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Kingpin: Life of Crime
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Graphics & Sound:
The graphics in Kingpin are absolutely gorgeous, and run speedily... most of the time. Every once in a while, the game starts getting really choppy for no apparent reason, and I’m befuddled by the reason. I’m not necessarily looking at a high polygon count, and my system’s quite capable of displaying a bazillion polys. But it never really occurred in a mission-critical location, so it only detracted slightly from the gameplay. The settings are beautiful in an urban grit sort of way, with the decay of all the inner-city slums in the world put together. The character models are highly detailed as well. The weapons look real, the situations look real, and the people look as real as you can get with the Quake II engine. Excellent.
The music is by Cypress Hill and fits the game very well. But for some reason, the CD music defaults to being off. What’s up with that? Why put such a big name on a game and then not have their music as a featured part of a base install? I’m still puzzling over that one. The sound effects are good, and the voice acting is top notch, the use of the f-word in every other sentence notwithstanding. It doesn’t detract from the game, though, because it fits with the whole urban grit thing, and you can always put the game on the “PG13” mode at install. Overall, I was highly impressed with the integrated environment that this game presented me with. Blood spewing from almost-dead people, chunky bits, it’s all there. If only it didn’t get choppy at times... |
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Gameplay:
Kingpin: Life of Crime is plain awesome. You are a street punk, out to recruit gang members and get back at the Kingpin for puttin’ you down. On your way, you’ve got to do fetch-quests and such, but it’s all an enlivening experience. The characters get you into the game, even the bit ones that are just there for flavor. The gunfights are fast and furious and lots of fun, even though you’ll die plenty at first because you have a pipe and they have automatics. Ahh, life on the street. As you play, you’ll meet people that will help you on your journey and those that just want to mess you up. The world is pretty big, and it’s all interconnected, so you can go back and forth between the delineated areas as you like.
The enhancements to the Quake II engine, like picking up stuff selectively and walking quietly, all fit into the game scheme very well. The in-game cut-scenes move the plot along, and by the end you’ll be thirsting for blood. The addition of the need to holster your weapon so that people don’t think you’re gonna bust loose on them (or keep it unholstered to intimidate them, depending) really adds to the gameplay. The game detects hit locations as well, although it didn’t come in as handy at first as I thought it would, because the beginning weapons are inaccurate. Once you get a more accurate arsenal, though, it makes a difference. And you can recruit people into your street gang, command them around, and use them as cannon fodder. Aww yeah. It’s all good.
Being a Quake derivative, it’s a requirement that there is multiplayer. It’s eminently playable, perhaps not as much as Quake 2, but still fun nonetheless. The requisite multiplayer maps are expansive and fun and designed well to boot, so you can always know where you’re going. The weapons are great fun as well. 16 players at once, in gameplay modes such as trying to net the most cash from blowing the crap out of everyone else, make for a great time. Like Quake II, though, a dedicated server box is highly recommended, as a non-dedicated server gives the person running the game way too much of an advantage unless the game’s on a lan. Be forewarned.
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Difficulty:
Kingpin is DAMN hard. Even on the lower difficulty levels, prepare to get your ass kicked. And on the higher ones, the highest being “Real” (because one good gunshot takes you down instantly, much like in real life), prepare to do the ultimate creep-and-save. The puzzles aren’t too difficult, which is fine, and the gameplay more than makes up for the difficulty. You’ll curse because you got your ass capped, but you’ll come back for more. And more. And more.
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Game Mechanics:
Kingpin: Life of Crime uses the tried and true Quake II engine, so you know the mechanics are solid. It plays smoothly with the keyboard-and-mouse combo that most favor, and the controls are infinitely configurable. Even that wheelie-dealie on those Microsoft Intellimice can be configured to do stuff. Mine holsters my gun because I have a bad habit of walking around with the rocket launcher out in broad daylight. Just how do you holster a rocket launcher, anyways? The gameplay itself is a touch derivative, of course, and the cursing sometimes grated on my nerves, even though I could accept why it was there.
Kingpin just didn’t seem right in PG13 mode, but that’s just because I wanted it all -- blood, gore, cursing. If the game didn’t skip quite as much when there’s not much going on, as far as I can tell, I would be an excessively happy camper. As it is, I’m just an eminently happy one. If you can handle the excess of everything, and like the idea of being a street thug beating the crap out of other street thugs, you’ll like this game... a lot. Same goes for if you like 3D games. It’s a must-buy.
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-Sunfall to-Ennien, GameVortex Communications AKA Phil Bordelon |
Minimum System Requirements:
Windows 95/98/NT, Pentium II 233+, 64MB RAM, 570 MB HD Space, 4X CD-ROM, DirectX Sound Card, 3D Graphics Card REQUIRED |
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Test System:
Windows 98 running on a K6-III 450 w/256MB RAM, 6x24 DVD-ROM drive, SoundBlaster Live!, Creative Labs Riva TNT2 Ultra w/32MB RAM |
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