Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days Demo Impressions

Let’s just say this.  If the current demo of Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days is any indication of how the entire game will be, then we’re sold on it and you should be too.  That is, if you don’t mind a little camera shake.

So, I finally get my hands on the E3 2010 demo of Kane and Lynch 2, and this time don’t have to leave a small room after 10 minutes (woot).  What follows is my impressions of some truly awesome 3rd person gameplay that is a complete 180 from the first Kane & Lynch title.  The gunplay is intense, the cover system is dynamic, and the camera direction is well . . . different.  Check out some footage from the actual story mode demo below and i’ll break it all down afterward.

The first thing that I want you to notice is the new, “Down but not dead” system which IO Interactive talked about at length during our backstage rendezvous at E3.  This is similar to the “second wind” system in Borderlands, where you can be knocked down without dying and fight while on the ground.  It adds to the intensity of the combat and  if you manage to get to safety you can get up, or better yet, get up in cover.  If you notice, Lynch manages to take out a few police while on the ground before getting back on his feet.  How long you stay down will depend on how hard you are hit or how close you are to an explosion.  This system definitely adds to the realism of the game and is a welcome addition.

Speaking of cover, you will notice the cover system is crucial in this demo as the enemy AI is both intelligent and ruthless.  If you want to run amok out in the open and blast away at everything, you’ll most certainly be killed.  Although the game is linear, you’ll also notice there are many ways to approach each enemy encounter, especially since you have a constant ally in Kane.  The cover controls are simple and will be familiar to any veteran of 3rd person shooters.  You can then blindfire, or pop out and aim down your sights.  The mechanics are solid and the gunplay feels visceral and intense.  There are a variety of weapons, and Lynch seems equally proficient with all of them.  The only thing I noticed whilst running through Shanghai is that the shotgun seemed to have an immensely overpowered range.  However, if you’ve ever played Modern Warfare 2, then the unrealistic range of shotguns in today’s video games probably no longer bothers you or your 1887 sawed offs at this point.  But I digress . . . moving on!!

There are also little things that add to the intensity of the action.  For instance, when you take a human shield, your controller will rumble something fierce, as if it is actually trying to escape your hands.  To be honest, this made me shoot my hostage, and quite frankly I did not feel the least bit sorry for doing so.  Fuck that guy, he was in my fucking way anyhow.

That being said, Kane and Lynch is rated mature for a reason, this game is filled with as much violence and foul language as the first one, if not more so.  On top of that, the only person who will be constantly shouting, “What the fuck!?” more than our in-game protagonists is you, the player.  The main reason for this is the extremely hectic and intense feelings created by the game’s new camera direction, which we shall henceforth refer to as the shaky-cam.

As you undoubtedly noticed, the whole game feels as if it’s being filmed raw by a guy running behind you with a Sony Handycam.  The entire color scheme has this washed out fade, a film grain fades in and out, and the textures get blocky while the sound becomes distorted when there are explosions and massive gunfire. (Which you see very when Lynch shoots those propane tanks) This has been done intentionally to increase the sense of panic and intensity.  The game is supposed to resemble real life, raw, in your face, documentary footage, and quite frankly, it does.  My hats off to Square and IO for re-envisioning this franchise and going all the way with said vision.  I for one think the shaky-cam is awesome.  However, many people have told me that it makes them sick and reminds them of Cloverfield, a visual style which you may also recognize from the much funnier South Park episode which featured Peruvian pan flute bands and giant guinea pigs.

In fact, while watching me play the demo, my girlfriend proclaimed that it made her feel nauseous.  THIS IS A PROBLEM.

For everyone like me who thinks the shaky-cam direction of Kane and Lynch 2 is ground-breakingly innovative and awesome, there are five people who will find it completely fucking annoying and unnecessary.  That being said, I was told personally by IO-Interactive at E3 2010 that you would be able to turn off the shaky-cam in the options menu . . . but I could do no such thing in the demo.  Uh-oh.  Was disabling the camera too much of a burden for developers this late in the production stage? or was this option simply not available in the demo so that they could showcase the new visual design to all who played it?  I simply don’t know.

All I know is, if the shaky-cam is not able to be turned off, Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days is going to make a lot of people sick, and even more people angry.

But let us focus on the positives of this demo.  The game looks great, the game plays great, and Kane & Lynch themselves are back and better than ever.

The characters are as realistically rough around the edges as ever, but these men have changed.  Kane is clearly a broken man and Lynch seems a lot more down to earth (minus all the killing he just did) But why does he need Kane now more than ever?  What in the hell did he fuck up so badly in Shanghai?  The demo only leaves us wanting more.

If you want to see me play the complete demo from start to finish, check out the video below.  But I warn you, due to the fact that it was recorded second hand by an actual camera facing my television, it doubles the vomit inducing effects of the shaky-cam . . . enjoy!!

So, if you can get past the camera and art direction of Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days, you will find one extremely bad ass, story driven shooter on August 24th.