John Woo's hard boiled shooter (+ photos)

John Woo's Stranglehold is a bullet-riddled shoot 'em up with style.

Ever seen a hardcore action flick and wished it could be made into a game?

It's been bugging me for ages each time I indulge in watching one from my favourite genres - Hong Kong kung fu.

John Woo's pre-Hollywood "Hard-Boiled" is a 1992 cult classic and about as intense, over the top and as full of violence as it can get ( check out the DVD if you have never seen it ). It featured Inspector "Tequila" Yuen who pursed justice whatever it took and however many people had to die in the process.

Now if only there was a game like that.

Enter stage left - John Woo who revives the inspector's character to make the third-person shooter video game,

Stranglehold

(Midway: R16) in collaboration with star actor Chow Yun-Fat. I played it on Xbox 360, but it is also available on PC and due on PS3 at the end of November.

With Woo in charge, this game should be a cracker - and it definitely is.

It has all the action - loads of guns almost like a western. Vast sprays of bullets, inevitable brutal murder and ruthless crime lords over some exotic locations only rich gangsters can afford to enjoy, and some poorer spots where only the poor could live.

The choreographed stunts are something you'd expect from a Woo movie too.

If you know Hong Kong movies, don't expect anything sophisticated when it comes to the plot. There is a story: Chow Yun-Fat as the inspector in Hong Kong is investigating the kidnapping of a businessman's daughter and granddaughter and he has to battle through gang after gang to find them.

Note that this is really just an excuse to shoot people - mainly in a messy no-holds-barred way such as the up close face or sensitive groin areas.

You can still just knock people out if all else fails but that's usually if you need to borrow their gun and believe me, there's no shortage of ammo. If the usual shotguns and SMGs get boring, there's plenty in the cache of heavier firearms through to rocket launchers and special attacks to spice up the carnage.

There are dozens of gas and propane tanks to blow up littered under or over every batch of thugs, ready for you to just puncture and explode into hundreds of little grenade-like bits.

Great how the enemy never thinks to shoot at them though - this game is cool and exudes style.

It really is like being in a movie with you as the stunt action guy behind the gun in the slow-mo Woo ballet just like at the movies.

Shoot-outs can be over fairly quickly if you can't line up your shots in time. You can make Tequila move in slow-motion to give you time to aim shots while dodging bullets in a leap or dive, and sometimes this happens automatically. This is called Tequila Time! Or you can just go trigger crazy until the ammo runs out.

It took me a little while to warm to this, especially as it seems so obviously influenced by Max Payne.

But I was sold completely when it came to busting up explosive P-labs (or worse) and the swift satisfaction from seeing gang henchmen explode in the flames - like some Auckland buildings in recent years.

But while Woo's first video game isn't an Oscar, its mighty enjoyable, it's polished and like his movies, just really good fun - especially as in this case you're the one at the end of the gun.

MadGamer rating: 8.5 out of 10

Anyone like Woo movies?