Monitor: Play

Police and Thieves

Words: Tom Samiljan

For Sony PlayStation2, $55

Similar to last year's immensely successful Grand Theft Auto III, The Getaway is part 3-D action-shooter, part RPG set in a cinematic urban underworld. This time, players roam through the streets of a Snatch-like London by car or on foot. You can talk to shady characters about clues, shoot thugs as the need arises and steal cars (BMWs, black London taxis) to drive around and complete your mission. Unlike GTA III, The Getaway has a substantial plot that's interwoven nicely with the gameplay in more than 60 minutes of long, motion-captured cut-scenes (warning: the well-executed Cockney accents are hard to understand). In short, you end up playing two characters: a framed former gangster and a vigilante cop, both of whom are trying to clear their names after being wronged by a London crime boss. Damage is indicated by limping characters or smoking cars instead of health or damage meters -- a subtle movie-like detail that further differentiates this title from the average video game. Though just as graphically violent as any gangster movie, The Getaway's inherently good protagonists may help it avoid some of the controversy and criticism that befell GTAIII and its unabashed crime-sprees. The Getaway is an excellent addition to the videogame world's coolest new game genre.