Kane & Lynch: Dead Men

 Xbox 360
User Score
3.3

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 350 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 81 out of 350
  2. Mixed: 46 out of 350
  3. Negative: 223 out of 350
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. B.G.
    Dec 8, 2007
    7
    Great characters and story, they're well fleshed out and more three dimensional than the rest. The gameplay is pretty good, the nightclub scene is probably the highlight. Still, there are gameplay flaws, the guns are underwhelming and the cover system isn't as crisp as others.
  2. TravisL.
    Dec 30, 2007
    8
    i'll admit, the graphics are crummy, but the story line, and gameplay are awesome! cool shoot 'em up game. i'd like to see more like this game.
  3. IntruderG.
    Feb 8, 2008
    4
    This game is not the worst game ever nor is it the best game ever. If anything it is terminally mediocre. Whie it has some fun scenarios, there are entirely too many technical flaws that make the experience below average. The graphics, especially in game animations, are are below average. The vertical split screen on co-op seriously hampers your peripheral vision. The controls are a This game is not the worst game ever nor is it the best game ever. If anything it is terminally mediocre. Whie it has some fun scenarios, there are entirely too many technical flaws that make the experience below average. The graphics, especially in game animations, are are below average. The vertical split screen on co-op seriously hampers your peripheral vision. The controls are a little loose. The music and story are the highlights of the experience and the unique multiplayer is a nice diversion from Team Slayer and the like. Unfortunately, the few fun parts are outweighed by the bad. Kane and Lynch is worth playing, but only as a rental. It is definitely not worth $60.… Expand
  4. ChrisM.
    Nov 23, 2007
    0
    Thsi is possibly the worst game ever made for 360. The mechanics are pathetic. The camera is total garbage. Do yourself a favor, don't buy this garbage.
  5. Sam
    Mar 23, 2008
    4
    With the badass trailers and the very appealing character concept, I was expecting this game to be IOI's finest since Hitman: Silent Assassin. They proved me wrong. While this game isn't as bad as the Gerstmann sympathizers say, it's still pretty bad. Which is a shame, because IO had everything they needed, every tool to make this game great. They just didn't use them. With the badass trailers and the very appealing character concept, I was expecting this game to be IOI's finest since Hitman: Silent Assassin. They proved me wrong. While this game isn't as bad as the Gerstmann sympathizers say, it's still pretty bad. Which is a shame, because IO had everything they needed, every tool to make this game great. They just didn't use them. First of all, the gameplay is trial-and-error based, and is overly frustrating. There's no open-endedness to the game at all, which was what IOI made their name from: letting you decide what you want to do. There's none of that here. You just go around shooting, escorting, and doing what the game tells you to. You don't get to plan out the heists, or any of that. The poorly written script plans it out for you. But the game does its best to keep you from sticking to that. It is a very buggy game. The controls don't do anything to help it, either. The aiming is horrible. You will never hit who you're trying to the first few tries. This applies for every time you attempt to shoot someone. And beyond firing and team commands, they're very hard to use, often involving drawn-out button combinations just to perform a simple action. What's worse is that after you've put in that sequence, the action you're supposed to perform has a high chance of not working. The biggest example of this is taking cover. Now, unlike the rest of the game's controls, the input for taking cover is pretty simple. Unconventional, but simple. You just run up to a wall and slap the analog stick to press up against it. The problem is, 9 times out of 10, it doesn't work, and