Stranglehold

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Blast action hero

John Woo's explosive Stranglehold blows up everything

Words: GamesRadar US

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Once collected, the points are then used to activate one of four Tequila bombs, the Inspector’s really special moves. Each one of the bombs is triggered by pressing a direction on the D-pad: health boost, precision shot, barrage and - bringing us back to where we came in - the spin attack, complete with doves and haunting music (see “Dropping the Bombs”). The Tequila bombs are the pinnacle of Stranglehold’s delirious excess - brazenly choreographed and archly stylish - but we worry that there’s not enough of them, and that with such a small number they’ll become repetitive all too quickly.

Fair to say, then, that doubts linger about Stranglehold’s ambitious physics, but one thing’s for certain - the game looks amazing. The beautiful environments and exploding scenery are captivating and the hi-res likeness of Chow Yun-Fat screams “next-gen” - it’s a leap you can’t appreciate until you see it in action. So while there’s something ominously appropriate about a John Woo game that looks the business but falls down on substance - not unlike some of his image-obsessed films - we’d love to see the finished version of Stranglehold iron out its problems and deliver what could be something truly special.