When True Crime: Streets of LA was released, it was one of the few ways GameCube gamers could experience - in a small way, anyway - the free-roaming-do-what-you-want-on-foot-or-on-wheels gameplay made popular by the Grand Theft Auto series. While It wasn’t a bad game it wasn’t a true GTA clone either, but Activision hoped to change that with its sequel. True Crime: New York City for the GameCube has you cleaning up the various streets of NYC.

Much like Grand Theft Auto: San Andrea, Streets of LA wasn’t a serious take on the city of Los Angeles even though its various streets were GPS-accurate down to the most obscure little streets in Downtown LA. New York City, on the other hand, covers a lot of the city from Hell’s Kitchen to lower Manhattan and that’s saying a lot right there. The streets of NYC are alive with pedestrians, the majority of them walking stereotypes (the major stereotype being that all New Yorkers are often flipping each other the bird and yelling profanity in their “native” tongue). There are taxicabs everywhere and the police are overwhelmed by the crime in the city.

You play Detective Marcus Reed who, in the beginning of the game, was a gangster thug who just so happened to have had a guardian angel watching his back … a guardian angel with a badge, actually. Determined to set himself straight, Reed joins the NYPD but there’s an unresolved problem that rears its ugly head. It seems that Reed’s family friend and father figure is killed during a mysterious run inside an old building. Determined to find who was behind his friend’s death leads him into the criminal underworld he was once familiar with long ago. Worse yet the events could have something to do with Reed’s crime lord father who is behind bars.

After a brief training run and an introductory level, Reed is free to explore the massive city on his own and much like Streets of LA you can “commandeer” any vehicle that happens to be parked or dumb enough to stop in front of you. NYC’s streets are packed and you’ll encounter an assortment of vehicles from SUVs to motorcycles. Like the first game, you’ll also hear of random crimes that occur throughout the game and you can choose to respond to them or ignore them completely and head for a main objective. The good cop/bad cop ranking is back so every crime you commit leads you on the path of a dirty cop. You can even shake down storeowners, extort money from bad guys and accept bribes in return for sweet freedom. Unlike the first game, though, you can enter various locales like restaurants, clubs, stores and hotels.

The small petty crimes that occur while exploring have you breaking up a fight between restaurant waiters fighting over a tip or catching a serial rapist. Domestic violence disputes have you going into the apartment room and making arrests while stolen vehicle reports have you chasing down the carjackers. Reed’s mission, though, is the only way to advance the story and your quest will have you consorting with an FBI agent to a number of other figures including a Madam. The story is the game’s biggest strength and unlike the first game it doesn’t stray into the world of the supernatural.

The good cop/bad cop choices add more depth and variety. If you go the bad cop route, you can arrest a suspect, confiscate the evidence and choose to sell it in certain places. You can walk into a store, grab the storeowner and press your gun to their temple to extort money from them. There’s even an extortion meter with choices on how to get money from the storeowner. Knock a suspect down until they’re barely clinging to their strength and you can ram their heads on the pavement for a little excessive force.

Unfortunately, all the first game’s weaknesses are back and some have even gotten worst. Whether you’re grabbling with a suspect or slapping the cuff on them the game’s glitches will often have you grabbing at air. Sometimes even suspects disappear completely during skirmishes or you’ll be handcuffing an invisible suspect.  Targeting your gun is still handled poorly so you’ll be thankful for the precision aim feature you can upgrade. Driving is still not as smooth as it should be and sometimes hitting other cars on accident leads to the other vehicles falling to pieces or the driver will somehow eject from his or her seat and die instantly. You can always take a cab to certain locations but what’s the fun in that?

New York City is not a bad-looking game when it comes to rendering the city in all its glory. The buildings will seem familiar in some places but it looks and feels like the Big Apple. Yet when the game gets to the vehicles and characters that’s where the game starts to look a bit on the awful side. My biggest gripe, however, is the game’s framerate that drops to an annoying twitch. Oftentimes things or people will pop up in the most unlikely places and the game will flash halves of buildings.

At least the game’s sound offers some relief from the so-so graphics thanks to a great assortment of tunes that have a wide range of musical genres from alternative to good hip-hop. What other game mixes in Blue Oyster Cult’s “Don’t Fear the Reaper” with Bobby Womack’s ghetto classic “Across 110^th Street?” The voice acting, provided by some talented actors like Christopher Walken (from “Pulp Fiction” fame), Mickey Rourke (from “Sin City” fame) and Laurence Fishbone (from “The Matrix” fame). The voice acting works well but some of the dialogue just doesn’t sound right. The sound effects are decent but nothing to write home about. Then again, when it comes to car crashes this game does it right.

True Crime: New York City is a game that could have been a great GameCube substitute for the Grand Theft Auto series but it falls flat thank to some serious glitches. It’s a game that is still better than Streets of LA but with so many problems I really don’t see a purchase - unless you can ignore these annoyances. A rental is certainly in order, though.

Gameplay: 6.5
The game is plagued with enough bugs that it breaks up the game’s otherwise decent flow. Movement is hindered by awkward controls and often times you’ll be slapping cuffs on invisible perps. The good cop/bad cop element is back and better than ever but driving is still just as bad as Streets of LA.

Graphics: 5.5
New York City as a whole doesn’t look as bad on the GameCube and there are plenty of details to make the Big Apple look alive. The characters look a bit odd and the cars are not as easy on the eyes as they should be but at least high-speed crashes look gruesome. The framerate drops considerably and there are visual stutters and “phantom” sign posts that pop on screen.

Sound: 8.5
A massive song list has everything from good hip-hop (Run DMC and Redman) to an assortment of even better rock tunes (The Ramones and Iggy Pop and the Stooges). The sound effects are even more detailed than the visuals and there’s some good voice acting from actors Christopher Walken and Laurence Fishburne.

Difficulty: Medium
The game’s biggest challenge is wrestling with the camera and targeting that often has you grappling at nothing. If it wasn’t for the precise aiming feature you’ll probably shoot innocent bystanders. The kung fu in the game is helpful against multiple opponents and there are times when enemies will try to overwhelm you.

Concept: 7.0
Like the real Big Apple, there’s a lot to see and do and you can even walk into various buildings within a block. The good/bad cop routine allows you to extort shop owners and the story isn’t half-bad. Like the first game, there’s a nice secret to unlock. You can even get a haircut like Mr. T’s.

Overall: 6.9
Despite its various faults, True Crime: New York City is a slightly more enjoyable game than the first offering. The series is still weighed down by its poor driving and shooting parts but compared to Streets of LA the game has its share of really fun moments worthy of a weekend rental.