even when it does, the horrible collision detection this game sports will get you killed anyway. Your character often just runs up to the wall, rather than sticking to it, often leaving you open to enemy fire. And speaking of enemy fire, you'll get it a lot. The enemies in this game have decent AI, but they are often crack shots, which is more than what can be said for the ally AI. These are by far the worst teammates you'll ever see in a video game. They pretty much do nothing but get shot, and when they aren't getting shot, they're either missing their targets or shooting you. Yes, it is just that bad where your friends kill you twice as much as the bad guys do. In actuality, you're better off just sending them to draw fire, as that's all they'll succeed at. Just make sure you're close to them, because they don't revive each other, and if they die, it's game over. The story doesn't do the game any favors, either. It's never particularly well written at any time, and what's worse is that it doesn't explain everything that it should. It also doesn't quite hold its own against several games that came before it, which is a total shame, but isn't totally unexpected. Strong plots and interesting stories have never really been a part of IOI's traits. But at least you'd think it has decent dialogue. Unfortunately, it fails there, too. First off, it's not cleverly-written, and it uses the F-word more than any single piece of media you'll ever find. There are very few sentences said in this game that don't have it. It was an obvious attempt to make the game seem grittier than it is, but all it did was just take away the drama and strong feeling that the word evokes. Most of all, it really just feels like they hired an angst-filled teenager to write out the dialogue. It's just that poor. However, the game has one good point: Its multiplayer concept. Fragile Alliance is a very well-thought out concept that follows the game's themes of trust and betrayal very well, in that the outcome of a match is entirely in the players' hands. You can stick to the plan and be a team player, or you can pull a Kane and leave everyone of your partners for dead. Unfortunately, the very same flaws that the Campaign mode has are carried over to this mode, save for the ally AI. You'll still have the same control problems, the same poor collision detection, and the same horrible aiming. It doesn't flat out ruin it, but it doesn't do anything good for it. All in all, this game could have been so many things, but achieves none of it, not even its main selling point: Its own story. The only way I can really recommend this game is if you have absolutely nothing else to play at all. It is a rental at best.… Expand
  6. JoeF.
    Nov 21, 2007
    4
    Crappy graphics (original Xbox-esque), worst hit detection I've seen in a next-gen game, lame voice acting, horrible AI. The story is okay, the scenarios are cool. I wanted to like this game so much. I had been waiting for months to play it and I was so hyped. Talk about a let down.
  7. ChadL.
    Nov 29, 2007
    1
    This game had potential but it falls flat on its face with the poor controls, horrible interface and Xbox 1 like graphics. Dont buy this game its a huge waste of money and time plus i heard its been bricking consoles Stay Away.
  8. JohnP
    Feb 22, 2009
    5
    This game is so fun. But oh my god, the glitches and difficulty is can be atrocious. The story line makes up for the glitches. Would love to see a sequel with everything worked through.
  9. JasonManley
    Dec 4, 2007
    0
    Wow, just wow, i was amazed at how horrible this game was. It was a difficult affair but i think they only made it hard to cover up how short it is. Not worth a $60 price tag, not worth a $9 rental.. only play this game if someone is paying you to play it.
  10. JohnR.
    Nov 30, 2007
    0
    This game is just plain broken. Horrible characters, horrible animation and a story that aspires to Heat like levels of greatness and ends up more like L.A. Takedown.
  11. PeteB.
    Nov 30, 2007
    0
    Just trash, pure unadulterated trash. Absolutely painful to play through.
