LA Cops is a twin-stick top-down police shooter set in a cheesy retro 1970’s cop drama where you take on the role of several different cops. The squad of cops make their way through various environments taking out gang members for some reason that’s never completely clear. LA Cops puts an emphasis on a partner system that is intended to help you set up tactical infiltrations.
Story
The story is practically nonexistent. Cutscenes are confusing and all over the place. The “story” starts shaping up toward the end when you start taking out a Hawaiian gang in order to keep your names clean and avoid hard time but overall, the story is completely uninspired and dull.
Longer cutscenes with a comical approach would have added much more appeal to LA Cops. I found the story bland and completely uninteresting and that’s something that cop dramas usually deliver on but LA Cops lacks any sort of personality. Some proper comedy would have spiced LA Cops up tremendously. What little story is offered seems forced and threw together clumsily.
The small amount of mission objectives are very straightforward: kill all enemies, destroy drug tables then head to the elevator. LA Cops throws a random timed mission and a wave round towards the end of the game but the majority of the game missions are plain and uninspired.
Character development is done horribly. The corny dialogue between cops at the station tries to give the characters a personality but the short length and number of cutscenes deter any sort of likeability. LA Cops just doesn’t offer an adequate amount of cutscene time to grow attached to any of the playable characters.
The main story ends in a pulse-pounding wave round but It’s not pulse pounding in an exhilarating way, it’s for fear of replaying the level again. The ending requires you to endure wave after wave of enemies while you are tasked with destroying slot machines and the round drags on until the boss wave, in which you have to endure more waves of enemies as you take down the boss.
Visuals
Visually, LA Cops is incredibly simplistic. The levels are vibrant and blood splatter appears in stark contrast against the cartoony backdrops. The colorful levels were pleasing to the eyes but lack much diversity. These environments tend to be office style locations and most look exactly like the last level you just made it through.
The cutscenes are very basic graphically. The handmade art style is unique but I didn’t find the cutscenes visually pleasing at all. The character models are crude and lack any detail whatsoever.
Gameplay
The gameplay feels smooth at most times but the twin stick shooting is not very accurate which leads to many spray-and-pray type encounters. The gameplay really clicks once you master the lock-on ability. This allows for quick executions of dangerous enemies.
Without upgrades, LA Cops’ difficulty ramps up quickly. I found myself grinding the early levels to gain more XP before tackling the harder missions. Even after my characters were fully leveled up, they were still incredibly weak and could only handle a couple shots before they died. Gunplay was frustrating on multiple occasions.
LA Cops offers a very rudimentary leveling system. Completing levels in record time, with the least amount of damage and bloodshed will net the player more XP to drop in 4 different categories including speed, health, damage and clip size
The partner system is both a saving grace and a missed opportunity. The partner system in LA Cops kept me alive countless times while I lead the enemies around a corner into the waiting sights of my partner. The partner system can allow for strategic placement; Tactical infiltration is possible with lock-on targeting and proper environmental awareness. LA Cops could be an entirely different experience if it allowed for co-op play. The addition of a two player cooperative mode would have made LA Cops a much better experience. I could see an LA Cops sequel including co-op and upping the player count to 4. That is a game I’d much rather play.
Overall
LA Cops is a very basic game that misses the mark on many occasions. Potential exists on several aspects but never rises above a notion. LA Cops offers a sub-par twin stick shooting experience and the lack of co-op is disappointing. For $14.99 I feel the value is slightly low for the amount of gameplay offered.
LA Cops isn’t a completely terrible game but the flaws far outweigh the strong points. With some post-release polish, LA Cops could become an adequate cooperative experience but until some updates or a price drop, I wouldn’t recommend it.
Pros
+ Vibrant art style
+ Partner system
+ Lock-on targeting
Cons
– Lack of Co-Op
– Short and uninspired story
– Lack of content
– Frustrating checkpoints
^Aaron (@PxDIZZLE)
Aaron was a community contributor to ICXM, writing 3 articles in 2015 covering game reviews. ICXM operated as an independent Xbox and Windows gaming outlet through the Xbox One’s first full year of post-launch coverage, including the early days of Backwards Compatibility and Windows 10 gaming, drawing from a rotating bench of editorial volunteers. They post on X as @PxDIZZLE.