Game Card
Dead to Rights: Retribution (Xbox360)
- Publisher:
- Namco Bandai
- Developer:
- Volatile Games
- US Release:
- Q1 2010
- EU Release:
- n/a
- Number of players:
- n/a
- Type:
- Action
- Age:
- Modern Times
Preview
Dead to Rights: Retribution Preview
Apparently, a man’s best friend is his loyal pooch, whether it’s rounding up wayward sheep, chasing rabbits or savaging a criminal’s plums. Dead to Rights’ hero Jack Slate is a hard-bitten cop on the edge (or something), with a devoted canine companion who is at his beck and call as he fights crime on the mean streets of the game’s fictional Grant City. In this particular case, man’s best friend couldn’t be a more apt description for your in-game buddy.
Making its debut as a timed exclusive on the Xbox back in 2002, the original Dead to Rights introduced Slate and his faithful Alaskan Malamute/wolf hybrid (in case you were wondering), Shadow treading a familiar path through third-person shooter territory, that in turn spawned a subsequent prequel and a PSP spin-off.
Although praised for its cinematic styling, the series received generally mediocre reviews for its brand of Max Payne-style bullet time-powered action, eventually prompting this next-gen reboot after a four-year hiatus. Following something that is currently de rigueur for film and game franchises gradually growing stale, Dead to Rights: Retribution is a fresh start, rebuilding the core gameplay mechanics from scratch while retaining Slate and Shadow as protagonists.
Developer Volatile Games has gone back to the drawing board for Retribution, ditching the former emphasis on gunplay, shifting focus towards visceral hand-to-hand combat. Consequently, Jack Slate exercises an uncompromising fighting style, wading in with brutal, bone-crunching kicks and punches as well as ruthlessly effective counter attacks to either disarm enemies or neutralise them entirely by snapping their limbs.
In addition to breaking bones, Slate can snatch weapons from the clutches of Grant City’s degenerate villains, although he can only use whatever bullets are left in the clip, causing him to toss it to the ground once spent. It’s refreshing not having to concern yourself with conserving ammunition, as not only is Jack a deadly and proficient fighter, but doggy assistant Shadow is a vicious attack hound capable of incapacitating enemies with a vice-grip jaw locked around their jugular or - far worse - a wince-inducing bite to the crotch.
Going hands-on with the game, we found it immediately accessible thanks to the Gears of War style control system that incorporates a similarly robust cover system. Mapped to the Xbox 360 controller’s A button, which also allows you to sprint, the mechanic works in much the same way as Gears allowing for seamless movement into and out of concealment. Combat and gunplay are equally fluid components of the game, with combos simple to pull off amid the intensity of a chaotic encounter. Enemies attempt to surround you and are a relentless bunch, so utilising a combination of weapons, hand-to-hand moves and the command you have over your toothy, obedient sidekick is essential to your survival.
The first of two sections we play takes place around parked cop cars on a rain-slicked street drenched in luminous reflections from neon signs, slap bang in the middle of a shootout between the Grant City law enforcement and a feral gang of criminals. With Shadow by your side the objective is to aid the police by doling out a sound kicking to the rampant felons. Not only is the setting visually remarkable - especially for an unfinished game - but the action-oriented gameplay is also fantastically intuitive fun.
Following on from this opening part of our demo, the next segment opens with Slate limping along while holding a substantial wound on his shoulder, leaving you in control of Shadow. Your task is to escort and protect Jack who is too injured to fight, as he slowly plods through the level to safety. Happily, Shadow is tough and resilient as well as naturally agile, so when faced with the barrel of a loaded gun he can latch onto the assailant’s hand to disarm him before delivering a killer blow via a ferocious jaw clamp around the crim’s throat or scrotal area. Ouch.
Shadow’s movements are realistically dog-like, matching up to the high standards set by the rest of the impeccably motion-captured animation in the game. Shadow can run and leap with lithesome agility, but he can also creep around to stealthily get the drop on a foe. Playing as Slate’s furry helper proves a nice change of pace from the main game too, offering a shift in objective as well as perspective. We’re hoping that there will be a number of instances where you’ll get to control Shadow in the full game.
Volatile appear to be steadfastly on the right track with Dead to Rights: Retribution, emphasising the strengths of its Hollywood inspired cinematic approach with a gritty, noir visual style that encapsulates the grimy, crime-infested streets and alleys of the turbulent Grant City perfectly. Offering a dark vision of urban decay, Retribution has all the elements in place to be a genuinely enticing prospect, rescuing a previously inactive IP from obscurity.
