LA Cops

About

LA Cops is a single player tactical shooter game with a comedy theme. It was developed by Modern Dream and was released on March 13, 2015. It received neutral reviews from both critics and players.

“Listen Up! This city is being overrun by low life and filth. It’s time to toughen up, fight back. Lets forget the rules and start cleaning up these streets, our way. There’s a lot of bad guys out there so I don’t want you going in alone. Partner up and remember: in LA Cops, your Buddies always got ya back”. LA Cops is a fast, action packed 3D top down shooter, set in the seedy underbelly of 1970…

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53%

Audience ScoreBased on 127 reviews

story9 positive mentions

grinding6 negative mentions

Distinctive and appealing 70s-inspired visual style with bold, colorful graphics and a retro cop show atmosphere.
Fast-paced, challenging top-down shooter gameplay with a unique dual-character control mechanic adding tactical depth.
Soundtrack and voice acting that effectively complement the game's tone and enhance immersion.

Frequent and severe technical issues including game-breaking bugs that prevent mission completion and block achievements.
Unreliable AI for both partner and enemies, causing frustration and inconsistent tactical execution.
Repetitive and limited content with short campaign, bland mission design, awkward controls, and lack of polish.

story
67 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
78%
9%
The story is a simple, 70s cop show parody with amusing cutscenes and a straightforward premise of clearing criminals in various missions. However, it suffers from a lack of depth, charm, and mission variety, with many players finding it unengaging and poorly paced. Additionally, critical bugs—particularly preventing the final mission from registering as complete—undermine progression and achievement completion, detracting significantly from the overall experience.
- “The story is funny and entertaining, with the cut scenes being my favorite parts; this will keep you intrigued throughout the whole story.”
- “With a theme of 70’s cops in LA doing crazy jobs from hold-ups to drug deals, and music to match, the story is very well laid out.”
- “Mission briefing cutscenes add enormously to the overall 80s cop show ambience.”
- “The final level is completely bugged and doesn't register as being completed even after I've tried at least 10 different times on different difficulties, and the side missions are bugged exactly the same way as the final mission.”
- “Since this is the case, the achievements attached to finishing the main story and all other side levels are completely unachievable. I tried for a while since I beat every main mission on nightmare difficulty around the two and a half hour mark.”
- “The story excerpts are completely unrelated to the gameplay or each other.”
gameplay
46 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
69%
7%
The gameplay centers on controlling two officers with a tactical, fast-paced shooter style reminiscent of Hotline Miami, offering some engaging moments and a fresh 70s aesthetic. However, it is frequently marred by flawed controls, broken mechanics, limited variation in missions, and AI partner issues that hinder teamwork, resulting in repetitive and frustrating experiences for many players. While some find the concept promising and enjoy the challenge once mastered, widespread bugs and poor execution prevent the gameplay from fully realizing its potential.
- “The central mechanic revolves around controlling two officers at once, a concept that initially suggests a strong tactical foundation.”
- “The idea of coordinating two characters in a tactical shooter framework is compelling, and there are moments where the system works as intended, delivering brief bursts of satisfying gameplay.”
- “When all of the different mechanics in La Cops come together, it can be a pretty fun and memorable experience; it's just a shame that things don't come together more often.”
- “Each level tasks players with clearing out enemies, rescuing hostages, or eliminating specific targets, but the underlying gameplay loop changes very little from one mission to the next.”
- “The game design could be okay, but I'm unable to switch between cops which renders the core mechanic useless, and neither are many other people on the forums, along with a host of other issues, like apparently it's also impossible to complete due to other technical problems.”
- “But some bugs are ruining the gameplay, for example when you die because your partner takes too long to react or when the automatic focus chooses to focus an enemy behind a wall instead of the guy who is shooting at you.”
graphics
27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
48%
41%
11%
The graphics feature a bold, colorful, and retro-inspired 70s aesthetic with minimalist and cel-shaded art styles that many find stylish and fitting for the game's tone. While most praise the unique, groovy visuals and funky artwork, some critics find the pixelation or style less appealing or occasionally confusing. Overall, the graphics are considered a strong, distinctive element that complements the game's retro theme and action.
- “The visual style is bold and colorful, with a retro-inspired aesthetic that gives the game a distinct identity.”
- “The graphics in this game are quite good overall, with clean 3D looks, and retro 70’s feel this game nails it.”
- “The graphics are cel shaded and look absolutely gorgeous and stylish and have that 70's look that the developers are aiming for.”
- “Art style is bad; it is just pixelated, groovy crap that doesn't remind me of the setting at all.”
- “+ Minimalistic art style suits the concept but will not be to everyone's tastes.”
- “Graphics 5/5 (just terrible and can't tell what is going on half the time).”
music
