Upon its release in 2012, the game received positive reviews for its combat, voice acting, protagonist, experience system and depiction of the city but its camera and some animations were criticized. Square Enix London Studios worked with United Front for the development. During development, United Front staff visited Hong Kong to conduct field research for the visual environments and sound. Six months later, Square Enix purchased the publishing rights and renamed the game Sleeping Dogs, without the True Crime license, but considered a spiritual successor. The game was announced in 2009 as part of the True Crime series but was canceled by Activision Blizzard in 2011, as a result of the project's delays and budget issues.

Sleeping Dogs ' difficult and prolonged development began in 2008. Actions such as fighting, driving and racing grant Shen statistical rewards and earn the player achievements. The latter may incite a police response, the intensity of which is controlled by a 'heat' system. Players must complete missions to unlock content and continue the story, but they may instead freely roam the game's open world environment and engage in both legal and criminal activities. Gameplay focuses on Wei Shen's martial arts moves, fighting, shooting and parkour abilities, and on gadgets that can be used for combat and exploration. Set in contemporary Hong Kong, the story follows martial artist and undercover police officer Wei Shen who infiltrates the Sun On Yee Triad organization. It was released for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Windows.

Sleeping Dogs is a 2012 action-adventure video game developed by United Front Games and published by Square Enix.

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