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Sleeping Dogs. Probably the definition of a "hidden gem" in the non-circlejerky way. The game was considered a flop by Squeenix and it flew under most people's radar. It eventually became a cult classic and is loved by many (including me!) I first played it on my Xbox years ago and decided to give it another playthrough.
Back in the mid-late 2000's, a bunch of companies were churning out "GTA clones" in attempt to rake in some cash on the new open-world crime game market. Sleeping Dogs was originally supposed to be the third game in the "True Crime" series, but since that series sucked, Activision sold the rights to the game to Squeenix. It was in development hell for a bit after that, but United Front eventually churned out a great game.
For a "GTA clone" it's easily the best I've ever played that came close to the feeling of GTA regarding the story, world and gameplay mechanics. For any fans of GTA or the genre in general, it's an easy buy. No question.
Pros:
-The story is great. Kinda cheesy and very predictable, but it's fun and has a ton of likeable characters. It always makes you wanna see what's coming next. It's your typical "oh no I'm torn between my life of crime and friends or my clean life and my job" type of cliche story that tends to be the story most of these "clones" have. But it's good! It's something you'd watch in a movie and enjoy every minute.
-The world is definitely a little on the small side, but the city of Honk Kong is amazing with lots of small details scattered about. Apparently, it's also surprisingly accurate to the actual city.
-The combat is a nice twist on the usual gun-oriented gameplay that GTA and its other clones focus on. It's almost the exact same as the Batman Arkham series, if you've ever played it. Enemies flash red, you hit designated counter-attack button. Spam Button 1 and Button 2 for some fun kung-fu combos. You will be doing melee for most of the game. Guns are pretty rare in the game besides specific missions and locations.
-The soundtrack is pretty banger. Has all kinda of genres for you to enjoy while driving!
-Awesome voice acting cast! They did a really good job on the voices in-game and have a few celebrities on the cast too!
-Shitty karaoke minigame
Cons
-Some jank and bugs that go with the territory. However it's a little more prevalent in this game than the higher-budget clones. Once you play this game, and go back and look up True Crime gameplay, you can definitely see both games share a lot of characteristics, animations etc. Which makes sense, like I mentioned, this game was originally going to be a sequel for that series. It eventually became it's own game.
-The driving is a controversial subject for the game. Some people like it, others hate it. I find it's... okay. It just feels "heavy". Like you're trying to drive a heavy box around, if that makes sense. The map is small enough that you don't use cars too much anyways, and there's plenty of taxis around that you can use as fast travel.
Overall, It's definitely an awesome game and absolutely worth playing. Sadly it's very unlikely it'll ever get a sequel, but the game has aged just fine and is a blast to play. If you're somehow on the fence about getting it, just get it. You won't regret it.