as predictable, and described it as "empty, merely a buddy cop film with some sci-fi elements". Parkin found that despite ostensibly being a detective story, the game's narrative was thematically concerned with middle age, and was fascinated by the game's focus on middle-aged characters as opposed to adolescents in most other games. Sam Bishop of IGN also praised the game's strong characterization. The game did receive some criticism. Some felt its moments of sexual humor — notably the option for Jonathan to grope the breasts of many of the game's female characters ― conflicted with its otherwise serious tone; Mackey explained that this was a remnant of the game's original release on Japanese computers during a time when the market was flooded with hentai games. Concerning criticisms of its slow pace, Mackey wrote that the game requires patience, while Kalata criticized the lack of a dialogue skip option. Parkin wrote that its format is outdated and not for everyone, but still called it "a triumph of gentle interactive storytelling", and felt it could be enjoyed by those with interests in "thrillers, point and click adventures, science fiction homage and Japanese esoterica". Legacy Policenauts was not well known in the West until the fan translation was released 2009. Critics have expressed interest in a re-release or sequel. Sam Bishop of IGN included it among a list of games he wanted to see receive a high-definition remaster. N. Ho Sang and Peter Tieryas of Kotaku included it on a list of desired sequels, and expressed interest in a proper English port of the original. Writing in 2013, Jon Leo of GameSpot wrote that he wanted to see the game re-released for the PlayStation 4, feeling it could be a good mainstream push for visual novels and adventure games. While still working with Konami in 2012, Kojima expressed interest in exploring a follow-up to Policenauts, but felt it was difficult to carry out from a business perspective. Bob Mackey of 1UP.com criticized Konami for failing to acknowledge or pursue localization of Policenauts and other non-Metal Gear games by Kojima. In retrospect, the game is often called a spiritual successor to Snatcher. Sang and Tieryas wrote that "Snatcher was a masterpiece. Policenauts took it a step further." IGN called them "arguably two of the biggest cyberpunk/sci-fi games to ever grace consoles", and Eurogamer described Policenauts''' sci-fi elements as "some of the medium's strongest." Both