Everything about the game is simple in design too, with twin-stick gunplay in place (don’t worry, there’s a competent lock-on function too) and vehicles easy to drive around. The best way to describe the game would be as a 16-bit Grand Theft Auto – you’ll be venturing across the game’s open-world city, running and gunning down both enemies and pedestrians in crazy action-packed missions, partaking in plenty of criminal activity, and establishing your own criminal empire. Don’t get me wrong, some of the game’s jokes can be guilty of falling short of the mark, but its silly take on everything did more than enough to keep me engrossed in what was going on. The concept alone shows that Shakedown: Hawaii isn’t the kind of game that takes itself too seriously, but what would you expect from the follow up to the time-bending Retro City Rampage? It offers a fun tale that isn’t afraid to mock both modern society and pop-culture, with plenty of ‘a-ha’ moments to be had throughout as you see the narrative unfold. Oh, and modernise your business empire on the side, of course. Of course, there’s always a solution to a problem like this: commit some crimes, baby.
Add to this the fact that both he and his company are a little outdated, so it’s left him in a situation where he finds that his life isn’t so stable. In Shakedown: Hawaii you take on the role of a big boss in an illustrious company who has lived the high life, though he has also let age catch up with him and gotten a little complacent. It takes itself a little bit more seriously than the last game too (that was about a time-travelling criminal though so it’s not hard to) but, fortunately, it still remains both light-hearted in design and a whole lot of fun to play.
SHAKEDOWN HAWAII 3DS REVIEW PC
After a lot of teases on Twitter and what has felt like a very long development cycle, Shakedown: Hawaii is finally available on PC and consoles, bringing with it the all-out zany action of its predecessor but spicing it up with all new business management aspects. It feels like so long since I played Retro City Rampage now (it came out in 2012 which is insane) but I’ve always been excited to see what developer Vblank Entertainment did next.