Dead To Rights Retribution Review

23 Apr 2010 at 16:02:28 by Andy Alderson
Systems used to review this title: (PS3)

'Reboot' is a very fashionable word at the moment. Whether it's films or games, you can't seem to escape talk of “reimagining” classic franchises and, ironically, the reboot is becoming as hackneyed and clichéd as the ailing titles it hopes to revive. Right this moment, in various meeting rooms across the world some ambition-rich/inspiration-poor young exec is getting ready to deliver his verdict on  a wavering franchise. “What we need guys - and this is gonna sound a little left-field – is a gritty reboot.” And that's exactly what we have in Dead to Rights: Retribution, a reworking of the last gen man/dog action title (NB never, under any circumstances, search the net for “man/dog action title”). Unfortunately, the fact that the game is a reboot is only part of the reason why, when playing it, you get the overwhelming sense that you've been here before. 

Like its inspiration, Retribution is styled as a gritty neo-noir experience, set in the oppressively grey Grant City. You take on the role of Jack Slate (think Alan Wake's polar opposite), a loose cannon detective with a penchant for violence and a complete disregard for the ru... meh, you get the picture. Think of the main character from any badly-made action film of the last twenty years, imagine how they could be made slightly less likeable and you have Jack Slate. Grant City is in the midst of its worst crime wave ever, with previously disparate gangs now super-organised and ready to wreak havoc. As one of the only good cops left in the city, Jack finds himself in high demand and it's not long before he and his old man are waxing nostalgic about the good old days when the police knew what they were doing.  Unfortunately, like in the first game, old man Slate is soon rubbed-out (what, a guy can't use cheesy gangster slang any more?) which leaves Jack and his trusty mutt Shadow to follow the trail of his killer. As I'm sure you've already guessed, this leads to them uncover a city-wide conspiracy which threatens the safety of all its citizens.

For Jack and Shadow to succeed, they'll have to content with the city's most vicious criminal gangs, and by “contend with” I mean shoot/beat-up/hideously disembowel. The game is split between third person shooting/close combat gameplay as Jack and sneaky stealth sections as Shadow. Thankfully, the balance is weighted in favour of the former as the Shadow levels, while initially quite a novelty, soon become a little tedious and lacking in imagination. Nearly all of the Shadow's stages play out in similar fashion as you sneak into a locked area, take out all of the guards using stealth and steal some keys/power down the security system. You must then return to Jack who will enter the compound only to find it mysteriously repopulated with enemies. It's a shame as controlling Shadow, while quite basic, is pretty fun and a little more imagination in the level design would be more than welcome.

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