Full Review

21 October 2005 - Total Overdose is best described as GTA, but without the heavy focus on driving. You play the twin brother of a DEA agent brought out of prison to crack a case because your brother, the DEA agent, is wheelchair bound after a bust went wrong.

A diamond in the rough, you’re thrown in at the deep-end having to work your way up the chain of command of a drug cartel and prove your worth in a series of missions and tasks.

The gameplay is free form with you being able to take mini challenges on the way to earn points and have a bit of fun. Core missions are highlighted on the map as you wander around the city - set in Mexico - so you can clearly stick to them if you want to complete the game as fast as you can.

To help you, you have one killer move at your disposal and this involves a John Woo/Matrix style dive that slows everything down so you can get a shot off at the bad guy. The move is good at both giving you time to focus your gun on the bad guy and dodge out the way and certainly gives the game the Hollywood feel it's longing for. It can get a bit passé after you’ve battled your way through the first couple of levels but on the whole it gives the game its edge.

The other element to help you complete the game at hand is the amount of weapons available to you. Handguns to rocket-launchers are all here. You can even take people down with a bottle of tequila and a flaming rag.

The GTA reference comes in the guise of being able to hijack any car in the game to get you around the city to complete the missions. If you don’t like the idea of stealing or aren’t really sure how to get to the next destination, you can always hail a cab and jump in.

VERDICT
Total Overdose is a good solid game with an interesting enough storyline. Those looking for a more foot-based GTA offering would do well to check out this game.

The dodge move does get a bit formulaic after a while, but there is enough in this game to keep the interest going.

A good solid title.