Sift Heads Cartel: Act 1 1.0

Warning: You need to have a program capable of running an SWF file to play this game. You can click here to find one such program right here on our website.

Flash game developers were incredibly ambitious despite the rather limited nature of the medium. These developers don't let that stop them, however, and so there's a ton of episodic series on the internet. Sift Heads was one that became successful and grew incredibly quickly. So quickly, in fact, that a sequel series came into existence with Sift Heads World. That finished and also spawned a sequel. Let's look at Sift Heads Cartel: Act 1.

To play Sift Heads Cartel: Act 1, just run it with whatever SWF player you have.

The series picks up after the World series and the Street Wars entry, with Shorty being kidnapped by the Italian Mafia. You control Vinny, who's in hot pursuit of her but starts the game off in the trunk of a car, bleeding out and diving straight into the ocean. It's even more cinematic than the World series, with many cinematic gameplay sequences that have you just observing the environment.

The gameplay has been overhauled as well. Now, shootouts are in third person and you can control Vinny's positioning and whether he's in cover or not. It takes many cues from the cover shooters popular during the game's time, and it plays very well. The only big quirk is how you can't dive back into cover if you move or reload while standing. You will be exposed for the entire animation, and this is a massive downside if you aren't watching your clip size and auto reload while out of cover.

All in all, however, Sift Heads Cartel: Act 1 is an incredibly engaging experience.