Now you can get a taste of what it would be like to live out a John Woo movie!
GAMEPLAY (9) - There's not a whole lot of strategy involved, this game gives you an almost arcade like experience where style is much more important than reality. You can run into a room and just start shooting, but there will be rewards for using some style. The more stylish your kills the more "Tequila Bomb" energy will be earned. You can earn style points by interacting with the environment, such as shooting while you're sliding over a table or down the railings on a set of stairs. You can also use a limited amount of "Tequila Time", which is similar to bullet time from the Max Payne games. The Tequila Bombs are special abilities that can come in very handy against overwhelming enemies or Boss battles. They range from simply being able to heal yourself to exotic attacks such as the spin move, where you'll take down every enemy in sight in a very stylish cut scene. The environments are almost totally destructible, and some of the carnage from your gunfights has to be seen to be appreciated.
GRAPHICS (8) - Probably the biggest plus here is the destructible environments that I had mentioned. There is a lot of detail put into the various places you'll visit, ranging from gritty slums to beautiful casinos and museums. The characters can be a bit of a mixed bag. The main characters are nicely detailed and have somewhat realistic faces, though the grunts you'll be shooting mostly look alike.
SOUND (8) - Very nice voicework featuring Chow Yun Fat speaking for his movie character, and the other voicework was done very well. It would have been nice to have the option to play it in Chinese with subtitles. The sound effects are also done well, and if you crank up your speakers you'll be hearing multiple weapons as well as the environment being destroyed and it has a movie-like quality.
VALUE (7) - The game is on the short side. I'd estimate it took me approximately 8 hours, though as with most games there is the challenge of playing at harder difficulties. There is also a multiplayer mode including Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch, using shooting skills in an attempt to hit the Leaderboards.
OVERALL (8) - Due to it's short length this may be a good rental for people that can put in approximately 8 hours before having to return it. Otherwise it's also not too bad of a purchase since the price has recently come down. The relatively short length is the only thing that might work against this title. For anyone looking for a stylish arcade shooter or a decent crime drama in a Hong Kong setting, Stranglehold is recommended.