Crime Patrol 2: Drug Wars is a live-action laserdisc video game

Laserdisc video game

A laserdisc video game is an arcade game that uses pre-recorded video played from a laserdisc, either as the entirety of the graphics, or as part of the graphics.-History:...

, first released by American Laser Games

American Laser Games

American Laser Games was a company based in Albuquerque, New Mexico that created a wide variety of light gun laserdisc video games. The company was founded in the late 1980s by Robert Grebe, who had originally created the system to train police officers under the company name ICAT , and adapted the...

 in 1994. As the title implies, it is the sequel

Sequel

A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...

 to the relatively popular arcade game Crime Patrol

Crime Patrol

Crime Patrol is a live-action laserdisc video game released by American Laser Games in 1993.-Storyline:Crime Patrol, just like the company's previous releases, didn't focus so much on the storyline as on the general concept of the game, which was in essence its being a rail shooter. A plot is still...

, with very similar gameplay, objectives and scenery. As all titles released by the company, Drug Wars is often criticized for its rather laughable acting, lack of storyline creativity, and heavy reliance on cartoon cliché

Cliché

A cliché or cliche is an expression, idea, or element of an artistic work which has been overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, especially when at some earlier time it was considered meaningful or novel. In phraseology, the term has taken on a more technical meaning,...

s. The game was re-released by Digital Leisure

Digital Leisure

Digital Leisure, Inc. is a Canadian publisher of software. The company formed in 1997 with the vision to acquire, remaster, and publish numerous classic video-based arcade games such as Dragon's Lair, Dragon's Lair II: Time Warp and Space Ace. These three games were among the first to use...

 in 2002 (see 2002 in video gaming

2002 in video gaming

The year 2002 in video gaming saw the release of many games to sixth-generation video game consoles, predominately, the Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox.-Events:...

) for multiple platforms, including the PlayStation 2

PlayStation 2

The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...

.

Storyline

The player steps into the shoes of an anonymous Drug Enforcement Administration

Drug Enforcement Administration

The Drug Enforcement Administration is a federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Justice, tasked with combating drug smuggling and use within the United States...

 agent whose goal is to track down and detain or eliminate a dangerous drug baron residing in South America

South America

South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

, thus destroying his illegal cartel

Cartel

A cartel is a formal agreement among competing firms. It is a formal organization of producers and manufacturers that agree to fix prices, marketing, and production. Cartels usually occur in an oligopolistic industry, where there is a small number of sellers and usually involve homogeneous products...

. Along the way, the agent will have to render any opposition harmless by any means necessary, as is the case in most other American Laser Games releases.

As in Crime Patrol, the player battles criminals and other villains in several widely varying environments. In the original game, however, the main character advances from the "Rookie" level to the "Delta Force

Delta Force

1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta is one of the United States' secretive Tier One counter-terrorism and Special Mission Units. Commonly known as Delta Force, Delta, or The Unit, it was formed under the designation 1st SFOD-D, and is officially referred to by the Department of Defense...

" level, while in Drug Wars, he does not get promoted at any point, simply moving on from one location to another with few complex aims. Beginning in Sierra County, New Mexico

Sierra County, New Mexico

-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*85.6% White*0.4% Black*1.7% Native American*0.4% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.3% Two or more races*8.6% Other races*28.0% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...

, the agent continues to fight crime in Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

, the United States-Mexico border and, finally, the baron's residence in South America. In each of these locations, the player can choose from three different assignments; when all three are complete, he moves on to the next location. The game is finished successfully by reaching and neutralizing the drug lord.

Gameplay

The seventh live-action shooting game released by American Laser Games hardly varies at all in gameplay from similar titles, such as Mad Dog McCree

Mad Dog McCree

Mad Dog McCree is the first live-action laserdisc video game released by American Laser Games. It originally appeared as an arcade shooting game in 1990....

and The Last Bounty Hunter

The Last Bounty Hunter

The Last Bounty Hunter is a live-action laserdisc video game released by American Laser Games in 1994. Like almost all of the games produced by the now-defunct company, it was a rail shooter and, like the two installments in the Mad Dog McCree series before it, was set in the Old West...

. Almost all possible choices are made by aiming the pistol

Pistol

When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...

 the main character has at his disposal; this includes shooting enemies, reloading, selecting locations, options and pathways. When the player does not react in time and gets shot by a criminal, or happens to hit an innocent civilian

Civilian

A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...

, he or she loses a life, and is scolded, often sarcastically, by the partner assigned to the particular geographical location. The number of bullets in the gun's chamber is limited, but the weapon can be reloaded at any time.

In the PC

Personal computer

A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...

 version, decisions can be made by using a mouse

Mouse (computing)

In computing, a mouse is a pointing device that functions by detecting two-dimensional motion relative to its supporting surface. Physically, a mouse consists of an object held under one of the user's hands, with one or more buttons...

 or light gun

Light gun

A light gun is a pointing device for computers and a control device for arcade and video games.Modern screen-based light guns work by building a sensor into the gun itself, and the on-screen target emit light rather than the gun...

, and several options, including a single save/load slot, are available.

Like most American Laser Games releases, Crime Patrol 2 is considered extremely short and repetitive in its gameplay, with very little variation.