Given that there's not much to the cinematics, dialogue, exposition, or presentation of Stranglehold, Mr. He's still a rogue cop on the Hong Kong police force, and when a member of the force turns up dead, evidently offed by one of HK's major gangs, Tequila steps up to deal with the situation. Stranglehold effectively takes the elements that made Max Payne fun and uses them to its own advantage, while sprinkling in a number of original touches and gimmicks that give the game its own Hong Kong cinema flavor. It's enjoyable to shoot enemies and blast apart the environment in the process, but when you end up doing it the same way over and over and over again, you'll be ready to move on and hope something new comes up. It would be very easy for the average person to take one look at Stranglehold and write it off as a Max Payne rip-off.

There is also a specific button that puts you into bullet-time completely separate from the shoot dodging, though it's rare when you ever need to use it. Let the game stand entirely on its own merits. The soundtrack is a nice mix of typically bombastic orchestral pieces and some Asian-flavored string sections, and the game's sound effects are mostly top-notch, from the gun sounds right on down to the individual effects of bullets hitting each and every type of surface.

Fortunately, they don't have the ability to jump and dive around in bullet time like our man Tequila. It might have gotten stale beyond that length.

Though the game refers to it as "Tequila Time," this is really just the bullet-time mechanic from Max Payne given a fancy makeover. These are arguably the game's weakest links, in that they're often difficult to discern and sometimes take more shots than they ought to actually work. The last element of gameplay isn't so much an ability as it is a sort of minigame.

There's even more on offer. 0 Summary: Acclaimed action director John Woo presents Stranglehold, a stunning 3rd-person action adventure videogame and "spiritual sequel" to Woo's action masterpiece "Hard Boiled." Though the multiplayer plays a lot like the single-player game, it's not nearly as good. These standoffs quickly snap Tequila's focus around from one enemy to the next. Maps are a little on the condensed side, and though you can use the slow-motion mechanic in multiplayer, its scattered execution in this mode makes it all but worthless. Cover points are also helpful, though you can rarely stay in one place for very long, as the environment around you tends to get destroyed very quickly.

You can't quite call Stranglehold a one-trick pony, given that it does have a few different things going on at all times. Stranglehold Review It would be very easy for the average person to take one look at Stranglehold and write it off as a Max Payne rip-off. Granted, it's a silly contrivance to have only one enemy at a time firing at you; if there are five guys, why don't they all shoot at once? Tequila's got a good number of effective moves and abilities, Gameplay does fall into repetition after a while, Some of the dynamic portions of the environment are more trouble than they're worth.

Nevertheless, the plot serves as an OK-enough motivation to get Tequila back in action and shooting people in the face--and really, that's pretty much all you need.

Essentially, it seems like you can't go into slo-mo unless you and your opponents all have a full Tequila time meter. Each gun has its own strengths and weaknesses in power and accuracy, though they rarely matter much. There is also a specific button that puts you into bullet-time completely separate from the shoot dodging, though it's rare when you ever need to use it.

Save for a few enemies who are especially vulnerable to this move, it's hard to ever really want to use it when the next ability up the scale is an all-out barrage of invincibility and limitless gunfire that usually lasts long enough to clear the room. Tequila can interact with practically every piece of scenery in a level.

If you run up to a table, you can choose to slide right over it, or kick it over and use it as a temporary cover point. Nintendo Switch Getting First Fire Emblem Game, Previously Japan-Only, By

Stranglehold's presentation is mostly good, though it's not without blemishes. Accordingly, it's good that the guns are appropriately satisfying to shoot. These special abilities are all useful, though some more so than others. It's a decent crime tale that's certainly better than much of John Woo's American work (though exactly how involved Woo was in this game's production is debatable), but there is still something about the whole story that feels very Hollywood.

In a sense, it makes the gameplay a foregone conclusion.

