History VideoGame / TrueCrimeStreetsOfLA

** In the UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube version, neither points nor the KarmaMeter is affected regarding property damage. When driving, no tree, parking meter, or traffic light should stand in your way.

It was followed by a sequel, ''VideoGame/TrueCrimeNewYorkCity,'' which was not nearly as well-received by critics or fans. A third game, ''True Crime: Hong Kong'', was in production before being cancelled in 2011; though it did eventually see release under publisher Creator/SquareEnix, it was no longer a ''True Crime'' game as Square Enix did not own the license, and so it was released under the title ''VideoGame/SleepingDogs'' in August 2012.

* AttackHello: Early in the game, Nick enters a building and is attacked out of nowhere by a man in a MartialArtsUniform, triggering a fight scene. Once it's over, their conversation reveals that the man is Nick's younger brother and this is their version of a friendly greeting.

* ActorAllusion: Creator/JamesHong [[Creator/BigTroubleInLittleChina once again]] [[spoiler: plays an immortal sorcerer who moonlights as a Crime Lord]].

A wide-open sandbox game developed by Luxoflux and published by Creator/{{Activision}} where you play as Nick Kang, a Chinese-American cop in L.A., in the vein of irreverent action-comedies such as ''Film/BeverlyHillsCop.'' It is noted for several things: Mixing gunplay with martial arts, being really funny, and allowing the plot to progress even if you fail every single mission (though failure does prompt many different branchings and will affect how good an ending you reach).

* BittersweetEnding: The Bad and Neutral Endings. The Bad Ending has Nick defeating General Kim, however, Kim plummets to his death and many pieces of the puzzle are still missing. The Neutral Ending has Nick subduing Rocky, however [[spoiler: Cary dies in this path]], and the secret of what happened to Nick's father dies with Rocky as Rosie shoots him to save Nick. George monologues on how nothing is perfect and encourages the player to try again.

* HonorBeforeReason: If you try to pull out Nick's guns during a designated fist-fight, Nick will reach for them, but then stop and say something like "Nah, let's do this honorably!" or "Must...resist...the dark side!" or "I'd rather just beat the crap out of you."

* KarmaMeter: Perform non-lethal takedowns (like shooting a guy in the arm) gets you Good Points while shooting them in the head is Bad[[note]]Unless they're packing heat and shoot at you first[[/note]].
** Those are just the easiest ways to affect the karma meter. Reckless driving is bad, lethal take-downs are bad, property damage is bad, stealing is bad, and in some cases, causing car accidents is bad (but if you find someone that wasn't wearing their seat-belt after a crash, it's a wash). & while killing a cop is pretty damn bad, shooting that cop (unlike running him over w/ a vehicle) is reprehensible enough to immediately elevate the Karma Meter (if it isn't high enough by then) and alert the cops. Conversely, stopping random crimes is good, and frisking people without cause and finding something illegal is good (What Fourth Amendment?).

-->'''Nick''': Got here in the nick of time. Ha! I crack myself up.
* TheMafiya: They appear to be the BigBad of the game. [[UsefulNotes/NorthKoreansWithNodongs The truth is a bit more complicated than that]].

* RevolversAreJustBetter: Averted, Nick starts out with some unspectacular .38's, before you upgrade them for something better. Concluding with a pair of [[{{HandCannon}} Desert Eagles]].

* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: In the average ending [[spoiler: Nick's brother Cary is killed,]] causing him to go on a one-man hunt to finish off Rocky and his conspirators.

-->'''Ancient Wu''': Where the metal birds flock near the ocean, you will find revenge...\\
'''Nick Kang''': What was that? Ancient Wu?\\
'''Ancient Wu''': The sixth edifice, at the landing place of the flying machines...\\
'''Nick Kang''': Wait, wait, I'm sorry, I don't quite follow.\\
'''Ancient Wu''': Santa Monica Airport, Hangar 6, asshole!

* TeethClenchedTeamwork: Nick and Rosie didn't get along with each other. Rosie thinks Nick is a sociopath while Nick prefers to [[IWorkAlone fly solo.]]

--->'''General Kim''': All I had to do was to follow you. Now my mission is nearly complete.\\
'''Nick Kang''': Nearly? Is there anyone left?\\
'''General Kim''': ''[[PreAssKickingOneLiner Just you, Kang.]]''

--> '''George''': They call it "The City of Angels". Funny. In my thirty years here, I haven't seen a single one.

A wide-open sandbox game where you play a Chinese-American cop in L.A., in the vein of irreverent action-comedies such as ''Beverly Hills Cop.'' It is noted for several things: Being immeasurably better than ''VideoGame/DeadToRights'' at the whole "Mix gunplay with martial arts" genre-blending thing, being really funny, and allowing the plot to progress even if you fail every single mission (though failure does prompt many different branchings and will affect how good an ending you reach).

Also notable for the fact that it pulls yet another sudden GenreShift during the latter part of the Good ending, where Nick Kang descends underneath the city and starts fighting zombies and dragons, in a homage to ''Film/BigTroubleInLittleChina''.

It was followed by a sequel, ''VideoGame/TrueCrimeNewYorkCity,'' which was not nearly as well-received by critics or fans. A third game, ''True Crime: Hong Kong'', was in production before being cancelled in 2011; though it did eventually see release under publisher Creator/SquareEnix, it was no longer a ''True Crime'' game as Square-Enix did not own the license, and so it was released under the title ''VideoGame/SleepingDogs'' in August 2012.

