I admit I bought it. I really shouldn't have. It was as if Hitman removed the stealth, and added some slightly retarded sidekicks as a consolation prize, and scaled back weapon accuracy for giggles. In a game comprised of tense firefights controls need to be rock solid. The controls in Kane & Lynch were more like trying to control a cow on rollerskates.

Gouki4u

They should make a Kane and Lynch sequel, but to avoid the negative association with the first game, set it in the Pony Friends universe? Seriously, how awesome would it be to go around playing as a horse hitman? It would finally be a horse game that's not just for 6-year-old girls. Add a cameo by Barbie as some hooker you have to rescue, and bam, instant platinum seller.

thespyderboy

I played the demo and it was god awful. The aiming was shit and the squad commands were crappy. The cover system was broken.

HigglyPiggly

There already is a "Lite" version of this movie out. It's called "Bandits". It already stars Billy Bob Thornton and Bruce Willis as bank robbers/criminals to boot.

Anyways, I tried the demo from XBL and it was alright. It wasn't stellar and the cover system and control scheme could have used some improvements.

Phlycheez

Playa, don't hate the game, hate the idiot that reviewed it.

rebelphoenix

@jihadjoe343: BURN THE WITCH!
...
Eh, it's not a bad game, really. Not good in my opinion, but maybe I'm just spoiled by Gow's duck and cover option. Also haven't been connected in any way to live since the fall update, so didn't get to try the online/traitor system component. Returned it anyways, as it just wasn't that entertaining.

rdj

It would seem if your posting on a game blog, you are hardcore, and theres quite a few people above me that bought this game. Lets be realistic here, its not that bad of a game. In no way shape or form is it good, worth buying, or sequel worthy. But there were a lot worse titles you could have grabbed.

I didnt buy it mind you, but I played through the demo twice, and I didnt think it was as bad as say, Gundam muso, two worlds, or jerhico for example.

belain

@HykCraft: agreed.

killswitch

Proving once more that controversy sells games.

On a more important note, go Pony Friends!

Jackablade

@Phoenicks: I wouldn't say we're tiny but I guess we're not as big as we'd like to be. Better call Enzyte.

Smadubaku

Kane and Lynch is no Ninjabread Man. I mean the gamestop review score that gave it so much hype was a 6/10, which isn't horrible. It's just not a good game with many problems.

kirstpo

Proof that the hardcore base that actually cared about the whole GameSpot situation are totally irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.
Face it: the hardcore gamer is an extreme minority in ghe gaming industry. A loud minority, but a tiny group.

Phoenicks

Shit. I was really hoping this game would get what it deserves. Just goes to show that people will buy anything as long as it's plastered everywhere. I was a little ticked for OXM giving it the score they did... Of course Kotaku gave it 5 stars. So did I apparently.

Smadubaku

I played the demo, and while it wasn't totally horrendous (the controls were a little stiff for my taste) there are so many good FPS games out there right now that this didn't even warrant a blip on my radar.

lordargent

I guess Gamespot made peace with Eidos for the bad review by buying a couple copies of Kayne & Lynch...

RomeoDude

Crappy game that had a lot of marketing and hype sold well; is anyone honestly surprised by this concept?

iamnotdryad

Disgusting.

Alexisonfire

@lifeinthefridge: Yeah. I'm beginning to notice, that all they have to do is a great marketing campaign, not a great game. uninformed buyers can suck my genitals. Damn they.

Bunn

Is this like the old xbox console sales? Where everyone bought one, and like 41% returned them within 3 months?

If they make another one, or even push this series, expect gamers to boycott on what it stands for.

huginn

2 of these came from my store. i feel so ashamed.

manjikengo

wow, I'm surprised they could sell that many copies considering all the negative feedback from the media.

Nabilac

@mossberg:

One can only hope...

Kirth_Gersen

@Witzbold: well knowing IO if they make another one, they will fix a ton of the issues with the first. they're really good at fixing issues with there games look at hitman 2 to contracts to blood money

mossberg

@Witzbold: there were boss fights? I think the helicopter is the only thing that comes close to a boss in that game. That part drove me NUTS!

TheHun

I really feel the devs wasted a chance at making something that could have been excellent if they had just spent more time on it. Or should I say as much time on the game as they did with developing the 2 characters Kane & Lynch. :x

Its unfortunate since I was greatly looking foward to the game and was let down after playing through it.