  12. Itsnotthatbad
    Mar 5, 2008
    8
    Overall its fun but unpolished. The cover and inventory systems definately need more work and the AI is mediocre. The redeeming features here are the story and voicework. Its problems disapoint but don't completely ruin it.
    People saying that this is the worst game of all time are just overreacting to the Gerstman-gate fiasco. There are plenty of worse games out there.
  13. DanielM
    Oct 16, 2008
    8
    I quite enjoyed the game, the first half being excellent in characterization and plot feeling like a Micheal Mann film which is no bad thing. On the other hand the cover system is terrible, the online mode is glitchy to say the least, the difficulty suddenly increases for no particular reason halfway though (at which point the plot and nice environments takes a dip)and there is no online I quite enjoyed the game, the first half being excellent in characterization and plot feeling like a Micheal Mann film which is no bad thing. On the other hand the cover system is terrible, the online mode is glitchy to say the least, the difficulty suddenly increases for no particular reason halfway though (at which point the plot and nice environments takes a dip)and there is no online coop. All though there are many design flaws i still really enjoyed it and think others would too, dont risk the full price get it at a big discount or rent it as there's not much replayability.… Expand
  14. AshR
    Jan 29, 2008
    10
    Despite all the gaming nerds out there calling this the worst game of all time. I fully enjoyed the story of this game and the controls really arn't as bad as people are making out and after 10 minutes of playing, you're used to them and already taking advantage. The Music is great, then again anything Jesper Kyd does is like gold. The voice-acting is a lot better than most Despite all the gaming nerds out there calling this the worst game of all time. I fully enjoyed the story of this game and the controls really arn't as bad as people are making out and after 10 minutes of playing, you're used to them and already taking advantage. The Music is great, then again anything Jesper Kyd does is like gold. The voice-acting is a lot better than most games out there and the story certainly takes some twists. If you're looking for a game that has action, then this is damn close to being in Michael Mann's "Heat", especially on the Tokoyo levels.… Expand
  15. JoseF.
    Mar 9, 2008
    9
    I really had fun with the game, the ending pretty sucks but the story is very good the multiplayer may be repetitive but its good and unique, the controls may be tweaked but you can hang on to it, the co-op is a blast. recomended
  16. whizzm
    Nov 3, 2008
    8
    People who give this game 0 are clearly idiots. just bought this game and it is brilliant. great cinematic feel to it, graohics ARE good, great storyline, all out action. you can get this game very cheap now so dont mind the idiots who gave this 0. not the best game ever, but a very very good game.
  17. MikeS.
    Aug 11, 2009
    9
    Aside from the ridiculously hard level in Hawana (I guess), the game is almost perfect in terms of delivering the brurtal, sad story in a satysfying form. It's something that had been lost in gamemaking years ago: a shooter about men doing thing for their own, not because some military jackasses ordered them to. It a crime movie on X360, and there hasn't been any in gaming since Aside from the ridiculously hard level in Hawana (I guess), the game is almost perfect in terms of delivering the brurtal, sad story in a satysfying form. It's something that had been lost in gamemaking years ago: a shooter about men doing thing for their own, not because some military jackasses ordered them to. It a crime movie on X360, and there hasn't been any in gaming since Max Payne 2. Now there's always military, great wars, world saving... And I'm tired of it. I loved K&L because it's FRESH. And it has those incredibly awesome levels on L.A. and Tokyo Streets - one of "the bestest" levels in history of modern entertainment. I'd give it 10, but the level in Hawana during the revolution made me grind my teeth.… Expand
