What do you do when your father is killed? You strap on some heat and start kicking ass, that's what you do! You are Jack Slate, a cop avenging his father's death. If that wasn't enough, Jack is then framed and sent to jail where he must escape to find out what the hell is going on!
The gameplay in Dead to Rights is fast paced and action packed! If you have played Max Payne, then you are half way there. As you may or may not know Max Payne only used guns. Well, Jack Slate kicks it up a notch and uses his fists when it is necessary. Dead to Rights is only similar to Max Payne in the guns and bullet-time categories. Yes, Jack Slate can go into bullet-time... something that is becoming the norm in action videogames (thank The Matrix).
As Jack, you can take a hostage and use them as a human shield which comes in handy when you are running low on energy or bullets. Not cool enough for you? Well how about stealing enemy weapons right out of their hands or using your dog, Shadow, to lay the smack-down on their candy asses?
With an M rating, you can expect realistic violence, adult themes, and language. So don't let the little ones play this game. Don't go crying to the media blaming videogames, that is why there is a big M on the front of the game! M = Mature!
With a mix of hands on beat downs and gun action, things aren't perfect. Fighting is pretty simple, just punching and more punching. Not much depth in the fighting system, it could have used some polishing. The gun action is pretty well done, with a variation of weapons and plenty of enemies to pick off.
Dead to Rights also features a lot of mini games. Mini games you ask? Yes, mini games! Sounds pretty odd doesn't it. Most of pretty enjoyable except for the stripper mini game. The dancer is so badly modeled that its not even funny! But fortunately, they get better after this. For example while in jail you can arm wrestle or lift weights. While outside you can even control your dog Shadow to disarm bombs. The mini games add a bit more fun to the game and a bit of replay value... you'll want to play some mini games over again.
Beware though, Dead to Rights is a bit tough to beat. This game is hard. No difficulty settings such as easy, medium, or hard. This game is tough from the start so if you are not up for a challenge then don't try it.
Visually, Dead to Rights is nothing special on the Xbox. It falls under the 'day to day' Xbox graphics. So Dead to Rights won't be giving Halo a run for its money. The animations are pretty well done though. There is a lot going on in the environments, but you won't notice the details since you'll be under attack by a lot of enemies! Full motion videos (FMVs) are amazing! The intro video will leave you jaw on the ground, too bad the in game graphics cant be that good.
Voice acting is average. Some of the actors are great while others aren't. Jack Slate is pretty well done. He has a tough voice while being cool at the same time. Nice job. Music is good for the most part, kicking in at the right moments when the action starts heating up. The in game sounds of guns blazing are pretty nice. Different guns have different sounds and volume, a definite plus. Shotguns sound like shotguns and pistols sound like pistols.
Overall, Dead to Rights is a pretty good game. With a few more tweaks and improvements this could have been Game of the Year material. Hopefully the sequel (you know its coming) will be better.
Report Card:
Gameplay: 7
Graphics: 7
Audio: 7
Replay Value: 7 Overall: 7 out of 10
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