SLEEPING DOGS – Has Potential, but Square Enix Needs to Fix Some Things – E3 2012

Square Enix’s upcoming game, Sleeping Dogs, has been gaining a lot of talk lately mainly because it was once known to be a new True Crime game. But after Activision released control of that franchise and this new game, Square Enix picked it up. But was that a good idea?

I got a chance to get a firsthand look at the game during this year’s E3. I’m not going to lie, I didn’t go in with the expectation to be WOW-ed, but I did expect to see something that would hopefully keep my attention. Well let me tell you, GTA fans would simply love this game. Because it has that type of feel to it, with its open world environments. But with that said, just walking around the city felt really clunky. Almost as if I was moving a stiff mannequin around. The animations and graphics needs to be greatly enhanced in that area before this game is released to the public, or else I don’t know how well it will do.

Outside of that, things are pretty good. The cut scenes seem to be well done, not robot-like. The city is vast, with enough room for you to run around. Last but not least, the fighting is stellar. It almost has a Batman: Arkham City vibe to it with the free flow fighting. It was definitely the best part of the game to me. While you are fighting, depending where you are located, you will even get chances to use the environment around you to put a real beating on your foes. The parkour-like running was also very well done. I had a moment where I needed to chase a bad guy, and my character freely ran around hoping over fences and the sides of walls.

If you can get past the robotic regular movement of your character, then I’d say Sleeping Dogs is a must have on your list. Hopefully Square Enix can work out those kinks before the game releases.