Kane & Lynch: Dead Men - X06 Impressions Preview

Having received both critical and commercial success with Hitman: Blood Money in the early part of 2006, IO Interactive's next title, Kane & Lynch: Dead Men looks set to offer something a tad more kinetic than the bald headed assassin. Huddled away at X06, IO Interactive and Eidos were keen to show off the game, which will be heading to Xbox 360 and PC in the early part of 2007.

Key to the storyline of the new IP, and the overall gameplay itself, will be the relationship between the two lead characters. Little is known at this point, other than the fact that both men are convicted criminals who escape from the authorities. Confirming that Kane and Lynch stand at polar opposites in terms of personality (Kane is a flawed mercenary whilst Lynch is a diagnosed schizophrenic and borderline psychopath), IO held back on the reasons behind their dependency on each other beyond their initial escape. One thing that has been confirmed however was that through the course of the game, the relationship does breakdown to absolute hatred of each other...though the reasons behind that were also (somewhat obviously) held back too.

Two levels from the game were demonstrated at X06, each different in terms of location and gameplay. The first began with a short firefight on top of a skyscraper, before Kane and Lynch (joined by a couple of 'crew' members) go abseiling over the side of the building. Besides the somewhat dramatic start to the Kane & Lynch experience, it also allowed the team to demonstrate the vertigo-inducing sense of height and depth (helped no end by the use of a Jaws-style 'trombone' shot) when players first look over the side of the towering building. Traversing down the side of the glass-fronted skyscraper enabled us to get a good view of the city below in all its glory - there really is a grand sense of scope attached to the experience of seeing a metropolis from such a height. Once at the appropriate floor, where the target is holding a board meeting, Kane strapped a bomb to the window, blowing out the glass and allowing the team to wreak havoc into the room. Shattering the Japanese-themed décor of the boardroom in a storm of bullets to devastating effect, IO representatives confirmed that whilst there would be destructible environments in the game, they would be limited to objects that could provide cover for players and AI alike.

Recognising one of the main criticisms of the iconic Hitman franchise, the guys from IO spoke about making Kane & Lynch more playable and gamer-friendly, describing it as closer to Freedom Fighters than Agent 47. The gameplay is far more focused on creating a visceral shooting experience for players, which was evident from the high-expenditure of munitions through the course of the half-hour demonstration. In addition to the two anti-heroes (there's little to like about Kane or Lynch as characters), it was announced that the game would integrate basic "crew-based" tactics (IO don't like the idea of describing the mechanic as 'squad-based' as it sounds more military). It won't be as overwhelming as some of the more 'hardcore' squad-based titles, after all it's not called "Kane and the Team"; players will be able to tell the other members to go to a particular area, or to mirror their moves, negating the possibility that the gameplay will get bogged down from its focus on action.

It's with some irony that whilst gamers will control Kane in the solo-player mode, the true motivations behind some of the missions will be kept back, meaning that we'll be left in the dark as much as Lynch. For instance at the start of the second mission at the demo, based in a nightclub, Kane doesn't tell Lynch that they're going to kidnap the owner; instead he tells him that they're just going to pay her visit. It's only when Kane throws some gaffer tape to Lynch in a cut scene that both we and Lynch are let in on the whole story. This nightclub location was particularly impressive even at this stage of the game's development, not only because of the number of clubbers dancing away, but also because for the first time a videogame seems to have captured the atmosphere quite accurately. Hued strongly in blue with a thumping track playing rhythmically, 'clubbers' danced to the beat as Kane made his way through to the management areas of the venue. IO's experience in creating the volumous levels of crowds in Blood Money look set to pay dividends in Kane & Lynch, and it was explained that up to 700 different clubbers could be one screen at any one time. In fact, the club holds over 3000 people across all of its levels, so there's no lack of atmosphere. Moving through the management doors, which dampened the music to a dull thud, Kane then set about the real reason for coming to club - kidnapping the female owner.

In a shift in the gameplay dynamic, Kane has to protect Lynch who carries the taped and gagged owner on his shoulders. Moving through the crowds and dodging the flashlights of the guards and bouncers as they go, this more sedate yet tense pace didn't last for long, with a shootout starting that saw Kane take down a number of enemies. In the crossfire, the crowd AI responded appropriately, running and ducking out of the way of the bullets, hands clasped over their heads as they tried to escape from the firefight.

Although IO only demonstrated Kane & Lynch in solo mode, the core area of gameplay will be co-operation, which will allow a second player to drop in and drop out instantly. According to the studio, there won't be a menu system in the game, cleaning up the HUD and creating a more cinematic experience along the way. Gamers won't be able to stockpile a wealth of firepower either, which is another way in which the 'crew' will come in handy, allowing players to swap Kane's weapon for their own. Kane will also be able to swap weapons with Lynch, but only if the latter isn't in the midst of a psychotic rage. Following the demonstration, IO confirmed that they planned for Kane & Lynch to do everything possible to push the 18 years of age certificate that they're going for, to the limit...Beyond the ultra-violent gameplay and psychotically-prone characters who knows what that means - let's just hope that it won't be over the top just for the hell of it.

In addition to the detailed character models and environments, Kane & Lynch is also bathed in a grainy filter that adds to the gritty atmosphere portrayed in the gameplay and locations. It's something that's been evident from screenshots of the game, but is far more successful when Kane & Lynch is being demonstrated. Less polished was the audio of the game. For the moment, placeholder sound and voice work is being used by IO, which allowed for some of the crowds during the nightclub shootout to remain eerily quiet.