  18. JohnMorgan
    Dec 15, 2007
    7
    i havent finished it yet, but ive only had it one day, and i a in love, this beats halo in multiplayer, this beats call of duty in plot and tops everything in shear awesomeness, admitidly, the orange box is a little better, and the graphics are a little flawed, id say this ould of had a 9 if it included online co-op and more multiplayer scenarious, the multiplayer mode is pure genous, justi havent finished it yet, but ive only had it one day, and i a in love, this beats halo in multiplayer, this beats call of duty in plot and tops everything in shear awesomeness, admitidly, the orange box is a little better, and the graphics are a little flawed, id say this ould of had a 9 if it included online co-op and more multiplayer scenarious, the multiplayer mode is pure genous, just lacking in community,
    really, this is deffinatly worth a look in!    … Expand
  19. S.L.
    Dec 22, 2007
    9
    "I really don't get these bad reviews. I enjoyed playing this game way more than Gears of War, the story is great and told in a convincing way compared to GoWs confusing story. I didn't have any problems with the controls, they felt pretty solid to me and the cover system is great fun and matches Mass Effects cover system almost exactly. The gameplay itself is varied and fun, "I really don't get these bad reviews. I enjoyed playing this game way more than Gears of War, the story is great and told in a convincing way compared to GoWs confusing story. I didn't have any problems with the controls, they felt pretty solid to me and the cover system is great fun and matches Mass Effects cover system almost exactly. The gameplay itself is varied and fun, shooting feels real, not robotic and stiff like in most other shooters. Ducking in and out of cover and getting to a position where you can get a clean shot is also fun and exiting. The graphics are not as god as other recent games, which is why I wont rate this 10, but in funness(tm) it's up there with best. And to all the people rating this 0 og 1, when everybody has to agree that it is at least average no matter what your concers may be, try acting a little responsibly and give it a fair rating. It's hard to take the user rating here on metacritic seriously, when it is abused in this manner." QFT. Saves me the trouble of writing anything.… Expand
  20. dangerclose
    Jan 18, 2012
    7
    Yes this game does have it's share of issues. The aiming can be off at times. There were a few occasions where I had to restart a section because of a glitch. And lastly the cover system really does not work very well. Actually I found myself hoping I could turn off the cover system all together. However, this game is so gritty and stylish, I would play this over the commercializedYes this game does have it's share of issues. The aiming can be off at times. There were a few occasions where I had to restart a section because of a glitch. And lastly the cover system really does not work very well. Actually I found myself hoping I could turn off the cover system all together. However, this game is so gritty and stylish, I would play this over the commercialized games like Modern Warfare 3 any day. Yes, I said it.… Expand
  21. Compi24
    Jun 25, 2013
    8
    The multiplayer is undoubtedly a failure and some of the gameplay is a little bit predictable, but "Kane And Lynch: Dead Men"s delightful co-op, engaging narrative, and interesting characters leave it at a fairly worthwhile level.
  22. Matty888
    Jan 2, 2014
    1
    Playing this game made me cry. It was one of the worst experiences of my life. Why was this game even made. I having nothing to say about this game. I give it a 1 because some of its story was alright, and if the game was remade with normal controls, mechanics, physics, gameplay, online and this wasnt the most cliched thing ever, it would be sort-of playable.
  23. gamingisgreat
    Mar 6, 2018
    6
    Kane & Lynch Dead Men is a decent story-driven 3rd person shooter.