These are special abilities that do everything from recharging your health, to letting you spin around like a gun-toting whirling dervish, killing all the enemies that surround you, all while doves go fluttering off into the sky (what would a Woo production be without doves?). Save for a few enemies who are especially vulnerable to this move, it's hard to ever really want to use it when the next ability up the scale is an all-out barrage of invincibility and limitless gunfire that usually lasts long enough to clear the room. At least the game runs smoothly for the most part, save for occasional hiccups when you try to swivel the camera around too quickly. You get to carry only two types of guns at once, and normally you'll want the gun that will do the most damage at all times. Using both the A and D buttons to dodge and the mouse to aim, you have to take enemies out one by one whil avoiding getting shot. You will shoot a lot of people in Stranglehold. PS5 & Xbox First-Party Games: What Are Sony And Microsoft's Studios Up To? Granted, it's a silly contrivance to have only one enemy at a time firing at you; if there are five guys, why don't they all shoot at once? Unfortunately, we experienced some performance issues specific to the PC version of Stranglehold. The voice acting is quite solid overall.

© 2020 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. As helpful as some of these abilities become later in the game, they're not entirely required. But it's not so dynamic and over-the-top that you won't ever find yourself bored due to repetition. Stranglehold takes place many years after Hard Boiled, though Yun-Fat's Inspector Tequila doesn't seem to have lost a step.

At the very least, when the game ran, it ran very smoothly, with no hitches or frame rate problems to speak of. Stranglehold is a third-person action adventure game set in Hong Kong and Chicago, featuring film director John Woo and actor Chow Yun-Fat. There's even more on offer. Fortunately, the game autosaves after every checkpoint, so as annoying as this issue is, you won't ever lose significant progress. If there's a rail nearby, you can run up or slide down it. Exploding barrels are all over the place, and you can imagine the havoc they wreak when shot. These are special abilities that do everything from recharging your health, to letting you spin around like a gun-toting whirling dervish, killing all the enemies that surround you, all while doves go fluttering off into the sky (what would a Woo production be without doves?). Likewise, enemies are usually smart enough to run up and start shooting if you stay in one place for too long. But it is pretty fun, so it's a forgivable contrivance. That's not the only ability he's got, either. If you run up to a wall, you can dash up it and dive even further than usual.

Being able to shoot a guy from a hundred feet away with a shotgun and still take him out is helpful when you've got dozens of heavily armed enemies running around. Standoffs are kind of awesome, in a contrived sort of way. This really is like an action movie and it's just plain great arcade fun.

This game's body count is pretty staggering for a game that runs only about six or seven hours.

Fortunately, about halfway through the game, the developers apparently decided to just give up on these distractions and focus almost exclusively on the shooting.

What follows is a sometimes confusing and ham-fisted story of gangs double- and triple-crossing one another. These are arguably the game's weakest links, in that they're often difficult to discern and sometimes take more shots than they ought to actually work. There's nothing remotely realistic about the game's guns, mind you, though that's arguably a good thing in the context of this game. There are even occasional environmental puzzles that require wooden poles or planks to be shot out to create new pathways for Tequila to traverse. Somewhere in there, Tequila's former girlfriend and daughter both end up being held hostage by one of the gangs.

Stranglehold isn't the sort of game that's going to set the shooter genre on fire. It's not that it's completely awful or anything, but it feels very tacked-on.

That's not the only ability he's got, either. GameSpot gave Stranglehold a 7.0 out of 10, stating that although the game is solid in every department, it is repetitive, due to a short seven-hour single-player game and weak multiplayer. It's an interesting piece of work that's more fun than it isn't, and fans of Hard Boiled ought to especially enjoy watching Chow Yun-Fat reprise his role as Inspector Tequila. Whether Woo was intimately involved in guiding Stranglehold or more of a watchful father, … There's nothing remotely realistic about the game's guns, mind you, though that's arguably a good thing in the context of this game. Using both analog sticks on the controller, you have to simultaneously dodge enemy gunfire and move a targeting reticle over enemies to take them out one by one. You can only engage in standard deathmatches or team deathmatches with up to six players. Dialogue is appropriately cheesy, especially when Tequila's boss keeps tossing out every angry police-captain cliché in the book. Enemies come flying out of every nook and cranny of each stage, and always with guns blazing. Stranglehold takes place many years after Hard Boiled, though Yun-Fat's Inspector Tequila doesn't seem to have lost a step. Every time we'd boot the game up, we'd get one of those delightful blue screens of death that force you to reboot your machine. But it is pretty fun, so it's a forgivable contrivance.

Stranglehold's presentation is mostly good, though it's not without blemishes.

It rarely does. It's a short ride, but an entertaining one while it lasts.