Kane and Lynch: Dead Men

Kane and Lynch: Dead Men - (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
Developer: IO Interactive
Format: Xbox 360, PS3, PC
Genre: Action

It takes two to tango in a firefight

A kidnapped wife and daughter do wonders for your focus so it's a good job Kane, a mercenary, has focus down to a tee. He's being forced by 'The 7', the mysterious organisation behind the kidnap and whom he's worked for before, to travel through seedy scenarios taking out hits and carrying out missions in order to free his family. Thrown into this bloodthirsty world is Lynch, a nut job with an itchy trigger finger out to shadow Kane and make sure he carries out The 7's orders.

It's a potent mix of badass, Michael Mann-esque gunplay and plot with some seriously cool, streetwise scenarios that play out like the best cinematic shooters. It's gritty, bloody, extremely edgy and the voice-over will crackle the air blue with the swearing. It even plays great for a while. Then the flaws start to creep in.

The AI becomes sloppy when you have a number of teammates on a mission; your allies won't cover you properly or will run like lemmings into enemy gunfire. It's a real shame when it happens, because up until you encounter this, the game seems pretty flawless in execution. The cover aspect of these firefights can also be pretty poor at times - you'll never be quite sure if the tree or roof pillar you've chosen will actually shield you from gunfire.

There's co-op split screen option but no online co- op which is a travesty these days. The other option is for Fragile Alliance, a mode where you team up with other players to carry out the various heists. It works, but not in an Xbox 360-worthy way.

They're big but the flaws shouldn't detract from what, at its core, is a moody slice of shooter excellence. It just depends on how patient you are.

To view more images, click here