The story for Kane & Lynch 2 picks up a little while after the events of Dead Men. Lynch has settled in Shanghai, but calls up his old buddy Kane when he is offered the deal of a lifetime. As expected, the deal goes a little south and gunfights and treachery ensue. On the whole, it’s a relatively forgetful story, but the voice acting is superb and keeps you intrigued enough to blast your way until the end.

Following behind the formula of Dead Men, Dog Days allows the campaign to be played via split-screen or online with a friend. The gameplay has been refined since the last outing, as the controls are tighter and the cover system has been reworked, as it now uses a command for cover, rather than relying on the automatic ‘sticky’ cover.

The weapons are also a lot more varied, giving players the chance to use a multitude of shotguns, rifles and pistols. There are however no grenades, but both characters can grab and throw propane tanks and fire extinguishers which you will then have to shoot for the explosively big bang.

The multiplayer component is also handled with more care this time, giving the online modes a little polish. The most attractive mode being Fragile Alliance (which returns from Dead Men), in which players must try reach a getaway van while holding off cops. What makes it interesting is that at any time, one of your teammates could turn on you and kill you, therefore taking your share of the cash. But every wrong has a right, and if killed, you respawn as a cop to get your revenge.

Kane & Lynch 2’s standout feature is definitely its visual style. The base graphics and models have been beefed-up, but it’s the Michael Mann inspired presentation that steals the show. The camera acts as a hand-held camcorder throughout the game, which shakes violently and distorts when the player is shot or explosions are near. The camera even blurs out certain elements which are ‘too gory’. The visuals sometimes hamper the odd precision shot here and there, but overall ii is incredibly unique, which improves the game and context dramatically.

As unlikable, Kane and Lynch may be as characters, there’s something about them that keeps us coming back for more. Dog Days is a substantial improvement on the original game and introduces the right gameplay mechanics and visual additions that are definitely taking the series in the right direction.

Singularity kicks off sometime during the 1950’s, where Russian experiments with a mysterious element known as E-99 were taking place on Katorga-12, an island which technically doesn’t exist. After a disaster known as the “Singularity” occurs, the island is covered up and omitted from history. Jump to 2010 – This is where things get interesting, as you take control of Nate Renko, Black Ops specialist whose helicopter goes down on the supposedly non-existent island. Renko learns the island is constantly shifting between the 50’s and 2010. While a brief stint in the 50’s Renko saves a man who should’ve died. Jump back to 2010 and this man has now become a fascist world leader bent on destruction. Now Renko, along with the TMD (Time Manipulation Device), must travel through times and fix the course of history which he himself changed. It may sound awfully confusing, but the time-travelling antics and action vs. consequence theme of the game are its high-points with the entire experience delivering a compelling and intriguing narrative.

Singularity mixes up the traditional FPS formula by incorperating the TMD or Time Manipulation Device. With the TMD, players are able to rapidly age or regenerate objects and enemies within the environment, in order to give you an advntage in combat and to solve puzzles. The TMD also has a ability whereby you can literally freeze time in a spherical orb for brief periods. With a combination of all these functions players can cause some serious damage, like freezing enemies, filling them with bullets and quickly aging them into nothing but bones and dust within a few seconds. The puzzles are also pretty unique, and while they aren’t extremely challenging, they make great use of the time manipulating features of the game.

Although the TMD is a core feature of the game, there are a lot of other ways to dispose of enemies, such as an assault rifle, sniper-rifle, pistol and chain-gun which, always do the trick. Along-side these traditional FPS weapons are also a few new ones. The Seeker is a gun which bullets can be controlled and directed after they are shot; while the Grenade Launcher allows you to drop a grenade and roll it into holes and rooms via the remote controlled weapon. Weapons and abilities can also be upgraded at certain inventory points which adds some nice progression, and this being said, Singularity definitely brings a varied aresenal for players to enjoy throughout the campaign.

While the game jumps back in time, the visuals definitely do not. Running on the Unreal Engine, Singularity looks great, but thanks to interesting creature designs, awesome particle effects during regenerating/degenerating and objected littered hallways, the game creates a compelling and unique atmosphere that pulls you in from the get-go.

Singularity is definitely one of the most interesting and entertaining shooters of the year. It may initially appear familiar to those who’ve played Bioshock and Half-Life, but Singularity creates a unique personality for itself with a phenomenal story, intriguing level design and time-manipulating mechanics. Your time will not be wasted with Singularity.