Kane and Lynch: Dead Men definitely came from a different era of video games where it played fast and loose with what constituted as a third person shooter. It's jank. It's short. It's edgy. It will frustrate you because the mechanics introduced are never fully fleshed out. And while it certainly has its moments where it holds you, you'll start to realize how hollow it is and self-indulgent that you can't help but wonder how this game even managed to get made. Still, bless IO for making it. It's rare of them to come out swinging with a different IP even if, in spirit, it follows Freedom Fighters with squad gameplay and, if my eyes were lying, uses the same animated pose with the RPG when you equip it. Thankfully the music hits when it does and the action hits when it's done fussing with its story. But regardless of how these components are integrated together, it still falls incredibly short of IO's legacy. For that reason, I'm giving it 3 stars because it was one of those games I played the demo of back in 2007 but never truly got around to playing it. Now thanks to a sale I was able to satisfy a long, forgotten need, and to that end, I'm glad I've played it. As for you, you might not like it—but then again, you might!
