9mm Xperia Play Review

9mm is Gameloft's homage to the Max Payne series. You play as  John "Loose" Kannon, a cop who shoots first and asks questions...never. He actually resembles Mark Walburg, so that's even more of a nod to Max Payne. It also has the iconic "bullet time". The game looks pretty good and the controls are fine, but it has many flaws that make it forgettable.

Graphics and Gameplay
The graphics in the game are pretty slick. The game really looks very good. Character models and scenery are smooth. Graphics look similar to a PS2 game, and on a 4 inch screen thats not bad. Bullet time plays a large role in 9mm. It is activated by pushing the left trigger button. Then you dive or run in slow mo while picking off your enemies. Does it work...yes but it's not a perfect system. John has a difficult time understanding that you want him to dive and not run. Another problem I had was that Gameloft left in some touch screen controls. There are quick time events where you have to touch the screen. This is not an easy task with the X Plays controller slid out. You also have to touch the screen to open any door in the game. This is just pure lazyness on Gameloft. There were buttons that were not even used on the controller.

Story and Voice Acting
I'm glad when a mobile game has full voice acting. It makes it feel more like a console game. However 9mm has some of the worst voice acting I've ever heard. Everyone is extremely over the top. At one point there is a pimp who sounds like Chris Tucker mixed with Chris Rock. It's funny but they aren't trying to be. John's young daughter sounds like a middle aged woman...it's horrible!
The story is even worse. It's the typical angry cop story. John "Loose" Kannon is sick of all the drugs on the street. He then starts to kill every Mexican drug dealer/ gang banger he sees. They go after his family, he's betrayed by a friend, he kills everyone...The End. There is also a lot of swearing. So much that it sounds like a 12 year old boy trying to impress his friends with how much he can swear. It never feels like it belongs.

Online Play
Yes there is an online mode. You have Free for All, and Cops and Robbers. I never could get a sucessful online game to work. Either it was terribly laggy, or I would get disconnected.

Bottom line
9mm has good visuals and some okay gun fights. Other than that it's a piece of junk. Is it playable? Yes, but why would you want to?