Witzbold

Or True Crime.

HykCraft

Games far worse than Kane & Lynch have been able to sell a million copies before. People seem to be forgetting about 50 Cent: Bulletproof.

Draconis

One thing that I really hated about the game was what a dry hump the "boss" fights were.

They should have put more emphasis on those fights.

Aint going to say more as to not spoil it for those few who still might be considering playing the game.

Witzbold

I really enjoyed the first half of the game's story and mood that i forgave the awful controls, but when the game shifted to its south american location it all went to shit.

TheHun

@lifeinthefridge:

It isn't a 'horrible' game it just isn't a 'good' game.

vecha

i liked the game quite a bit. it was far from a AAA title . but it was entertaining. i only wish i was able to finish it. i think i was almost finished anyway there couldn't be much after Havana

mossberg

@ReginaldTheSeventySecond:

Completely agree on the jungle levels, they were poorply executed and monotonous.

As I have stated before they could have further developed the story, particularly coming to the end.

I liked the ambiance and the chemistry between the the two characters though and I deffer from some of you and have kept my copy, I have no plans on giving it away.

Different people different tastes, I for one disliked "Perfect Dark Zero" never past from the 3rd mission, there were times I thought I was playing some shareware game in my Ol' Pentium II, but I know many of you loved it.

Kirth_Gersen

Kane and Lynch is not a horrible game.

HykCraft

@Kyle81: At least assasins creed did some things right, and you could feel that effort was taken in the development of the game.

The only redeeming thing was the effort put into Kane & Lynch the 2 main characters, although there just wasnt enough meat with the story to keep the player satisfied when they completed the game. Like waiting for something to happen that never did.

Witzbold

It sucks a game like this is capable of selling 1 mil while poor okami just sold who knows how many :'(

Kotaku Talk ( Irc.synirc.com #kotaku)

@ChinezePanda:

ahaha yah I always wonder whether I should recommend something for them or just leave them to their business.

NeoAkira

Shit games sell... case in point this and Assassins Creed

Kyle81

The basis and plot are decent, but the game is poorly executed.

DELETED

@ReginaldTheSeventySecond: The guns are horrid. Do a little experiment.

Shoot at a wall, notice how "random" the bullets fly even when you just tap the trigger.

Which is why a lot of times you wind up wasting ammo quite often since most of the shots dont really hit.

Its all rather silly considering that Kane is suposed to be an ex-merc.

Not even the guns in hitman were that horrid with accuracy.

Witzbold

How... how could this have happened..

Oh wait..

You know that customer.. who picks up the crap games... You are buying Bioshock... he's buying Jericho... and Madden 08 for PS3...

you feel compelled to say something.. but sigh and walk away knowing its a lost cause...

Yeah.. there must be a large number of them peoples.

Or Blockbuster and Walmart are buying shit loads.

ChinezePanda

i'm probably the only one who actually enjoyed the game and the story.

resetbutton

But how many people turned around and sold their copy on ebay/half or sold it back to the the store they bought it from? :P

bluesquareapple

I thought this game was great... for the first few stages. Once it turned into complete jungle madness that THREE FUCKING QUARTERS of the game was, the story had completely stalled and you just awaited the inevitable.

@Witzbold: I never had a problem with the guns, could pull headshots off pretty quickly. The one thing I did have a problem with was the RPG and grenades being inaccurate. Agree with your thoughts on the story as well.

ReginaldTheSeventySecond

I bootlegged it and was sorely dissapointed. This game is no Hitman thats for damn sure. There was just no depth to the game at all, the story was ok but really nothing special. Worst of all there were no cheat codes which would have allowed me to go back and "clean" out the club.

vincentprice

i can't beleive either it sold that well

Waza

I remember hearing my bro in law saying he was gonna buy because of the atmosphere of an action movie, guess bad games do sell

kavendano14

I personally liked the game and found the story to progress nicely. Sure the aiming and camera could of used a little more work, but I think the rest they did a great job on. I'm willing to be a lot of the people calling is horrible are the people who played the demo and deemed it from there.