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
55%
30%
15%
The music is widely praised for its funky, retro 70s-inspired soundtrack that effectively enhances the game's atmosphere and action, often described as catchy and energizing. While most find the soundtrack excellent and fitting, a few note repetitiveness and quality issues, with some considering it subpar or overly looped. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a strong and memorable aspect that complements the game's style.
- “The soundtrack and sound effects support this tone, adding momentum to the action even when the gameplay itself falters.”
- “With a theme of 70’s cops in LA doing crazy jobs from hold ups to drug deals, and music to match, the story is very well laid out.”
- “The badass retro 70s visuals, wicked sabotage soundtrack, and dual-partner mechanic are fresh additions to this genre.”
- “I don't even know where to begin with this game... It's really bad. First of all, there are only eight levels; second, the game itself is unfair and impossible to complete on any difficulty other than normal. Trust me, this is not a 'git gud' situation - it really is impossible. The voice acting is terrible, and so is the soundtrack. The soundtrack sounds like it was from a bad mobile game.”
- “Sound 2/5: The music is okay, but for the first 20 minutes, the same 2 or 3 tracks are looped repeatedly.”
- “Soundtrack and game audio are well-made and fit the ambience, but they are the minimum I'd expect.”
humor
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by a playful, 70s-inspired, corny style that many find entertaining and reminiscent of Team 17's "Worms" series, especially in the cut scenes. While initially funny and engaging, the jokes tend to become repetitive and less effective upon replay. Overall, the lighthearted tone adds charm, though it may lose impact without a stronger narrative.
- “La Cops: where mustaches, bell-bottoms, and badges collide in hilarious 70s action.”
- “The missions and cut scenes are funny and entertaining enough to keep me enjoying the game.”
- “The story is funny and entertaining, with the cut scenes being my favorite parts; this will keep you intrigued throughout the whole story.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Grinding in this game is widely criticized for being tedious, clunky, and repetitive, with frustrating enemy behaviors and awkward controls that hinder gameplay flow. Although some may enjoy the grind-heavy progression, many find it punishing and unenjoyable, especially due to poor AI support and uninspired design.
- “If you like grinding and grinding just to keep playing a game then this is the perfect game for you, but I regret buying it because it gets repetitive really fast.”
- “1 hit kill grenades even on fully upgraded guys (it only needs a lot of grinding at first levels), from suddenly appearing waves.”
- “Enemies tend to walk in slow circles, grinding stoically against walls until they complete their trajectory.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Replayability is mixed, offering some value through experimenting with characters and difficulty levels, as well as occasional new missions. However, many find the overall experience doesn't change significantly, leading to a quick burnout of content. While some praise its retro theme and replay potential, others suggest waiting for a sale due to limited long-term engagement.
- “Brilliant game, love the retro theme and very replayable.”
- “Replay value exists primarily in chasing better performance or experimenting with different characters, but it doesn’t significantly alter the overall experience.”
- “It's something neat to play around with or if you're wanting some quick easy achievements; however, I would wait for a sale as there isn't much replay value. I know the devs have been adding improvements and missions, but at the moment, and with most players coming from Hotline, they will feel like this is nothing and burn through the content way too fast to make it worth the full price.”
- “The three difficulty types provide some decent replay value.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
The atmosphere is characterized by a playful and energetic comic-book style that effectively captures classic cop media through character designs, environments, and cutscenes. While the cutscenes successfully enhance the mood, the tense atmosphere they create can sometimes clash with the gameplay experience.
- “Character designs, environments, and cutscenes all reflect a comic-book-like interpretation of classic cop media, creating an atmosphere that is both playful and energetic.”
- “The cutscenes are successful and really give you the atmosphere you need.”
- “I understand this adds to a tense atmosphere, but it doesn't always work as far as gameplay is concerned.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's optimization is criticized for poor performance issues attributed to Team17, limiting the overall experience. While replay value is driven by chasing better performance and character experimentation, it does not significantly enhance the core gameplay.
- “Replay value exists primarily in chasing better performance or experimenting with different characters, but it doesn’t significantly alter the overall experience.”
- “Bad performance by Team17.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, including animation glitches and unpolished elements, leading to a buggy experience. These problems detract from overall gameplay quality and immersion.
- “Animation glitches, enemy AI reacts too fast, lacks polish, what story?”
- “Buggy game.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Character development is highlighted through stylized designs and dynamic cutscenes that evoke a comic-book feel, effectively capturing the playful and energetic spirit of classic cop media.