Dead to Rights - Review

Added August 11th, 2003 by Final Sniper

Introduction:

Here and there, there comes a game where developers deliver gamers games that bring out our dark side such as Vice City but for Xbox, Namco has released DTR where you play a cop, set up and wrongfully accused of murder. The people you kill are all bad guys, deserving of their punishment for their crimes and this game probably one of the most enjoyable gaming experiences to come out this year. Dead to Rights is everything you want in an action game, with dancing strippers and marvelous guns to blast away your enemies.

Gameplay:

This is like a mixture of party game, and action game, at times it works really well, and other time it makes you wish you never started playing. Namco has equipped Jack Slate with helpful moves, and instense guns to blow your enemies. Don’t think you're safe yet though, because the AI has some tricks up their sleeves too, not only do they use cover, but they also rush in formations, some come from the front while others get you from the sides, and if their tactic doesn’t work as planned they will retreat. Another important aspect is ammo, you need it and it isn’t just lying around, you have to earn it by killing the person holding the gun, or by disarming him. Another extremely useful feature is the human shield, get close enough to someone and pull them in front of you, they will block all bullets that would normally hit your front side until they die. If they last longer then the gunfight then you just hit B to throw them to the ground and shoot them in the head. Which brings me to disarms, they are fantastic and I am sure we will see them in many games to come. There are two basic ways to disarm, the first is to holster your weapon run up to the guy and hit B, which enters in some sweet animation depending on your approach, and the other is sending your faithful dog Shadow into the fray to take down your enemy and steal his gun! Hand-to-Hand combat is basic at best, you have a couple button mashing combos at your disposal, and you can dodge attacks. There are a few nice throw moves and combos you can perform. Unfortunately, all your opponents can do the same moves as you. There are a lot of situations where Jack Slate won’t have a weapon, and he’ll have to rely on hand-to-hand combat. But it’s mostly the hand-to-hand fighting where it get's frustrating. For example, there are a couple of times where you’ll literally be taking on about twenty opponents at once, with barely any health pick ups nearby. Don’t be surprised to find yourself resorting to cheap running away tactics in order to complete these tough duels.

The worst area of game play has to be the mini games all of which are your standard tap the button as fast as you can, at first they are interesting, but after a while they just piss you off. At the start of the game you have to do simple things like picking locks, and arm wrestling, but later on your presented with disarming a bomb, which is cool at first, but if you mess up in the slightest its time to start the level over. Although some were fun, most of them should have been left out like a punching bag mini game where you need 150 hits within 2 minutes. Or weight lifting that goes from 135 pounds to over 300 pounds. But the worst has to be the arm wrestling challenge. Too many mini games substitute for the actual game and will definitely discourage a purchase. When you first play, controls are a bit awkward. But give the game 10 minutes and thugs will be dropping like flies. The game offers a lock on system that works well most of the time. Right Trigger locks on to an enemy and “A” fires the weapon. If you are out of range the targeting recticle turns green. When you’re in range, it’s yellow. For up close and critical damage, it’s red. Each weapon has different range, so a sniper rifle does damage as far as the eye can see, and shotgun does critical damage only within 5 feet. This is a strong point of the game, but also a weak one. You’ll find yourself in a room with 8 enemies all firing at you and you jump out and try to lock on to something. Sometimes you’ll end up targeting the enemy 50 feet away, instead of the thug with a shotgun 2 feet from your head. Just playing through a level is like watching a movie. Just watch out, this game can get tough at times. Some bosses have insane amounts of health and attack damage. Only hardcore gamers dare tread further. First off: the camera angles, the ever present awkward camera angles, and boy if you're surprised from somewhere you cant immediately see, whether it be a gun fight or a fist fight, you're going to lose half your life before the camera is turned around to where it needs to be. The camera can be used to one's advantage in some situation where you can see your enemies and they can't see you, but most of the time it's for the worst and you end up dying. While some gamers who are well-tuned pros in this genre will appreciate the challenge, most will become growingly frustrated! You’d think Namco would include some difficulty settings to help us through, but no such luck.You can can save at anytime, and you’d be taken back to one of several checkpoints in each level. If you use the adrenaline, the dog, and a little strategy, you will come out on top. Even if you have to repeat the level a few dozen times if a mini game at the end of the level botches your progress.

