Photo courtesy of Activision

Game play runs the gamut of open world tropes, from high speed driving to fistfights and gunplay but Sleeping Dogs approaches all of these conventions with its own sensibilities. The focus is definitely placed upon the hallmarks of Hong Kong crime cinema; driving and hand to hand combat are most common though there is plenty of shooting. The combat system if built around three buttons and works extremely well, if you have played Batman Arkham City then it will be very familiar. Novelty presents itself in the way of environmental attacks, which will have Wei smashing heads through plate glass windows and impaling enemies on pallets of swordfish. These finishers are gruesome to be sure but there are plenty and they never fail to entertain. Driving cars, bikes or boats is very arcadey and feels a lot like the need for speed franchise. It allows you to hit high speeds and retain control and there are a few stylish elements like carjacking in motion: it’s ridiculous but it looks cool and it’s not so easy that it seems like a gimmick. Chase scenes don’t only occur in vehicles, you will do your fair share of parkour in Hong Kong and while it’s not as deep as Assassin’s Creed it works well and feels new in the genre.

Photo courtesy of Activision

Shooting isn’t so commonplace that you will always have a gun on you. When it’s time to pop of some headshots the game will put a gun in your hand. In a change of pace you can only carry a single weapon at a time. And in John Woo tradition you combining parkour with your gun will net you some slow motion shootouts. The emphasis the game places on fist fighting leaves elements like sniping on the cutting room floor, indeed there are plenty of guns but the shooting never feels overused.

Photo courtesy of Activision

Outside of story missions Wei has a ton of side objectives to complete. While some people are going to waste hours buying clothes others will take advantage of the gameplay rich side missions; from drug busts to carjackings. Hundreds of collectibles and upgrades round out the extras providing for hours of additional gameplay. Sleeping Dogs was definitely designed as an open world that you can spend some time in.