Image courtesy of Giant Bomb.

Stranglehold is sequel to a classic action film and a great action game on its own
Stranglehold is the official sequel to John Woo’s 1992 action masterpiece Hard Boiled. Interestingly enough, it’s a video game instead of a film.

Stranglehold features the same shoot ‘em up action and melodrama Woo’s films are known for. Putting those features into a video game sounds too good to be true. However, Stranglehold works thanks to its tight gameplay, Hong Kong cinema level production values and love for the source material. Woo’s involvement with the production certainly helps too. Chow Yun-Fat even reprises his role as police officer/professional bad ass, Inspector “Tequila” Yuen.

Despite having all the makings of a classic action game, Stranglehold was only a decent hit, both critically and financially for Midway. It was not long term. Being released at the beginning of the 2007 fall season meant Stranglehold would be competing with BioShock, Halo 3 and the first Uncharted and Assassin’s Creed games. Plus the stigma of being a “movie game” may have turned off some gamers.

Stranglehold manages to capture John Woo’s style perfectly
The game scores points for originality by being a fresh story with new characters. Taking place a few years after Hard Boiled, Inspector Yuen is on a case about missing police officers in Hong Kong. Through some contacts, Yuen discovers an international plot involving a Hong Kong crime syndicate and his estranged daughter. Who has also been kidnapped, adding to the melodrama. Armed with a massive amount of firearms and a bottle of tequila, Yuen sets out on his quest.

Stranglehold’s story is full of moments like these. Image courtesy of Giant Bomb.

The story itself is overly complex in Woo’s typical style, but it allows for more than a few set pieces. This is where Stranglehold truly shines. The control set up for Stranglehold is perfect and allows players to dive and shoot as flawlessly done in the films. Max Payne owes a lot of its aesthetics to Woo’s films. Its nice to see Stranglehold using the same type of gameplay, but adding its own spin on it.

Image courtesy of Giant Bomb.

Stranglehold’s audio is also well done too. Having a similar score to Hard Boiled, but also having some top notch voice acting. There is not a Cantonese voice track, but the actors do their jobs. Yun-Fat is especially great, and its nice to hear him reprise one of, if not, his most famous roles.

Action packed action in Stranglehold!
Adding to the action of Stranglehold are a series of special moves. Shooting enough enemies and performing enough stylish dives earns the player stars. Stars will be used as ammunition for Tequila Bombs and other attacks. There is also a mode called Tequila Time where time will slow down, doves will fly out of every corner, and Yuen will become unstoppable. These features replicate Woo’s films perfectly. They even give Stranglehold a sense of identity instead of being a Max Payne clone.

Diving and shooting is the name of the game in Stranglehold! Image courtesy of Giant Bomb.

Locales in Hong Kong and Chicago allow for some creative action, instead of keeping it to the city. Yuen will be duel wielding pistols in a bar, a fishing port and a swanky jazz club. In a humorous moment, the club will have the musicians still playing their set, while Yuen is gunning down gangsters.

Shooting out in a bar. Inspector Yuen always finds himself in places where that really shouldn’t happen. Image courtesy of Giant Bomb.

One of Gaming’s Undervalued Treasures

Stranglehold all comes together and matches the tone of Woo’s action pictures flawlessly. It manages to stand on its own and not in the shadow of a well-regarded film like Hard Boiled. Stranglehold is a blast to play and even fun to watch as well. For fans of Woo, this is an absolute must play. Best part is, it’s not terribly expensive, as decent used copies won’t run more than 10 bucks on Amazon.

And for what it’s worth, the special edition for PS3 comes with a Blu-ray version of Hard Boiled.