Graphics:

The graphics in this game are nothing to be enchanted with. Visually, Dead to Rights is a little bit of a disappointment. The backgrounds look and feel like a Dreamcast title. With the incredible power of the X-box, you think Namco would go over-the-top and make this game something that will be remembered for years to come. This game feels like a rush job. Most of the character models look bland and one-dimensional with the exception of the main character and some of the chapter bosses. Other then that, all the other characters look alike, fight alike, sound alike. The stages Dead to Rights are set in look fairly good for the most part. The streets of Chinatown are lit up, and nightclubs will be complete with laser & foam lights flashing abroad. They just don’t have that smooth high detail look to them that most Xbox owners have come to expect. Another one of my gripes is the faked lighting, which for instance when you first enter the Jail level you will notice Jacks shirt looks like a self shadowing masterpiece, when in fact its really just a texture that never changes no matter what the lighting conditions. The rest of the games lighting is pretty much the same, nothing great or dynamic, just simple and mellow. Textures also look very bland, basic colors, without an extreme amount of detail, running at a resolution that appears to be somewhere in between the PS2 and Xbox norm.

Audio:

The music in this game is usually very quiet “atmosphere” music. Usually when an enemy is in the room or you get in an especially intense situation the music climaxes, and that adds to the movie like atmosphere of the game. The guns almost make you want to shed a tear, with the way they blast into the night and day, ripping apart polygon flesh nicely. Everything that so much as makes a peep, from tires squealing against the cement, to bombs going off right in front of your face, all sound spectacular. Namco knew how to vary it around nicely, sometimes not playing any music leading up to a big battle, and the music that would play during that battle would rock the high heaven's. The sound in DTR is pretty much dead-on, it successfully conveys and sets the appropriate mood for the game. The background music has that dark, moody feeling to it, and always keeps you on your feet waiting for the next battle. The voice acting is all right. Some of it is done to perfection, such as the voice for Jack Slate. He actually sounds like a cop you’d expect from shows like NYPD Blue. Other characters voices are on the shoddy side, and the tones of their voice comes nowhere to fitting their persona. The industrial rock score that kicks in during the fights is nice, but it turns out to be fairly forgettable and can be quite annoying. As for the rest, say no more. The script was poorly written and the dialogue is poorly delivered. The sound isn't as spectacular as Metal Gear Solid 2's or as memorable as Onimusha's but it delivers what you would expect from this type of game.

Controls:

Well, the number one thing, or almost the number one thing in a game that determines its success are the controls.The controls, in Dead to Rights, are very simple to learn. With a learning-curve of about 15 minutes, you'll have 3 main buttons to work with. The right-trigger which targets your enemy, the A button which fires the gun, and the Y button for bullet-time, or slow-mo, like in Max Payne. Well in my honest opinion, I found the buttons very easy to learn, and remember throughout the game. But at some points, you when you press the R trigger, it aims for the farther away enemy which can get annoying when in firefights with large groups. Other than that, Dead to Rights has a convienent setup for controls and easy to learn in one to two hours.

Replay:

First of all, this game is pretty long the first time around. Once you get a hang of it and learn the little secrets, this game is a breeze the second time around. To add to the replay just a little bit, you can try to unlock all the different disarms. Basically, this game doesn’t have a whole lot of replay value. Honestly, DTR Offers no real reason to play through more then once. There aren't too many hidden areas or secrets to look for, so once you beat the game, there isn't much of anything else to complete it again for. You'd think with the long development cycle Namco had, that they could've squeezed in a few extras.

Summary:

Dead to Rights contains some major high and low points. On the good side, Dead to Rights boasts some revolutionary features you can do during gun battles that are fun as hell to perform. On the opposite end, you’ll most likely find Dead to Rights in the dictionary as a definition for “frustrating.” That and the camera is a pain to work with. Anyone looking for a hard game (there is no difficultly modifier) filled with action, this is the one to get but i suggest to rent before making a buy.