Published by Games Incubator and developed by Hypnotic Ants, Police Shootout is a simulation game that puts players in the shoes of a police officer and need to take on cases, track down suspects, arrest them and even interrogate them. Police Shootout is now available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC.

Since we have already reviewed Police Shootout on Xbox Series X|S, this review will be focused on any differences in its PlayStation 5 counterpart. Be sure to check out the original in-depth review at the following link: https://www.mkaugaming.com/all-review-list/police-shootout-xbox-series-x-review/

Players take control of Scott Price who is just starting his first shift as a police officer in the small city of San Adrino. He moved here from a bigger city where street gang fights are everyday life in hopes of working in a safer community.

Overall, the PlayStation 5 version looks and feels exactly the same, meaning it has all the same problems too. Unfortunately, if there were any patch updates since the original review, no improvements have been made at all.

The turn-based strategy mechanic for shooting is an interesting design choice for a theme that would normally be action-based. It could’ve been a fun mechanic if done right, but it feels slow and tedious and can get frustrating trying to land a shot. It feels this mechanic would be better suited with a mouse to get more control with the aiming because it just isn’t working for controllers. It also really quickly drags down any excitement by slowing down the pace of what should be getting your adrenaline going.

Interrogating suspects is still fun and seeing them fall apart is always satisfying, granted you have enough evidence of course. The game would’ve been better if it just focused on that and left out everything else.

The glitches in the tutorial still need to be fixed, as it makes the whole thing more trouble than it’s worth. It’s also odd that you can voluntarily choose to do the tutorial from the main menu to get acquainted with the game’s mechanics, but you have to do the tutorial all over again when starting the main game. With glitches it still has, doing it once was agonising enough.

Character models still look generic, environments still feel lifeless, the sound effects and voice acting are still underwhelming and the piano music in the menus still feels unwelcoming. For a game about doing one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, there’s just no sense of urgency.

It’s clear to see the potential that Police Shootout could’ve had, but it does injustice in just about every single aspect. For a game that should make you feel like a fine policeman working to protect and serve, you end up just feeling like an average mall cop on minimum wage.

Written by: Sammy Hanson