If you're a fan of picking off crudely-drawn targets a long distances, then you may have played stickman sniper game Clear Vision. We're guessing the creator of Optical Inquisitor has, as the it borrows the look, concept, and violent death scenarios from the 2012 shooter.

In fairness, it's not a lack of originality which makes Optical Inquisitor a dodgy game. After all, Clear Vision itself was paying tribute to a long line of ultraviolent flash games. No, what makes Optical Inquisitor a waste of time is its poorly translated dialogue, naff shooting mechanics, and terrible gambling mini game.

You play as a one-eyed ex-con named Risskin (first name Rake, presumably), who is looking to find his daughter and get even with the criminal gang which set him up. The story is told through through a series of phone calls and interrogation scenes, all of which lead to an assassination.

Like in Clear Vision, the developers have tried come up with creative ways to kill your enemies. While some foes simply require a bullet to the head to go down, others demand you engineer a more complex demise, usually involving nearby objects. Shooting out heavy branches and crushing enemies with cars are both valid execution tactics if the situation calls for it. You'll also have to extract info from targets in sadistic torture scenes.

The problem with Optical Inquisitor is that it's all premise and no trousers. The shooting is functional, but nothing that we haven't seen done better elsewhere. The hip '80s stylings don't extend beyond the synth soundtrack and massive cellular phone. The English translation, meanwhile, is so poor that trying to follow the dialogue is like having a drunken argument with your dog.

Worst of all, however, is the gambling sections. Now and then, you'll have to bribe informants or purchase upgrades for your rifle. When you don't have enough cash - and you often won't - you'll need to visit the casino and bet on coin flips or dice rolls. Though you can shake the dice and flip the coin, the outcomes of each are completely arbitrary. What's more, if you wipe out your balance, then the house just gives you $200 to start again, rendering the entire exercise pointless.

In short, we recommend you don't waste you time with Optical Inquisitor. It's a copy of a copy - a poor execution game executed poorly.