TJordan0331

I rented this the same weekend I rented Drake. I attempted to play this game but decided to go with Drake (love the Drake) all weekend as Drake was playable and the you usually hit what your aiming at.

wisconsinista

It's laughable to think a reviewer getting fired would have had any backlash on sales. The sheep don't read the internets.

x999x

wtf , i dont believe anything of this . Kane and lynch was the most horrible game of all time , Im surprised that the Angry Nintendo Nerd didnt do a video about this game ... ho well ... lets see ... its not on nintendo !

jimfear666

i dont know anyone who ever considered buying this, or was half interested in this game

TheNocturnalSun

Like it or not, not a lot of gamers pay attention to reviews, which can be good and bad. Sometimes it lets people discover games that, although not reviewed well, are actually quite fun for them. Other times it leads to crappy games that are over-publicized selling well to gullible people who seem to think that the game must be good because they've seen the tv ad for it 4 times in the same show. Ill leave it to people here to decide which is the case of Kane and Lynch.

EightBit

I finally figured out who the guy opposite of John Malkovich would be if they made the Kane and Lynch movie.

This guy: [www.imdb.com],%20Stephen

balls187

Senseless killing and gore selling well... who would have thunk?

EnigmaNemesis

Most of the people who hate on this game are sheep that base all their opinions on reviews. The game has its flaws, but has an interesting story and varied locations. Plus the multiplayer is really creative.

I'm looking forward to a sequel and I hope they have time to iron out the rough spots next time.

Razlo

@killswitch: Sir or ma'am, you are part of the problem.

marissa_melee

Kane and Lynch 2: Kane gets a nose job

goldwings

@PirateThom: More like proof that the "enthusiast" press really doesn't matter at all, and neither do a bunch of whiny kids in the comment section of a gaming blog. What matters is marketing and, to a lesser extent, mainstream press coverage.

The enthusiast press can affect sales of smaller, niche titles that would only sell about 100,000 copies or fewer anyway. On the major titles... well, I mean not many film critics liked National Treasure 2, and that stupid movie has made about $150 million and counting. The game industry has turned into Hollywood.

badasscat

I actually liked it. A friend picked it up and we spent a Saturday night playing through it and I didn't really run into a lot of issues with it. I liked the whole feeling of the game, which my friend was comparing to Heat which I unfortunately haven't seen.

Hopefully they'll make a sequel but improve on the problem areas.

jihadjoe343

What. The. Hell.

This is unbelievably frustrating that crappy games can sell well with enough marketing and hype machine. On the other hand this just proves that what seemed like a huge deal to us as people who read video game websites didn't really matter to the consumer public at large.

Stormrider900

@lifeinthefridge: I think Carnival Games is a much better example.

Kirbytheslayer: See what I did there?

As Hollywood says; All publicity is good publicity

mafikeng

I'm COMPLETELY surprised, especially since there were so many 800 lb Gorillas last fall. Upon seeing this at PAX, I didn't think they'd do that well.

I wouldn't be surprised if this was an early April Fool's joke post.

dynendal

I feel sorry for the poor bastards that bought this game.

Pretty much everything about Kane & Lynch's game design has flaws.

Hiltz

A 2nd game? Jeeze, the game wasn't really... mind blowing. I only bought it because it was just about the only new co-op shoooter that my cousin and I haven't finished. And if the release date was diffenrent, say, close to another co-op shooter I probably wouldn't have bought this one...

DamienMagi

The worst part of the game is the horrid inaccuracy of most of the guns.

Which was done to cause a sense of "tension" with the gun battles.

Instead all it caused was massive stress for the players.

If you want to cause tension with gun battles put in more enemies, not make the guns inaccurate as hell.

Asides from that I enjoyed the 2 main charachters cept I really think they didnt do enough with the story though.

Witzbold

The concept was there, but where was the gameplay?

A real testament for the sequel would be to have as little campaigning as possible to let the game speak for it itself this time around. As we all know, that's not going to happen.

Trowble

Few things in this world truly surprise me, this is one of those things. This game sold over 1 million copies? This doesn't make sense at all! I downloaded the demo, and while the game played decently, it did not warrant a purchase let alone over one million in sales. But then again Red Steel sold well...

smellyelite

It isn't a BAD game. It plays exactly like the Hitman series, which seems to continue to keep making games. The story is...mediocre is all. Plus, we all remember the uproar when they said there would be no Online Co-Op...people just want something else now-a-days. Good game...bad time.

Dreadfish

@Natpalm: LOL. Yeah, and turn the knob down on "fuck"-ing, too.

Xiedo

@lifeinthefridge:

Agreed.

Shindokie (psn and xbl)

Proof that even bad press adds to hype which adds to sales.

