Dead to Rights: Retribution (PlayStation 3)

Story: Jack is back, and apparently so is his father. What seemed like gangs at work turned out much more organized and conspiratory, reaching all the way back to the law enforcement and once again Jack and his deadly canine companion, Shadow, are in for a helluva night. Terrorists took over Temple Tower, and while G.C.P.D. were trying to negotiate, hostages were killed. Jack Slate went in to negotiate the only way he can, through chaos and destruction, right after he turned over his police badge and gun to his commanding officer, Captain Inness. After taking care of what at first sight seemed a bunch of unsatisfied gang members, he caught up with the mastermind who took off in an Osprey-like aircraft. Together with his father Frank Slate, and his dog Shadow, he was on the trail of the only one who escaped the Temple Tower, but his father got killed in the process. That’s when story took the ugly turn… for the badguys. As Jack fights his way through veil of conspiracy, he starts to realize the friends he trusted may be the actual villains.

Gameplay: This is straight down action to the core where you control Jack Slate or his attack dog Shadow (you cannot switch at will, it will depend upon mission requirements). Both Jack and Shadow have different approach and tactics. When playing as Jack, you can fight the enemy with bare hands which consists of fast punch, hard punch, guard-breaking punch and the combos that can be created by chaining your punches up to five or six in a row. When surrounded, however, you can direct your hits and fight two or more enemies at once. But when odds are against you, you can command Shadow to attach enemy or watch your back. In most cases Shadow will take down enemies easily, but some tougher opponents will fend off dog’s attacks unless they are nearly beaten.

You can carry up two two weapons plus grenades at the same time, but not any two weapons. One light weapon like pistols and small rifles, and one heavier like machine-guns, sniper rifles or shotguns. As you fight the enemy, your focus meter will slowly fill which enables Jack to use slow-motion and target enemy soldiers more easily. Almost every soldier can be taken out with a single head shot which when scored will automatically put the game in slow-motion for a second or two so you know the enemy is down for good. When out of ammo, you can take the gun from enemy soldiers, with exception to heavily shielded ones, and chain it for a quick head shot but you will have to do that manually. There are missions where Shadow comes in control… mostly when you need to get the keys so Jack can unlock the gate, or when you pee on the cables to disable electric fence. Unlike Jack, Shadow can go stealth and in such more he can sense the guards which will become visible even through solid objects. If sneaking unseen, you can take out the enemy guard quietly and can even pull it out of plain sight. To attract enemies and flank them, you can also use strong bark or a semi-quiet woof woof only to attract close guards. While each of them is deadly, when working as a team, they are unbeatable. If Jack dies, it’s game over, but if Shadow dies when you are not controlling him, Jack can revive him back to health.