Platform: GC, PS2, XB

Developer: Luxoflux

Publisher: Activision

Genre: Action  

ETA: Q4 2002

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True Crime: Streets of L.A.

There's this game called Grand Theft Auto III (GTAIII), you might have heard about it.  No?  Well, it's a game that puts you in the boots of your basic "gun for hire" character who roams the locales of Liberty City in one of the most open-ended games ever made.  It's also one of the most amoral games out there.  Mow down civilians and FBI agents or drive around town in a taxi picking up fares?  Whatever you want to do.  It was only a matter of time before the thin edge of the wedge was followed by the thick end of so-called "copy cat" games that takes several cues from GTAIII.  One such game is True Crime: Streets of L.A. from Luxoflux and Activision.

True Crime centers around the exploits of Nick Kang, a cop in L.A. right in the crossfire of a violent feud between the Triads and the Russian mafia.  It's the kind of single sentence summary that gets pitched to movie execs (which invariably get the green light and we're subjected to another brainless shoot 'em up).  Taking it's cue from the Hollywood influence, True Crime will actually use real-life L.A. locales. (No word on what Mayor Hahn thinks of this.)

Unlike the movies though, True Crime is free-roaming.  Go anywhere, do what you want.  Chase down mafia members, shot 'em or beat the snot out of them in foot-to-face combat.  There's a "branching mission system" in affect, meaning that you'll be able to continue even if you're stuck on one portion of the game.  Since Nick's a cop, it's likely you'll get orders and mission directives from your superiors, unless he's one of those loose cannons or a cop with nothing to lose (like Max Payne).

There's a distinct leaning toward more fisticuff confrontations than driving (besides, with traffic you probably wouldn't get very far).  The fighting system, judging by the screenshots and available information, looks akin to other fighting games like Powerstone, Soul Caliber 2, and just about every current 3D fighting game.  Obviously, because True Crime's fighting system won't be as detailed as a pure fighting game don't expect too much in the way of complicated combos.  There's a dash of RPG in True Crime in the way that Nick learns new fighting moves -- learning them from various dojos.  With another system of fighting used for gunplay, I'm hedging my bets on a stripped-down fighting system.

Since Nick is on the "good" side of True Crime it will be interesting to see how he acquires vehicles. (In GTAIII, carjacking was the name of the game.)  I've always wanted to leap out in traffic and commandeer vehicles on some vague pretense, and if True Crime does this, thumbs ups!

Also of note is the title.  "True Crime" subtitled with "Streets of L.A." almost guarantees we'll see a sequel with "L.A." replaced with "Chicago" or "Miami".  And with the way Streets of L.A. is shaping up, we just might see those sequels.

True Crime: Streets of L.A. is planned for a release this Winter.

- Omni

(September 19, 2002)