PirateThom

how is kane and lynch a horrible game..?

killswitch

Oog. Well maybe all this time I really WAS wrong about Assassin's Creed and, despite sales, the game sucks...

Nah, I still love it. But this...

This just makes no sense. No sense at all!

2NinjasTapedTogether

@Natpalm: lol

wicko

proof that horrible games can sell a million copies

lifeinthefridge

I imagine it would have sold at least 2 million if not for the controversy, and the fact that it sucks.

Kirbytheslayer: See what I did there?

Im not surprised. IO has a pretty good track record so people will overlook reviews. The game isnt terrible, its just very average. I'll get it sooner or later either when its really cheap or when I get all my game requests from goozex.

parad0x360

The best sequel idea would be a playable remake of the first game.

Natpalm

I don't know about everybody else, but I liked Kane & Lynch. Yeah, it was pretty much average in terms of everything but the story and characters, but I had fun with. Hopefully with the sequel Eidos will be able to make it better than average.

And I don't know why people are down-talking a movie. Seeing as how the characters are the best part of the game, a movie seems natural. Maybe it should have just been a movie to begin with...

ShirtGuyDom

Maybe Eidos will finally take the hint now and release the highly-anticipated "Undertaker and Lynch."

...

...anyone? ^^;;;

FitzRhapsody

I don't know anyone who owns this game. I thought it looked pretty bad even before the dung hit the fan over alleged firings and review hoopla. 1 million copies? Really? I'm surprised.

j13

I feel like the corperations won... :( and us gamers actually ponied up money for this game... $50 :( makes me really sad.

ffmusicdj

Hmm, i think K&L was the most uninspired game that ive played in 2007. A very mediocre game...

neojam

Ocasional difficulty spikes aside I actually enjoyed this a hell of a lot more than assassins creed! Once you get to grips with the controls and realize you only lean to walls when you're at the edge of a corner the frustration fades and it realy starts flowing nicely thanks to a much more cohisive story progression than in other games and rememberable settings and setpieces.
The thing is: Assasins's Creed had me bored by the seccond mission when you realized you were going to do the same stupid lame minimissions 9 times over and over again. I had to force myself to play it through and the only enjoyable part were the graphics and animation. Half way through it realy felt like work.
Kane & Lynch on the other hand could have used more polish for sure but I never felt like not wanting to play it. Completed it 3 times by now and probably will do so a few more times for sure. It's just sad it doesnt feature online coop.

platinum

@FitzRhapsody: You must be as old as me.^^

I liked Kane & Lynch btw. Fun game, decent graphics, destructive environments, hateable characters. The only real issue I had with it was the cover system, which worked in similar way as Russian Roulette.

FranUnFine

So I guess we can now stop blaming casual gamers for buying Carnival Games - hardcore gamers aren't better :-)

L_K_M

@ChinezePanda: Hey! No hating on Jericho! I picked it up for the PC and it's pretty cool - F.E.A.R. did it better but Jericho's got some nice ideas - feels like a cross between an FPS and a lightgun game like House of the Dead. Much though I enjoyed it, Bioshock wasn't exactly a 'flawless victory' now was it?

Aegis

The first 3 or 4 levels had me seriously doubting this game, but once I had the quirks (to use a nice word) under my skin, I ended up digging the game.

I liked the story too. It was really dark and dirty, and somehow that was cool. Not the usual "happy ending and all is good", but something far more sinister.

And the soundtrack really made the whole difference to me. I have never heard a soundtrack as hard and cool as this. High quality music that really rocks!

Its really not perfect, but not quite as bad as it's made out to be. As long as the same guys provide the soundtrack next time I'm all for it!

gsnarf

I feel somewhat bad for those who bought this pos and expected it to be good. Shouldve asked Gerstmann.

Cry0Tek

Yep, I bought just the millionth copy last week.

retronaut

The good news is, I found a million suckers to buy this bridge I've been trying to move.

But seriously, this game was a trainwreck of some interesting ideas, shitty writing and, sloppy, unpolished, and occasionally glitchy gameplay.

Before you flame at justifying the $60 you wasted, wait until you're old enough to drive and have played more than 10 action games.

Better yet, just play something with a cover mechanic that works, and a story that isn't so contrived and cliched.

VicViper

Pony Friends FTW!

ach77

See? Why couldn't Gerstmann get fired over Stranglehold?!? It really could've used the free publicity.

Billkwando