It would seem that instead of a nice pet sitting simulator, Sleeping Dogs is about a Chinese cop who goes undercover to infiltrate the Triad. They really should clarify that.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCOlzqoG70s&w=620]

Sleeping Dogs started out as a game in the True Crime series but has since spun off on its own. As an undercover cop within the Chinese Triad, there is an element of Donnie Darko-ness to not only being in a precarious situation at all times, but also in having to choose whether or not to do certain tasks as they might be against your code as a cop. In the developer interview below, it’s relieved that there are cop points and Triad points. Doing good deeds raises your cop standing, and doing bad your Triad standing. Balancing your position within these two groups will be something you will have to constantly think about. You don’t want to turn over to the bad guys, but you also can’t let the bad guys know who you are.

Since this is an open world game, you do have the ability to have a little fun, and some of the things you do can be uploaded to an online leader board. For example, “the longest wheelie” or “most headshots in a row” can be posted, and you can attempt to best other peoples’ scores.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEKAYYsUfEA&w=620]

You can punch, punch, kick dudes on August 14, 2012 when United Front and Square Enix release Sleeping Dogs for PS3, Xbox 360, and PC.