Developed by IO Interactive and published by Square Enix/ Eidos, the two most vicious criminals are back to rein havoc on Shanghai’s parade. There was a lot controversy around the first game in the series and there were a lot of criticism from the media about many things which surrounded the gameplay and the story-line, but IO Interactive have done a great job in resolving these issues in Kane & Lynch: Dog Days aka Kane & Lynch 2.

From what we remember from the first game and from the first impressions of the game, we immediately can tell that crude mature violence is the focus of the game. Don’t think you will be relaxed at home and quietly playing a game since the best thing of this game, is that the sub-woofer in your sound system will not stop working with the great sound effects of the millions of gun shots to be fired during gameplay. Also, as a standard from Kane & Lynch, the mature content has an infinite count of how much the F word is used. Well, commenting on that… I will bet anyone who has an army of Chinese Mafia soldiers on his back to be able mind his language.

The story takes us in Shanghai, China where Lynch meets with Kane after his arrival in the city where they have to affect a smuggling operation. Before doing the deal, they have to shut the mouth of an informant for Glazer which unfortunately ended horrible and catastrophically wrong. The story is quite serious and very disturbing during action moments, shooting and the tortures that our duo inflict… especially through in the torture scenes. When you play through the game, the story-line and plot are held quite well and it doesn’t get deflected.

The single player is quite interesting as it has introduced the co-op mode which to be honest, was much needed in this series. It’s quite stable and very much enjoyable as the two players can play as either Kane or Lynch.

As it regards to presentation, IO Interactive have introduced a new camera system which immediately puts you in action, presented with a third person view but having like someone with a handheld camera running behind you. Even when you sprint, you will hear the wind passing, which adds to the effect. It’s the kind of camera system that does the trick to make the scenes more life-like and dramatic.

The gameplay involves a lot of shooting and moving forward. The covering system works quite well. There are a number of stealth missions but of course you can just shoot your way out. During gameplay you can hold two weapons which you can switch to anytime, also you can pick new weapons left from the foes and exchange them with the one in your hands. You can also sneak up on foes where you can either use them as a human-shield or just execute them. There is also the throwing and shooting of gas tanks or fire extinguishers to eliminate several foes in one blow.

The covering system is much improved from Kane & Lynch: Dead Men, it’s easier to cover and more fluid with the gameplay. Thou, some glitches have made it sometimes a bit annoying since I noticed in some cases that you have to face directly the covering object to be able to take cover. When I faced the object but turned the view using the right analog, Lynch didn’t take cover. Thou the covering system is much better than its predecessor, it still needs some polishing. Even if the covering system is still a bit dodgy and the shooting also needed some polishing, once you get the hand of it, it is still a hardcore game which will keep you stuck to the action till the end credits.

The enemy A.I. is very interesting and quite challenging. The enemy will try to shoot you from a random set of positions and you will hardly find the scene where you will just keep your crosshair in a position and the enemy will come out from the cover position. The enemy will always try to flank you and you must use Kane well so that you flank your enemies. The A.I. is intelligent and will surely give you some good challenges.

The graphic details are distinctively great! The entire environment is highly detailed along with some great destructive effects of objects and surroundings around the scene. As I said before, the sound effects are impressive and loud, and if you are a fan of shooter games and movies, you will surely like this while giving your sound system a hard time. There is not a lot of music going on in the game, but the voice acting is superb, unfortunately the lip synch is not to be desirable. One example of this is when you will be in the underground parking, escaping with Glazer, you will hardly see his lips moving along with no facial expressions.

As it regards to multiplayer, the game features three modes which are Fragile Alliance (brought forward from the first game), Undercover Cop and Cops & Robbers. For those who are new to the series, Fragile Alliance puts you on a team of players who team-up to do a heist with a time limitation where you must get in and get out with as much money as you can carry. The twist in this, is that you or any other player in the match can betray the rest of the team and collect more money. If you should go for betrayal be aware from the wrath of the rest of team, since revenge can put you out of business. In Undercover Cop, a team member in the match is assigned the part of an undercover cop who has to stop the other players from making the heist without being spotted. Lastly in Cops & Robbers, the players in the match are divided into two teams and while the robbers must try to escape the crime scene, the cops must stop them at all cost.

Alternatively you can go through the arcade mode which basically is the multiplayer modes but instead of playing against other players, you will be playing with or against bots. This could be great for some practice before going against other players.

Conclusion

Kane & Lynch: Dog Days, is a game which is very hard to ignore. Thou some glitches slightly deflect your gaming experience; the mature hardcore action is one of a kind, filled with unique graphics. If you want a shooter with a lot of bullets flying around with a infinite number of body count, Dog Days is the game for you.