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Chicago Enforcer Review: Is It Worth Buying?

A picture from the game Chicago Enforcer, featuring the player character shooting at enemies over a counter from a first person perspective.

Chicago Enforcer Review: Is It Worth Buying?

Chicago Enforcer, released by Touchdown Entertainment in February of 2005, is actually two games in one – which is not always a good thing. It’s actually a repackaged version of an older game called Mob Enforcer. With a multiplayer component added, we now have the newly retitled Chicago Enforcer. Perhaps it wasn’t made abundantly clear to developer Touchdown that the reason relatively few people purchased the original game wasn’t because of a lack of content, but because the content that was already there lacked polish.

Emulating the Classics

It’s possible that Touchdown believed they could cash in on the GTA: San Andreas craze of November 2004. Unfortunately, it was Halo 2 that ended up being the best-selling game of that year. Both Mob Enforcer and Chicago Enforcer follow the outline of the GTA series’ plot, featuring a young thug aspiring to rise through the ranks of the underworld by proving himself through a series of mob-related activities. In the case of the Enforcer games, the time period is different. Events take place in the 1930s, the golden age of the gangster, at the tail end of Prohibition. 

So many things could be overlooked if this game was a decent shooter, but there are many flaws within this fundamental aspect of gameplay that set the tone for the rest of the game.

Confusing Decisions

Chicago Enforcer fails on several levels. The graphics are bland, the combat system suffers from lag and ineffective weapon designs, the AI is incredibly unbalanced, and the missions are a repetitive mix of elements. Often you’ll have to fight your way through a thick swarm of police or rival gangsters to get to a specified location, only to find that you now have to hunt for a key to gain access to safety. Many times this safety will come in the form of a locked room. Why such a burly gangster can take on an army of enemies but can’t kick down a door is a mystery.

A picture from the game Chicago Enforcer, featuring the player character, from a first person perspective, aiming at a civilian sitting on a sofa
How the mobster got in this room without kicking in the door is baffling.

Lackluster Presentation

There is no shortage of weapons, but none of them feels especially satisfying or effective to use. The sniper rifle suffers from lag, taking a few seconds to fire from the moment you pull the virtual trigger. The other rifles and handguns lack accuracy, and even the rocket launcher comes off as little more than a glorified Roman candle.

The multi-player mode does nothing to redeem the single-player game. It features Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch as well as variations of King of the Hill and Capture the Flag. Players are forced into tiny, cramped areas that are barely big enough for one player, never mind eight. It’s really difficult to maneuver in some areas, which just leads to confusion and frustration.

Low-resolution graphics and a virtually nonexistent soundtrack round out the lackluster presentation. Textures are ugly, matted, and gloomy. They are often repeated throughout the game, possibly to give it a consistent look. The animations come across as something like a puppet show, and there’s very dialog among the characters. There is hardly any background music, and the sound effects are generic.

A screenshot of the game Chicago Enforcer, featuring the player character firing a gun in first person perspective down a city street at night.

Untapped Potential

It seems likely that Chicago Enforcer will befall the same fate as Mob Enforcer when it comes to sales. If it does perform well, then a sequel could potentially address some of the aforementioned issues. There is a good game in there somewhere. Unfortunately, as it currently stands, this game is best left forgotten about and was quickly overshadowed by the Mafia series.

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