, when you shoot your gun its loud too. That's the time when you want to grab the remote again, and turn the sound way way down. It scared me the first time. All of a sudden, someone is shooting me, then another guy comes, the music is louder and louder... it's like each guy is bringing a boom box with them. Shadow, your dog, barks a lot, for no reason sometimes. If you want him to sniff out something, you hear his sniffing. Sound is excellent, other than hearing the music rise when you're under attack.

-Gameplay-
7/10
Again, not as fun as Max Payne. But you can do a lot more stuff in this game. For example, you can arm-wrestle in jail, make a stripper distract the bad guys while you make your escape... try to not to drown in a tank of water, and many many more. But still, even with a variety of things to do, it still falls short. You get to use slow motion, which I think they improved on since Max Payne by a bit. A bad thing is, you run out of bullets on the guns too quick. They fire so fast you won't believe how many guns I went through on one level. Maybe, I'm a bad shot, maybe not. But if and when you do run out of guns, your trusty dog, Shadow, is there to save the day. Don't think you can use him over and over again. You have to wait for him to refill his attack gauge. When he does attack, he mauls the bad guys to bits. Then, he grabs their gun, and brings it to Jack. Good boy! Have I mentioned this game is hard? Probably, one way or another. Well, THIS GAME IS HARD. The bad guys can still hurt you pretty bad, even when you are in slow motion. If you're almost down to beating a guy, you run out of bullets, then you die. I have repeated the same level again and again, just for that reason! Now, I know there can be not be just 30 bullets in a machine gun... there just can't! Another thing is, the mini-games. Some are just as hard, but others are incredibly easy. I almost broke my controller bashing the same two buttons, trying to beat the mini-game, and I still lose! My hands were so worn out, I could barely move them. The bad guys kick the crap out of you. I think they have more bullets then you do, because when I was fighting a guy, I went through three guns, and he was on the same one! Makes me mad. Well, I don't want to say anymore, 'cause that'd just spoil the game for all of you. (Even though, I think I already did)

-Replay Value-
5/10
I don't play it so much now. Maybe it's because my hands can't take it, or it's way too hard. I think both. I would rather play Max Payne. Don't get me wrong. I still like this game. It's very fun and interesting... I broke one too many controllers playing this. My mom starting to get mad..

RENT or BUY??
Unless, you have good health insurance, I'd rent this game. If you're expecting Max Payne... then buy that! If you're good at button-mashing games, and hard gameplay, I say go for it! Buy it and see how it is. GOOD LUCK.

Final Synopsis:

-Pros-

-Exciting
-The dog, Shadow
-Sound effects
-Good color (Although, I was looking for something more dark)
-SOME mini-games

-Cons-

-THE VERY LOUD MUSIC
-Mini-games that are incredibly hard
-Low ammo on guns
-Repeating levels again and again
-Hand cramps
-Way too many broken controllers
-Very hard enemies (I put the game on NORMAL difficulty!)
-The arthritis I'm probably going to get after all the button-mashing ;)

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/17/03, Updated 01/17/03