Dead to Rights: Retribution is slated for an early 2010 release on PS3 and Xbox 360.
Making its debut as a timed exclusive on the Xbox back in 2002, the original Dead to Rights introduced Slate and his faithful Alaskan Malamute/wolf hybrid (in case you were wondering), Shadow treading a familiar path through third-person shooter territory, that in turn spawned a subsequent prequel and a PSP spin-off.
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| Don't screw with Shadow. He'll chew your face right off. | "Good doggy. Good dogaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrgggggghhhhhhh!!!" |
Although praised for its cinematic styling, the series received generally mediocre reviews for its brand of Max Payne-style bullet time-powered action, eventually prompting this next-gen reboot after a four-year hiatus. Following something that is currently de rigueur for film and game franchises gradually growing stale, Dead to Rights: Retribution is a fresh start, rebuilding the core gameplay mechanics from scratch while retaining Slate and Shadow as protagonists.
Developer Volatile Games has gone back to the drawing board for Retribution, ditching the former emphasis on gunplay, shifting focus towards visceral hand-to-hand combat. Consequently, Jack Slate exercises an uncompromising fighting style, wading in with brutal, bone-crunching kicks and punches as well as ruthlessly effective counter attacks to either disarm enemies or neutralise them entirely by snapping their limbs.
In addition to breaking bones, Slate can snatch weapons from the clutches of Grant City’s degenerate villains, although he can only use whatever bullets are left in the clip, causing him to toss it to the ground once spent. It’s refreshing not having to concern yourself with conserving ammunition, as not only is Jack a deadly and proficient fighter, but doggy assistant Shadow is a vicious attack hound capable of incapacitating enemies with a vice-grip jaw locked around their jugular or - far worse - a wince-inducing bite to the crotch.
Going hands-on with the game, we found it immediately accessible thanks to the Gears of War style control system that incorporates a similarly robust cover system. Mapped to the Xbox 360 controller’s A button, which also allows you to sprint, the mechanic works in much the same way as Gears allowing for seamless movement into and out of concealment. Combat and gunplay are equally fluid components of the game, with combos simple to pull off amid the intensity of a chaotic encounter. Enemies attempt to surround you and are a relentless bunch, so utilising a combination of weapons, hand-to-hand moves and the command you have over your toothy, obedient sidekick is essential to your survival.
The first of two sections we play takes place around parked cop cars on a rain-slicked street drenched in luminous reflections from neon signs, slap bang in the middle of a shootout between the Grant City law enforcement and a feral gang of criminals. With Shadow by your side the objective is to aid the police by doling out a sound kicking to the rampant felons. Not only is the setting visually remarkable - especially for an unfinished game - but the action-oriented gameplay is also fantastically intuitive fun.
Following on from this opening part of our demo, the next segment opens with Slate limping along while holding a substantial wound on his shoulder, leaving you in control of Shadow. Your task is to escort and protect Jack who is too injured to fight, as he slowly plods through the level to safety. Happily, Shadow is tough and resilient as well as naturally agile, so when faced with the barrel of a loaded gun he can latch onto the assailant’s hand to disarm him before delivering a killer blow via a ferocious jaw clamp around the crim’s throat or scrotal area. Ouch.
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| We're not entirely sure why Grant City's criminals are all dead ringers for The Cure frontman, Robert Smith. | Sure, Jack Slate can handle himself in a scrap, but it's nice to know that there's a slavering dog waiting in the wings, ready to rip off an enemy's testicles at any time. |
Shadow’s movements are realistically dog-like, matching up to the high standards set by the rest of the impeccably motion-captured animation in the game. Shadow can run and leap with lithesome agility, but he can also creep around to stealthily get the drop on a foe. Playing as Slate’s furry helper proves a nice change of pace from the main game too, offering a shift in objective as well as perspective. We’re hoping that there will be a number of instances where you’ll get to control Shadow in the full game.
Volatile appear to be steadfastly on the right track with Dead to Rights: Retribution, emphasising the strengths of its Hollywood inspired cinematic approach with a gritty, noir visual style that encapsulates the grimy, crime-infested streets and alleys of the turbulent Grant City perfectly. Offering a dark vision of urban decay, Retribution has all the elements in place to be a genuinely enticing prospect, rescuing a previously inactive IP from obscurity.
Dead to Rights: Retribution is slated for an early 2010 release on PS3 and Xbox 360.
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Debut Developer Trailer
Posted 30.04.09
Length 01:23 Views 501
User Comments
By BoneArc (SI Core Veteran) on Sep 10, 2009
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