Crime of our lives

Internet forums in Hong Kong were abuzz last June within days of US games developer Activision unveiling clips from an upcoming release. The third in its True Crime series, it has yet to make it onto the shelves. But Carson Lau Kit-ting, who owns a games shop in Wan Chai, says barely a day goes by without someone inquiring whether it is available. That's because the upcoming game is set entirely in this city. Titled True Crime: Hong Kong, it follows earlier versions set in Los Angeles and New York. 'After seeing that [YouTube] clip showing gunfights in the middle of Nathan Road, Hong Kong gamers are excited to play it,' says Lau. The True Crime series involves open-world games in which players take on the role of an outlaw character fighting, shooting and driving around virtual recreations of the titular cities. The Hong Kong game centres on Wei Shen, an undercover police officer who has infiltrated a triad gang and must juggle his relationships on both sides of the law. That sounds like dozens of the undercover cop characters from Hong Kong films of the 80s and 90s, but there is a more direct influence for Wei's character. Jeff O'Connell is lead producer at United Front Games, a Vancouver-based software company who developed the game. 'When we talk to Western media, we say he's based on DiCaprio's character in The Departed [Hollywood remake of the hit Infernal Affairs], but of course, that means he's based on the [Tony Leung Chiu-wai] character in Infernal Affairs,' he says. An early scene in the game has Wei walking into a dark alley in Mong Kok to meet two mysterious men. A briefcase and few words are exchanged. But the pair do not like what they see in the briefcase and guns are drawn, recalling a John Woo movie. 'You can't have a shoot-out in Hong Kong and not think of John Woo,' says O'Connell. Triad films, from the Woo classics of the 1980s to Johnnie To Kei-fung's film festival favourites of recent years (The Mission, PTU), have inspired Hollywood and video game makers for years. Although True Crime: Hong Kong isn't the first game to feature triad characters or heavy local influence (Woo and Chow Yun-fat endorsed a game titled Stranglehold, released in 2007), this marks the first time a game has been set entirely in Hong Kong. Unlike traditional video games, the missions are non-linear: players have complete control over when and where to take on a mission. So with Wei deep into his cover as a ruthless triad member, he could do just about anything he pleases. To get from Hong Kong Island to Kowloon, for example, Wei can drive, take a ferry or swim across - the latter may, ironically, be the safest because, in this virtual Hong Kong, car chases are a daily occurrence and drug smugglers frequent the ferries. Once in Kowloon, Wei could commandeer any vehicle and drive up Nathan Road, stopping to chat, fight, shoot or, in a more realistic portrayal of Hong Kong life - eat. With the game offering such freedom of movement, the team has made every effort to ensure a fully immersive virtual recreation of Hong Kong. O'Connell and executive producer Stephen van der Mescht visited Hong Kong with a small crew two years ago, snapping over 35,000 photographs and recording hours of video and audio footage for reference. 'We wanted to be careful not to portray the city as a Western stereotype,' says Van der Mescht. 'We wanted to get Hong Kong right - that goes beyond the buildings and the sights, we want the people and the attitude.' A stroll through the virtual city reveals a vivid, gorgeous recreation that is instantly recognisable - lush greenery on the drive up to The Peak, vibrant neon lights filling Nathan Road, Cantonese chatter in the crowded street market and the concrete jungle feel of Central. However, the producers haven't aimed for complete accuracy. 'This is ultimately a video game and the key point is to make it fun,' says Van der Mescht. 'One of the problems with first two games was that, at times, driving from point A to B took too long and that became boring. That was in part due to the size of Los Angeles and New York City and the erroneous belief that recreating the city, inch by inch, was the right way to go.' They've learned from that mistake, shrinking down some less colourful areas. 'We condensed North Point and the New Territories, but Central and [Yau Tsim Mong district] are dead on,' O'Connell says. They're not trying to create the largest virtual city but the 'best and most action-packed'. These elements include car races up The Peak, chases across rooftops of Sheung Wan tenements and gunfights in the streets of Mong Kok. To give the game a more authentic feel, the team did plenty of research. Van der Mescht says they spoke to senior police officials and even former triad members to develop more realistic scenarios. O'Connell 'watched a lot of Hong Kong films', citing Jackie Chan's Police Story and Election, in particular, as part of his preparation. The game reflects that, from the cinematography of some scenes to the dialogue. It hasn't been all smooth sailing for the developers. The release of the game was pushed back from autumn last year to this spring, but Van der Mescht says they wanted to fine-tune the gameplay engine. 'Open-world games are tougher to develop than the average video game because they incorporate so many different genres and elements,' he says. 'This is a fighting game, a driving game, an adventure game and a shooting game all combined into one. We extended our development cycle to ensure the game met our standards.' If they succeed, True Crime: Hong Kong could revive the franchise. The first game, set in Los Angeles, was a hit with 3.3 million copies sold, but the second instalment flopped both critically and commercially. True Crime: New York also came under fire from New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly, who denounced the game for unfairly portraying its police force and crime rate. O'Connell says they try not to worry about criticism outside of the video game industry but have taken precautions anyway: unlike the first two games, the Hong Kong protagonist is a hero - every violent action he takes is justified, and the 'bad cop' option of the first two games, which allowed the character to rob and steal, has been removed. 'We think the people who live here won't be disappointed with the way we've represented Hong Kong as a city and as a hotbed for action,' he says. 'This game will do the city justice.' True Crime: Hong Kong is tentatively scheduled for a March release and will be available for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360