Crime Boss: Rockay City is a heist-themed game made by mixing a bunch of different game modes. At first glance, the game does a great job of portraying the theme of the 90’s action movies.
This game has a different take on masks compared to other works of this genre. Even though we are criminals and our goal is to fill our pockets thru illegal activities, the main idea was “Only cowards hide their faces (!)”. So being stylish and looking good has been our main priority, with the concealment of our identity not being such a big deal at all. Playing the game itself makes you feel more like an arcade character than a thief. In terms of gameplay, I think you can enjoy the game for a couple of hours and have a good time / kill some time with your friends. Despite the fact that there is a single player mode, from my point of view it was a must to have a game with friends in order to have fun.
The game itself is classified as a heist game. However, by branching out into several different game modes, it does a great job offering a non-linear experience. On paper, this idea of branching out seems good. In reality, however, Crime Boss: Rockay City fails to rise above mediocre gameplay due to the lack of many elements in the game modes. When you really try out the different game modes, you do not get the feeling of playing a ‘complete’ game. It gives you the feeling that you are playing a lot of ‘unfinished’ games that have been combined into one big pile. I really believe that the game can improve in so many different areas over time, if the developers keep updating the game and listening carefully to feedback from players.
The biggest flaw of the game, in my opinion, is the AI. The AI has a lacklustre feel to it, not polished enough to have any difficulty or meaningful impact in the game. Even the hardest difficulty in the game doesn’t feel hard enough. The whole gameplay felt like “how many men can you kill until the vault opens”.
My friend and I played the game as a duo, and especially during the train robbery/bank robbery, at a certain point the game felt like the scene from Lord Of The Rings where Gimli and Legolas fight to see who can kill the most enemies.
The character lines also feel AI-made. Having so many options for your character makes it hard to get attached to any one of them.
Another negative point would be the lack of customisable weapons. The weapons come in the form of a kit for the unlockable characters in the game and they are all pre-set.
However, if we were to talk only about the negative aspects of the game, it would be unfair, because there are also some good aspects.
The game is fast-paced and a great way to kill some time. Due to the fact that this genre doesn’t have many games, if we compare this work with the other games of this area, I can say that it is a better work compared to the PayDay 3, where I would think that PayDay 2 is still the better one.
With the efforts of this game, I think that the “heist” games will be able to gain popularity. Well tailored rogue-like theme of the game gives you an experience of rob & kill it till you make it. Perform heists -> earn more money -> unlock more weapons & characters -> perform heists again.
Summary:
Crime Boss: Rockay City is a good game to kill some time and maybe have some fun with friends once in a while. I don’t feel that the game has a good ‘long term playability’. But overall it’s a good game that’s worth a try.
– Graphics: 7/10
– Sound & Music: 5/10
– Gameplay: 6.5 / 10
– My point for the game is 6.1 / 10