The scene that shows the gangster committing suicide by cutting his own throat.In the Japanese version you can see her panties. In the International release her entire genital area covered in pixel's due to the pixel filter. The gangster's girlfriend jumps into the fight and will fight against you. In chapter 1 Kane and Lynch storm the apartment of a gangster.In the game's intro the cuts and blood on Kane and Lynch were reduced.
Video games are finally feeling free to adopt these lo-fi visual standards, as popularized in films such as Michael Mann's "Collateral" or "Cloverfield". The long-standing effect on game design has been to default to visual clarity and razor-sharp focus, with elements of fog, depth-of-field, and dynamic lighting used rarely enough that they are often called out as a special feature (I'd add that incorporating dynamic depth-of-field is one of the best things a game can do to add an element of visual immersion).īut much as the sonic studio precision of the '70s and '80s made way for lo-fi music, television and film have also experienced a visual revolution over the past decade by embracing digital video, shaky handheld cameras, and nontraditional color palettes. The visual language of video games has long been limited by a prime directive that everything must be designed to "read" clearly, and eliminate any chance of player confusion. Unfortunately, there isn't much substance beyond it. As we mentioned above, the star of the game is its run-and-gun documentary-style presentation. That said, there's a fair amount of difficulty (even played on medium) that should provide gamers with a challenge. Kane and Lynch 2 is surprisingly short, with the main campaign lasting just less than five hours. Most wood, paneling, and furniture disappears quickly, which kept us on our toes, adding to the chaotic atmosphere. Negatives aside, we really enjoyed the amount of environmental destructibility in the world. Enemies seemed to be able to take an awful lot of damage before defeat, and occasionally their AI would throw them into vulnerable cover. The vast majority of action is cover-based gun play, and we found a lot of the weapons to be underpowered.
Gameplay doesn't quite live up to the unique visual style we're treated to. At times the content borders on campiness (something we actually enjoyed) whether intentional or not. Dog Days is an ultra-violent and dark tale, with a healthy amount of scenes that include pretty graphic imagery. It's clear the developers spent a lot of time in Shanghai for research purposes, but we're not sure they did the city any service in terms of generating tourism.
Between the intentional pixelation, rough cuts, and dropped frames, Dog Days creates a consistent uneasy feeling throughout. Anyone who has shot on a budget MiniDV camera in low-light situations will instantly identify with the graininess and imperfections that are deliberately inserted into gameplay.
It's by far the title's most attractive feature and easily the most impressive. While we jest a bit with our headline, Io Interactive's latest take on the Kane & Lynch franchise propels the game into stylistically uncharted territory. Kane & Lynch 2 is available now for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. Dog Days boasts a unique handheld-camera visual style, but does the gameplay live up to the styling? Read on to find out. Set in gritty Shanghai, the game tells the story of an ordinary deal gone terribly wrong. Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days is a complete reboot of the series.