Out of the way

Following reports that spilled out of Destination PlayStation last night, Square Enix has lifted the lid on Sleeping Dogs – the project formerly known as True Crime: Hong Kong.

Those of you with strong memories will recall Activision publicly cancelling the United Front Games developed open-world adventure last year, only for it to get snapped up by Square Enix a few months later.

The game will now launch as Sleeping Dogs in the second half of this year. It’s being developed by Square Enix London Studios “in collaboration” with United Front Games.

Sleeping Dogs puts you in the shoes of undercover cop Wei Shen who’s tasked with taking down the Hong Kong Triad from the inside. The game promises emotional turmoil, as Shen begins to question his own motives and gets sucked deeper into the dealings of the dodgy organisation.

Square Enix London’s, Lee Singleton, said of the game:

From the moment you pick up the controller and experience the blend of driving, close combat and shooting you know you’re playing something fresh and a bit special.

Sleeping Dogs has one of the best melee combat systems out there – it’s super brutal with devastating takedown moves, and when added to UFG’s proven heritage in driving games, a first class story and the vibrant backdrop of the Hong Kong underworld we get a fiery recipe with fun written all over it.

United Front Games’ Stephen Van Der Mescht added:

Working on Sleeping Dogs has been such a huge passion for the team at United Front Games and we’re really pleased to be working with Square Enix London Studios.

The extensive experience both our studios have in creating compelling openworld gameplay and rich and rewarding combat makes for a perfect partnership. Working together we can make sure that Sleeping Dogs is the most intense and immersive experience it can be.

Square Enix is really talking up the game’s combat system, promising some of the “most intuitive and imaginative” martial arts action in video games.

The publisher explained:

Sleeping Dogs empowers players to perform an extensive set of martial arts moves, singlehandedly taking on numerous opponents. Players perform bone-crunching kicks and combos, vicious counters and a cinematic set of environmental takedowns making use of countless real-world items from circular saws to phone booths, incinerators to refrigerator doors.

There's more screenshots and a live-action trailer below. We always liked the look of Sleeping Dogs in its former guise, so we're excited to see how the project has advanced with Square Enix at the helm.