What martial arts are used in the Sleeping Dogs video game?

If you’ve ever played the video game Sleeping Dogs, then you’ll be well aware of its martial arts background. Unlike most role playing games, Sleeping Dogs has a real emphasis on martial arts and this shows with its combat system. In short, there’s a lot of detail when it comes to fighting and it has lots of martial arts on show. Sleeping Dogs is based on an undercover cop in Hong Kong who is tasked with taking down the Triads. As you may have figured by now, it’s also well versed in martial arts for a video game.

Here, we’ve identified the martial arts that are on show and when they’re used. So, if you want to learn more about the combat side of Sleeping Dogs then read on.

Martial arts used in Sleeping Dogs

Wing Chun

It makes sense that Sleeping Dogs uses Wing Chun. This is because it’s set in Hong Kong, which was the home of Ip Man and Bruce Lee. These are two martial arts heroes that helped bring Wing Chun to the masses, so you could argue that Hong Kong is iconic in terms of its Wing Chun background.

Specifically, the Wing Chun is used mostly from a defensive perspective. Here, you can use Wing Chun to defend and counter punches from an inside position. Offensively, Wing Chun is also used to break legs by using dangerous leg kicks. The famous ‘oblique kick’ used by UFC’s Jon Jones was originally founded in Wing Chun so it’s not surprising to see this kick used in Sleeping Dogs.

Aikido

Aikido is used in Sleeping Dogs during the police side missions. Here, you act as law enforcement to disarm and arrest criminals. Here, Aikido is done by taking the gun off criminals by taking it straight out of their hands. This makes sense, considering Aikido is big on wrist control and wrist locks.

Especially in modern Aikido, you can be taught how to disarm small firearms such as pistols whilst keeping yourself safe. Some Aikido takedowns can also be used to get the criminals to the floor by using their arm joints against them. Although Aikido doesn’t feature massively, it’s still included in Sleeping Dogs.

Kickboxing

One of the most common martial arts around is Kickboxing, which is also used in Sleeping Dogs. As Sleeping Dogs uses a number of different kicks, this is a sensible inclusion. When fighting, you can use back spin punches, high kicks, and even roundhouse kicks. There’s also a case for Taekwondo being used in Sleeping Dogs too. Here, you can use a spinning Tornado kick to hit your opponent in the head.

Overall, there are a lot of kicks to be done in Sleeping Dogs and as mentioned earlier, it also uses techniques from Wing Chun. Thankfully, there’s a lot of versatility in this field so if you’re into kicks, this game may be for you.

Jeet Kune Do

For a while, Bruce Lee switched from Wing Chun and founded Jeet Kune Do, which was his own martial art based on street fights and self defense. One big part of JKD was fighting from distance, which was previously not as emphasized in Wing Chun. In Sleeping Dogs, you can use these kicks from range, and generally they’re more flashy and athletic compared to Wing Chun.

Another part of Jeet Kune Do used in Sleeping Dogs was the involvement of joint locks. Although JKD doesn’t involve submissions like those used in BJJ and Judo, it did use joint locks to restrain and hold opponents. Over the years, this has been featured in Jeet Kune Do.

Other martial arts used

As well, Muay Thai is also seen in Sleeping Dogs. Although Muay Thai isn’t hugely featured, it’s still seen with knee strikes from the clinch. You could argue that these knees are done by Kickboxing, but for the most part, people associate knees with Muay Thai. As said, Muay Thai only makes up a small element of Sleeping Dogs.

Then, you also have Judo which kind of ties in with the Aikido throws. This makes sense, seeing as Aikido was originally inspired by Judo. In short, there are some throws and takedowns used in Sleeping Dogs which originally stemmed from Judo. Lastly, it also uses western boxing. It wouldn’t be a fighting game without boxing which is probably the most commonly used martial art around the world.

Conclusion

It’s widely acknowledged that Sleeping Dogs has one of the best martial arts backgrounds within the world of video games. Consistently, it’s listed as one of the best in terms of its depth and attention to detail. As seen, it really pays homage to its roots too, and includes a lot of techniques taken from JKD and Wing Chun, which are both rooted in Hong Kong.

In brief, Sleeping Dogs features all kinds of traditional martial arts. So, if you like fighting and video games then it may be the perfect match for you. Check the price of Sleeping Dogs on Amazon.