* ArtisticLicenseLaw: You're allowed to stop anyone on the street to frisk them for drugs or illegal weapons and then arrest them if they possess either one, even if you have no reason to suspect them of a crime. The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution exists to prevent policemen from doing this unless they have sufficient evidence.

* CoolShades: Nick sports these when he wears his undercover outfit.

-->'''Stripper: Is that a gun in your pants?'''\\
'''Nick: No, I'm just happy to see you.'''

* OneHitKO: Played with. If you manage to hit a car you're chasing with a PIT maneuver, it will disable the car immediately.
* OnlyAFleshWound: A possible option for the player is to perform non-lethal takedowns.

* RingOfFire: You fight the true final boss hand-to-hand in a ring of fire in the wreckage of a crashed jet.

* BackSeatsAreJustForShow

-->'''Stripper: Is that a gun in your pants?'''
-->'''Nick: No, I'm just happy to see you.'''

-->'''Ancient Wu''': Where the metal birds flock near the ocean, you will find revenge...
-->'''Nick Kang''': What was that? Ancient Wu?
-->'''Ancient Wu''': The sixth edifice, at the landing place of the flying machines...
-->'''Nick Kang''': Wait, wait, I'm sorry, I don't quite follow.
-->'''Ancient Wu''': Santa Monica Airport, Hangar 6, asshole!

--> '''General Kim''': All I had to do was to follow you. Now my mission is nearly complete.
--> '''Nick Kang''': Nearly? Is there anyone left?
--> '''General Kim''': ''[[PreAssKickingOneLiner Just you, Kang.]]''

** Interestingly, the true final boss is the same as the Bad Ending boss; the difference is that there, you had no idea what he was really up to or what he was trying to accomplish, whereas he [[JustBetweenYouAndMe spells it all out for you]] in the Good ending. There, you've successfully eliminated all the conspirators that he was also gunning for.

** Also, while General Kim is rather easy in the Bad Ending, he's [[ThatOneBoss]] ''[[ThatOneBoss an out and out nightmare]]'' in the Good Ending.

** Also, while General Kim is rather easy in the Bad ending, he's [[ThatOneBoss an out and out]] ''[[ThatOneBoss nightmare]]'' in the Good one.

* AttackAttackAttack: It's extremely rare to find criminals who will give up when you flash your badge. Almost all criminals will attack you or run away when confronted. Several offenders of minor crimes will go through extreme amounts to get away from Nick. The worst example would be common muggers stealing cars and taking off to the other side of Los Angeles when confronted. Also those in street fights will forget about whatever it was they were fighting about and focus their aggressions on you.

* BittersweetEnding: The Bad and Neutral Endings. The Bad Ending has Nick defeating General Kim, however Kim plummets to his death and many pieces of the puzzle are still missing. The Neutral Ending has Nick subduing Rocky, however [[spoiler: Carey dies in this path]], and the secret of what happened to Nick's father dies with Rocky as Rosie shoots him to save Nick. George monologues on how nothing is perfect, and encourages the player to try again.

* KarmaMeter: Perform non-lethal takedowns (like shooting a guy in the arm) gets you Good points, while shooting them in the head is Bad[[note]]Unless they're packing heat and shoot at you first[[/note]].

* OrgasmicCombat: PlayedForLaughs in a LiteralMinded sense. During a couple of the fist-fight levels, Nick will end up fighting women in S+M outfits. If he successfully uses one of his special moves on one of them, she has an ImmodestOrgasm as she flies backwards.

* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: In the average ending [[spoiler:Nick's brother Cary is killed,]] causing him to go on a one-man hunt to finish off Rocky and his conspirators.

* StealthBasedMission: The least common of the mission types has Nick sneaking very quietly through a short level. You can perform non-lethal takedowns, lethal {{Neck Snap}}s (for Bad points) and have an emergency dart gun with only three shots.

* TitleDrop: In the opening cutscene, George (Nick's father's old partner) opines that it was a true crime what happened to Nick's father.

--> '''General Kim''': All I had to to was to follow you. Now my mission is nearly complete.

It was followed by a sequel, ''VideoGame/TrueCrimeNewYorkCity,'' which was not nearly as well-received by critics or fans. A third game, ''True Crime: Hong Kong'', was in production before being cancelled in 2011; though it did eventually see release under publisher SquareEnix, it was no longer a ''True Crime'' game as Square-Enix did not own the license, and so it was released under the title ''VideoGame/SleepingDogs'' in August 2012.

!!This game provides examples of:

* GunsAkimbo: Nick's modus operandi when working with firearms. He can even fire two shotguns or assault rifles in each hand and fight on just fine.

** Also, while General Kim is rather easy in the bad ending, he's [[ThatOneBoss an out and out ''nightmare'']] in the Good one.

* TrueFinalBoss: Interestingly, the true final boss is the same as the Bad Ending boss; the difference is that there, you had no idea what he was really up to or what he was trying to accomplish, whereas he [[JustBetweenYouAndMe spells it all out for you]] in the Good ending. There, you've successfully eliminated all the conspirators that he was also gunning for.

* TeethClenchedTeamwork: Nick and Rosie didn't get along with with each other. Rosie thinking Nick is a sociopath while Nick prefers to [[IWorkAlone fly solo.]]

It was followed by a sequel, ''[[TrueCrimeNewYorkCity True Crime: New York City]],'' which was not nearly as well-received by critics or fans. A third game, ''True Crime: Hong Kong'', was in production before being cancelled in 2011; though it did eventually see release under publisher SquareEnix, it was no longer a ''True Crime'' game as Square-Enix did not own the license, and so it was released under the title ''VideoGame/SleepingDogs'' in August 2012.