Activision’s loss is Square Enix’s gain. The latter picked up True Crime: Hong Kong from the former last summer, and is gearing up to release it later this year as Sleeping Dogs. The game has picked up steam in the past few weeks through good press and a constant supply of hype and media.

“The game was, in a sense, discovered,” said Mike Fischer, Square Enix president. “The minute they showed it to us, we really felt like we had found a diamond in the rough.”

He went on to say that Activision must have been “crazy” to let go of the project, which he believes is “fantastic”.

“There’s clearly a lot of inspiration from The Departed and Infernal Affairs. You play an undercover cop who starts to feel mixed loyalties. But the open world feels like Arkham City, the combat feels as good as a fighting game, the driving is as good as a Need for Speed, and the story is every bit as rich as compelling as a Mass Effect. [It’s an] all in one game.”

Sleeping Dogs is due out in August on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360. Check out the latest trailer and screenshots.