GTA VI: 10 Things It Must Learn From Sleeping Dogs
Inspiration can come from the unlikeliest of places.
No doubt right now Rockstar are hard at work on whatever their followup to GTA V is going to be; whether that's a huge wait until the next direct instalment, a Bully/Red Dead sequel - or something totally out of left field like another Table Tennis game. For now though let's focus on GTA, and also a genre that although it was positively booming with copycat titles across the late 00's, has died down considerably in the last few years. The whole 'open-world crime game' template is always one that when given the appropriate care, can be spectacular - and although United Front Games' Sleeping Dogs was always a little rough around the edges back in 2012, with Sony discounting the Definitive Edition on the PS Store, it's prompting plenty fans to give it a whirl, coming away pleasantly surprised on the other end. If you're unfamiliar with the game or the studio, think of the True Crime titles that released in 2003 and 2005 respectively. Although they were certainly far more arcady affairs gameplay-wise than the GTA series, developers Luxoflux threw in a bevy of gameplay styles ranging from high-speed chases to slow-motion Max Payne-style specials, a proper brawling melee system with environmental physics and even a slew of finishing moves. It was all topped off by some great characters and an accurately-modelled L.A. to burn around in (repeated with New York in the sequel), although following that the devs ran into financial trouble, eventually giving up another TC sequel to United Front who turned it into the fantastic Sleeping Dogs, retaining the addictive cocktail of gameplay styles that made the others so enjoyable. So, with GTA VI a ways off and Sleeping Dogs' popularity cemented as a brilliantly fun alternative to its big-budget brethren, let's look at the most essential things Rockstar can take forward into their respective world-conquering franchise.