Whenever a game like Grand Theft Auto hits the headlines, it's usually because an over-excitable journalist at some major news corporation gets wind that a new game's coming out, and a particular element of it - either a level, a mini game, or something it gives the player the option of doing - may be classed as controversial. Sensing a potential story, this then usually gives said journalist a chance to open up their journalistic garage, and roll out the "evil games" bandwagon they usually trundle out alongside a violent game's release - doing their best to let the entire world know how evil these games are - and simultaneously generating an massive air of controversy, and a huge wave of free publicity for the game's publisher.
Occasionally, the news types have a point - a game known as Manhunt 2 made the national headlines a few years ago, as it actually got refused a BBFC rating, on the grounds it was too violent. Then, just last year, a similarly controversial scene in Modern Warfare 2, which put the player as an undercover agent in a terrorist cell, as they took part in an attack on innocent civilians at an airport, caused a similarly public storm. The scene was designed to test players morals - as an undercover agent, should they join in with the chaos, and risk blowing their cover, or stay with the plan, and gun down the same people they're employed to protect? - but the whole thing was, somewhat predictably, dramatically simplified and misrepresented by the media. Needless to say, the game's publisher, Activision, enjoyed the media frenzy that followed, and Modern Warfare 2 went on to become the biggest selling game of 2009, despite launching in the latter part of the year.
As it stands, controversy tends to make games sell - the media's reporting of "evil" games simply helping fuel interest and demand for something that people may otherwise not have heard of. You kind of get the feeling, from playing Kane and Lynch 2, that it was this sort of controvery that Square Enix were going for. With some incredibly violent scenes, gratuitious swearing and gore throughout, along with its gritty, dark, disturbing presentation, Kane and Lynch 2 feels as though it's been positioned to grab headlines - something it's so far failed to do.
They're pulling off the tough guy look pretty well, we think.
It's hard to describe just how dark, both in terms of visual stylings, and content Kane and Lynch 2: Dog Days is. The two main characters, and also the title's namesakes, Kane and Lynch, are two criminals - one a psychotic, self-medicated madman, and the other, a notorious ex-mercenary, who're on the verge of completing an arms deal, when a case of mistaken identity, and a slip of the finger threatens to bring the might of the entire Shanghai underworld down on them.
You're never really told much about Kane and Lynch's back story, so it's hard to know quite why they're in Shanghai, or how they got involved with the criminal underworld, but as Kane and Lynch 2 progresses, you'll actually find yourself feeling quite sorry for them and their incredible run of bad luck. They may be hardened criminals, but they're human too, and at several points in the game, you'll find yourself with an incredibly uneasy feeling that the situation they've got themselves into isn't going to end all that well... And for some reason, you actually care.
The entire game's presented from an over the shoulder perspective, with heavy dosings of film grain trying to make the game look like it's been filmed as a documentary, or a snuff film. There's a lot of gore on show here, which, along with the colourful language, often helps to distract from the proceedings, but the game uses several clever tricks to make the gore appear worse than it really is. At one point in the game, Lynch holds a hit man's head against a burning hob to try and get him to reveal a key piece of information. And while the sizzling sound effects, and the man's screams are enough to make you cringe on their own, you don't actually see the grizzly results. Instead, the bad guy's face gets covered in giant pixels - like someone who's having their identity concealed on a CCTV camera, creating the illusion that what's happened is so gory, it's had to be censored. It's enough to make anyone feel uneasy - but that's nothing compared to the part that follows...
The Police are constantly on your back, but it's not like they're just doing their job - they're corrupt, with their own, extra-curricular motivation.
But strangely, despite how phenomenally unpleasant the game can be in places, and how uneasy it can often make you feel, in terms of gameplay, Kane and Lynch 2 is actually surprisingly enjoyable to play. The whole game's playable in a co-operative mode, and you'll often find yourself relying on your partner, either for cover, or to tackle certain obstacles. Played from an over the shoulder perspective, you'll soon find yourself under attack by hundreds of members of the Shanghai underworld, as you fight your way through highly detailed environments, ducking behind counters, and making use of whatever cover you can find, thanks to the game's cover system. Pressing A when you're near something you can hide behind will make your character duck into cover, where you can catch your breath, wait for a moment to get your health back, reload, and regroup.
Of course, if you're going to use cover, you need to be sure you're hiding behind something that's solid. One of the best parts of Kane and Lynch 2 - and one of the things that makes the gameplay so exciting when compared to other games, is how destructible the environments are. With bullets flying in all directions, televisions will be exploding, shelves collapsing, and DVDs will be picked off shelves by stray shots, all of which adds to the feeling of chaos.
But it's this juxtaposition that confuses us so much about Kane and Lynch 2. It's an incredibly dark, disturbing, gory, and extravagantly violent game - even if it does often attempt to create the illusion of gore, rather than being in your face with it. Yet, when you're playing through the game, it's actually a lot of fun. With your co-op buddy having your back, and the environments exploding around you, it's as good as many other third person shooters. But then, it'll do something violent, something vicious - something that'll send a shiver down your spine, and make your stomach churn, and all of a sudden, it's not a fun game any more. The story will keep you going, but it's like watching a horror film - it's like you want to look away, but you can't. A case in point is when you find Kane and Lynch, after they've been tortured. Their bodies are both covered in long, deep cuts - the skin starting to peel back to reveal the raw flesh below, and they're both completely naked, their dignity saved only by a few well placed pixels. It's almost too much to stomach - and then you find a mutilated body, the colour of the pixels telling you all you need to know.
Hit the fuel canisters for some explosive gameplay.
And although the gameplay's good, it's not as good as it really should be. For a game that relies so heavily on co-operative gameplay and teamwork, there's very little indication as to where your partner is - holding right on the d-pad will point your camera at them, but it's more awkward than it should be. When enemies go down, they haven't always been defeated, and many carry on shooting while lying on the floor - which unfortunately leads to one too many unfair deaths.
That, and the second level, where you have to defend a man called Glazer, who comes under attack on a motorway that's littered with stationary cars, is so frustrating, it's bound to put many people off playing altogether. When the man you're trying to protect runs you over, and then screams at you for not defending him well enough, it's kind of annoying. At least when you empty an entire clip of your weapon into a passing helicopter, only for Kane to yell "I don't think they saw us!", it's funny.
In the end, how much enjoyment you'll get out of Kane and Lynch 2 will depend a lot on what you can stomach. If you're the sort of person who likes gritty crime dramas, horror films, or can stand a lot of gore, then you'll find an enjoyable action game, with a deep, involving, but sadly, sometimes confusing storyline, that you and your partner can enjoy. For the rest of us, what we're left with is a game that we want to play, but we're not sure we can - a game that makes us cringe, and look away from the screen with practically every cutscene, and leaves us feeling nervous when walking around our house after playing it, because it's left your heart racing. Whether that's your idea of a good night in or not, will be up to you.
Format Reviewed: Xbox 360
