KMGR of "Cops"

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"Cops" is obviously trying to evoke the "feeling" of the TV show, and has a lot of LAPD trivia, but it is NOT really based on LAPD, more of "inspired by".

It definitely tries to be all things to all people, with a bit of puzzle, bit of run-and-gun, a bit of driving, and bit of adventure. You play as multiple officer: a veteran, two rookies, and a plain-clothes detective. Together you'll deal with a lot of different situations, from crazed gunman, to hostage situation, supermarket robbery, rescue, freeway chase, undercover work, and more.

The graphics are cartoony. Think first-generation King's Quest / Police Quest sort of graphics, except on a cellphone. And the cops wear blue uniforms with a white shirt and tie, definitely not the real LAPD, even though the vehicles say LAPD on them, really.


The action parts are pretty good, at least the run-and-gun. You need to shoot it out with criminals. Your guy takes cover automatically behind any cover, shelves, etc. Shooting is via a timing interface: the circle shrinks as time goes on. When it shrinks to a dot, hit OK to shoot. When you got the guy cornered, you got a "final shot" situation, where the idea is NOT to kill the suspect, but try to shoot the weapon out of his hand. Definitely Hollywood, as that is NOT how real cops do things.

The car chase part is cute, as it incorporates various movies, like logs in the road, flying up a car carrier's ramp, and so on. Again, Hollywood idea of a cop. Unfortunately, no PIT maneuver in this game, unlike real cops.

The plot are definitely cop like, lots of oddball situations, like domestic violence, adult situations, drug dealers, loan sharks, suicidal people, and so on. There are even bonus objectives like "find the kid's cat" and so on. And yes, you are on a timer. The faster you work the better.

The problem is the minigames they bring on, and the controls they use. You often feel like you're playing Dance Dance Revolution, as you're required to hit several different keys in a row, which makes no sense. For example, in the first "mission", you discovered a crazed gunman, who shot at you after you busted down the door, thinking it is some sort of domestic violence situation. You and your partner chased him to the rooftop, and you end up dodging various molotov cocktails he's throwing... by pressing a certain key flashing on screen three times in a row, like WWW or EEE. If you fail, you die, and the level restarts at the 'checkpoint'. Later, you get a minigame where you try to jump from fire escape to fire escape like Super Mario trying to reach a window to save a suicidal man.

All in all, Cops is a cute game that makes you feel a bit like participating in a real Cops episode, at least the most exciting parts, but it's more Hollywood idea of a cop, than the real-life drama of Cops. The game's cartoony feel is fine, it's just the minigames I have some issues with.

Overall rating: 7.5 out of 10
Pros: nice variety of missions, got some of the cop feel, run and gun is good
Cons: rest of minigames are bad, esp. "Super Mario", way too Hollywood-y feel
Verdict: fun diversion, just remember it's a GAME, not in any resembling reality