True Crime: Streets of LA Review

As I progressed through the game I encountered pleasing and well-balanced AI routines. In one particular mission we engaged a random street thug who tried to evade arrest. He went from one street to another, until he finally found some wheels. We snatched a car ourselves and made after him. Shooting out the tires and severely damaging the escapee's vehicle caused him to pull over and continue on foot. By the time we stopped and exited the car, he swiftly found an alternate mode of transportation. All in all, it wasn't easy to keep up. The AI obviously does what it's supposed to, so that you at least don't have to worry about not getting a decent run for your money.

Sorry, ladies, party's over!

Are you comin' out or what?

In terms of audio, TC: Streets of LA delivers everything you need to hear. Accurate sounds of explosions, gunfire, punches, kicks and other ambient noises that ensure immersive atmosphere. And to top it off, the PC version features some soundtrack extras including the music of Alice in Chains, Queensryche, etc. (What, no Tori Amos? - Six)

The online multiplayer facet was supposed to be the shining aspect of the PC version, but it turned out to be weak and unpolished. There are five available modes (Street Racing, The Beat, Dojo Master, Battle Master, and The Chase) all of which can be fun in their own way... but not for long. We played several LAN matches, but got bored pretty fast. To make things worse, True Crime has woefully inadequate online support - we hope this will improve over the coming months. Lag issues were frequent during online matches and the game even crashed a couple of times.

True Crime: Streets of LA is probably an adequate passtime for those of you who are waiting for GTA: San Andreas to hit the stores. Rushing through the streets of LA in a speedy car is something I guess, especially when one takes the time to admire the view. Oh wait, how are you going to do that when you're blazing at 100MPH? Beats me! Various LA landmarks were modeled and thrown in, such as the LA Convention Center and the Staples Center. (Are there lots of computer geeks around the Convention Center? - Ed)

Regrettably, the game is not very lengthy, and the option to fight crime in the many side-missions doesn't help to increase the replay value; another reason why you should only get this game if you are certain you like this genre.

While the game did well on the consoles, we've seen many technical disadvantages in the PC version thanks to which True Crime could never measure up to games like Vice City. Due to several such flaws, the short main story and lack of more engaging side missions, the good stuff about this game, like its relatively open-ended nature and decent plot, good AI and fun combat, don't get a chance to truly shine.