    The gameplay isn't particularly unique,and the cover system is very clunky. But except for a few certain levels, functions relatively decently.There are a multitude of interesting levels like the bank heist and the skyscraper shootout.The game uses squad commands for you to command your allies around the levels,though    Kane & Lynch Dead Men is a decent story-driven 3rd person shooter.

    The gameplay isn't particularly unique,and the cover system is very clunky. But except for a few certain levels, functions relatively decently.There are a multitude of interesting levels like the bank heist and the skyscraper shootout.The game uses squad commands for you to command your allies around the levels,though the AI is beyond stupid for both your allies and enemies. But the game's biggest problem is the insane level of recoil on the guns.It makes some gunfights horribly frustrating.

    The graphics are average,but the game does run well and has no notable performance issues on the 360

    The story and characters are the game's strong point.The idea of pairing a flawed mercenary up with a medicated psychopath leads to pure comedy gold as you can imagine.The actual plot starts strong,but fizzles a bit towards the end,though the game has 2 endings.

    The sound design and soundtrack are decent.

    Overall,Kane & Lynch Dead Men gets a lot of unfair hate and is a decent game in my opinion,it is very cheap as of when I write this review so I recommend giving it a try.    … Expand
  24. Chocolate42
    Oct 4, 2016
    10
    Easily the best game of all time! Do not listen to all the negative comments. Best gameplay, story, world design, characters, sound, air, grass and sun in any video-game ever created.
  25. JohnMorgan
    Nov 30, 2007
    1
    Having actually seen the game, it's a mediocre shooter with ok graphics, a bad cover system, and bad AI. What is truly shameful, however, is that Eidos the publisher had Jeff Gerstmann of Gamespot fired for writing a negative review of the game. I will never buy another Eidos product or visit Gamespot for additional reviews, and I urge others to do likewise.
  26. CarlosF.
    Nov 30, 2007
    1
    With the amount of games out this is not even worth a rental. The story is to cocky, the gameplay is horrible and they overuse the word F$$$k. Even the multiplayer is bad. It does not have a online coop.
  27. Farid
    Dec 2, 2007
    9
    Anyone who's actually played the game knows it's lots of fun and packs ten times the balls and ambition of other so-called 'gritty' games. Definitely worth picking up.
  28. JonathanS.
    Dec 6, 2007
    1
    This game is unbridled crap - from low quality graphics (compared to COD4), to more swearing more than was in Goodfellas. Couple this with unlikable characters, and you have this, a game that should receive a 1 out of 10 from every reviewer out there.
  29. M.B.
    Jan 13, 2008
    7
    X0 version - Game has few exellent maps, some mediocre maps and rest are just plain horrible. Storyline is something you really don't even think of, so it really doesn't play that big of a part, more just an excuse for next set of enviroment. If IO interactive would just had kept the quality from those exellent urban city maps and continued from there we'd have a X0 version - Game has few exellent maps, some mediocre maps and rest are just plain horrible. Storyline is something you really don't even think of, so it really doesn't play that big of a part, more just an excuse for next set of enviroment. If IO interactive would just had kept the quality from those exellent urban city maps and continued from there we'd have a masterpiece in our hands. Controls aren't all that bad, apart the "cornering" seems to be working only in some walls and obstacles. What they should have done is to have it under a button and that it work to everything. Also the group controls and the aiming weren't as bad as some reviews out there are indicating, few minor tweaks here and there, they could a lot better thou. That said, this game is between 7-8. Is few exellent maps enough to justify the price tag of a full game?… Expand
  30. MikeW.
    Jan 3, 2008
    8
    I really wish people would rate the game they are talking about, and not the spectrum of games around it. Kane & Lynch is a solid, character driven gun-fest. I don't know how people thought it would be anything else. The story is well crafted and the characters, while not people you would invite to Christmas dinner, are intense, gritty and multi-dimensional. While I understand the I really wish people would rate the game they are talking about, and not the spectrum of games around it. Kane & Lynch is a solid, character driven gun-fest. I don't know how people thought it would be anything else. The story is well crafted and the characters, while not people you would invite to Christmas dinner, are intense, gritty and multi-dimensional. While I understand the complaints with the cover system I don't see how the game loses 40 review points for it. The aiming is fine if you take the time to set your control options and the hit boxes, or whatever else people are blaming for missing their targets are just fine. Despite what Master Chief may show you, the bullet doesn't go right in the center of where you aim every time. If you fire a gun there is recoil and a thousand other factors that influence how accurate your shots would be. This game takes those into account. It's not the game of the year, that's obvious, but seriously it's an enjoyable game that people would have fun with, if they had reasonable expectations when they sat down with it.… Expand
prev
Page:

Awards & Rankings

11
#11 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2007
23
#23 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2007

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
65

Mixed or average reviews - based on 57 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 57
  2. Mixed: 41 out of 57
  3. Negative: 6 out of 57
  1. Official Xbox Magazine
    80
    Part thug brutality, part capers and hijinks, the latest wild ride from the developer of "Hitman" has its fair share of rough edges--maybe even more than its fair share--but its epic missions are so thrilling that they'll sear away the nuggets of disappointment you'll ocasionally feel. [Dec 2007, p.68]
    Read full review
  2. GamePro
    60
    Sure, the gritty atmosphere and balls out gunplay offers up some thrills, and yes the multiplayer options hold some potential but the hard-boiled noir tone and interesting amalgam of varied ideas never truly comes together to form the cohesive action thriller that the game aspires to be. [Dec 2007, p.121]
    Read full review
  3. 1UP
    75
    We rarely see scenarios and story structure this good in a game, and that makes it easier to forgive some of the more hardcore technical game-design issues. It's definitely more of a popcorn game for the action-movie crowd than a hardcore shooter, but there's nothing wrong with that.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »