John Woo Presents Stranglehold

Tequila has always been the type of cop that shoots first and forgets about the questions because in Hong Kong the only thing the Chinese Triad understands is bullets and a lot of them. Shooting his way through the crime syndicate, Tequila got the job done and lived to tell the tale as seen in action-director John Woo’s classic Hardboiled. American audiences are probably familiar with John Woo’s work since Broken Arrow but back in Hong Kong he released a number of memorable actions movies such as The Killer and A Better Tomorrow starring one of his favorite actors named Chow Yun Fat. John Woo Presents Stranglehold is a video-game sequel to Hardboiled that was first released on the Xbox 360 but now PlayStation 3 gets its chance to bring the further adventures of Inspector Tequila to Sony’s console.

Picking up several years after the events seen in Hardboiled, Stranglehold finds Inspector Tequila Yuen going up against The Dragon Claw - one of Hong Kong’s most dangerous triad gangs - after word comes in about a fellow officer’s disappearance. When the missing officer turns up dead, Tequila sets out to lay some justice only to discover that the gang’s affiliation with an old acquaintance named James Wong is involved. To make matters worst, Wong asks Tequila for help after he finds out that Wong’s daughter and granddaughter have been kidnapped by rival triad members. I won’t give too much away but Tequila takes it upon himself to not only go on a rescue mission but also take down The Dragon Claw once and for all.

In true John Woo fashion, Stranglehold features fancy gunplay and cool signature Woo-styled acrobatic moves. The fact that Tequila not only looks like actor Chow Yun Fat but is also voiced by the veteran actor plays a role in making the game feel like a true sequel to the 1992 action movie. In a sense, the game plays a lot like the Max Payne games that was clearly influenced by Woo’s films with the only difference that Stranglehold has some original features and destructible environments.

Tequila’s style has always been that of duel-wielding weapons such as pistols and even machine guns. He can dive forward or backwards while firing his weapons. Like the Max Payne games, players can slow time down enough that you can dodge bullets. What is unique to the game is the fact that instead of jumping over objects like tables, Tequila automatically slides across the surface and thus saving you the trouble of walking around it. There are various objects he can interact with such as rails he can slide down and there are even roll carts he can jump on and ride to safety. Aside from those interactive objects, there are certain environmental objects you can use in your favor. For example, neon signs can be shot, thus breaking off and landing on top of an enemy standing below.

Tequila even has four unique abilities called Tequila Bombs that are mapped to the D-pad. With each kill, the Tequila Bomb gauge fills up and you can activate any of the abilities. One is a Health Boost that has the same effect as a health pack while the Precision Aim ability allows you to use your gun as a sniper weapon (giving you the opportunity to pull of a precise shot that somewhat accurately displays the entrance wound on the enemy once you aim and fire). Then there’s Barrage Attack, an ability that temporarily gives you unlimited bullets and unlimited health. Finally, there’s Spin Attack that is a John Woo trademark move in most of him movies where Tequila will spin with his guns blazing and hitting everything and anyone in sight.

As far as the game’s level design is concerned, there are a number of excellent moments that action fans will certainly savor. One level has you fighting your way through a reception area where a band is playing while in another you’re in the Chicago museum as you’re going up against enemies next to dinosaur bones. There are boss battles in the game and they add some variety to the mix and thanks to the good controls it is a blast moving through each level. The problem is that sometimes the occasional glitch pops up, making enemies almost phasing right through Tequila. Corpses sometimes have the tendency to blink out of existence right before your eyes or - if they die on staircases - simply vanish. There’s also a multiplayer mode that is reserved only to online play and it doesn’t go beyond the Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch modes.

Stranglehold really doesn’t take advantage of the PS3’s graphical capabilities but it’s not an ugly game either. The game’s sharp visuals make the exotic backgrounds come to life beautifully, especially the level that has you taking out drug labs in an island. Even the character models look decent enough (although there are a number of clones when it comes to the enemies) with Tequila looking exactly like Chow Yun Fat. The real visual treat comes from the visual effects and the destructible environments that have tables ripping apart into splinters and glass shattering everywhere as your surroundings simply fall apart all around you. It is great stuff but you can’t help but think that it could have looked more impressive.

The game’s soundtrack is wonderfully cinematic and intense and it picks up at all the right moments in the game. In fact, the soundtrack is quite possibly the best thing about the sound because the sound effects just don’t have the right sound to them even if your console is hooked up to a good sound system. This doesn’t mean the sound effects are bad but they sound a tad muffled in places. The voice acting can be a bit rough seeing as the voice actors’ sound like authentic Chinese actors trying to speak English. It’s convincing but it would have been far more effective if the voice acting was handled in their native tongue. At least Chow Yun Fat gives a solid performance.

John Woo Presents Stranglehold for the PlayStation 3 is an action-packed shootout that is just as stylish and exciting as a good John Woo film and trust me when I say that you will be playing this one from start to finish. Yes, the game has a few issues that hold it back but its strength comes with its ability to make you feel like you’re playing a Woo-styled film with all the elements that make his action films so much fun to watch. This is a game you will not want to miss if you liked games like Max Payne.

Gameplay: 8.2
Tequila’s moves are delightfully stylish but sometimes they aren’t pulled off as smoothly or glitch-free. The game’s level design is good and there are plenty of moments that will have you smiling. John Woo fans will love the fact that this is a playable sequel to “Hardboiled” with familiar characters. There’s even a multiplayer mode.

Graphics: 8.5
The graphics are sharp and everything from the character models and backgrounds look great. Still, you can’t help but think that the game could have looked a lot better than this … especially on the PS3. The character models look decent enough but it is the virtual Chow Yun Fat that practically lights up the screen.

Sound: 8.5
The game’s music is - naturally - cinematic and has a wonderful Asian feel to it. There are also some decent sound effects that could have been better and the voice acting is handled well enough but it just would have worked better in the characters’ native language.

Difficulty: Medium
Enemies will often try to gang up on you and many of them are actually decent shots. There are some challenging boss battles and there’s even a level where you go up against a bad guy manning a chain gun on a helicopter.

Concept: 8.5
Stranglehold plays in the John Woo universe and even brings Chow Yun Fat to the mix. There is no shortage of weapons in the game and there are unlockable items you can use to unlock extra in the game’s multiplayer mode. Speaking of multiplayer, you can take the action online.

Multiplayer: 7.9
Up to six players can take each another on online using a number of maps and characters (including a playable John Woo) and playing through Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch game modes. Running at a steady framerate, the game moves along at a steady framerate but the action gets a bit old quickly.

Overall: 8.2
Like a true action-packed cinematic spectacle, Stranglehold delivers a number of spectacular moments that will not fail to dazzle hardcore fans of the genre. While it doesn’t push the third-person shooter category to new heights, John Woo’s personal touch brings just enough style to a solid shooter PS3 gamers will certainly relish.