Skip to main content

PC and Console Games Set in San Francisco's Chinatown

We have seen plenty of TV episodes and movies set in Chinatown. How about games? 

Turns out there are not that many. PLENTY of games have San Francisco as a level, but Chinatown is MUCH harder to find. In fact, I've only counted... maybe 4 or 5. 

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (and its remake) has a Chinatown map with the TransAmerican pyramid in the background. It is actually a remake of the COD/COD2's MP map Carentan. So while it looks right, the layout is in no way related to the real SF Chinatown. This one is a bit of "meh".  

Rockstar's game GTA: San Andreas has a version of San Francisco called "San Fiero" where there is a reduced version of Chinatown. 

NOTE: GTA has a mobile game called Chinatown Wars, but it's based on LA's Chinatown, not San Francisco's. 

Driver: San Francisco has a very good representation of San Francisco in general, but almost nothing of Chinatown. Guess the streets are a bit too narrow for all the drifting and chases.  In fact, I am having a hard time locating a proper shot of Chinatown in-game. It's simply not there. 

Watch Dogs 2 has a pretty accurate representation of Chinatown, esp. the Chinatown gate, if a bit compressed. 

And finally, there is... Jet Li's Rise to Honor, which was set in multiple places around Chinatown... One just outside the Stockton Tunnel. The promo photo, on the other hand, featured Waverly Pl.  

Jet Li Rise to Honor Magazine Spread Ad
courtesy of  vgprintads.tumblr.com/image/159703629347

This shot was on Waverly Pl. You can recognize the old Utopia Cafe sign behind him, with the English name and phone number airbrushed out. 


Stay tuned for more trips into the Hidden Chinatown of San Francisco. 


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

About the author

Kasey is a professional tour guide and amateur historian who specialized in Chinatown History and Tours. You will often find him guiding groups sampling delicious food and learning interesting historical tidbits about Chinatown most weekends.

Popular posts from this blog

Dragon Gate and its Surprising History

You can't come to SF Chinatown and leave out Dragon Gate, aka the Chinatown Gate, at the corner of Bush and Grant. But do you know its history?  Chinatown Gate, aka Dragon Gate, San Francisco Dragon Gate (aka Chinatown Gate, aka Dragon's Gate) was designed by Clayton Lee and others in 1967 in response to a mayoral competition, and his was the winning entry. Originally two gates were proposed, but the other gate leading to Barbary Coast was dropped due to lack of funds, and cost overrun.  The gate itself was designed after a Chinese "pailou 牌樓" or "paifang 牌坊", which were the "gates" that marked separate fang 坊, or "ward" within a city. However, later it evolved into a purely decorative element. As with tradition, the gate faces South, and is composed of a large gate with two smaller side gates.  The gate has a lot of its materials donated by Taiwan (Republic of China) including artisanal tiles, roofing, and the two guardian lions. Despite...
Post a Comment
Read more

Waverly Place: more than just a Chinatown Alley with a Sordid History

Waverly Pl was far more than just an alley in San Francisco. During the earliest days of San Francisco, it was apparently known as "Pike Street", at least until the 1906 Earthquake. I cannot find any historical references on when the name was changed. Many references imply state "Waverly Pl, (formerly Pike St.) while other references imply stated Pike St. Even from the earliest days in Chinatown, it was known as a place of brothels, and allegedly both Bella Cora and Ah Toy, the two most famous madams of Chinatown, have brothels at or very close to Pike St. (later Waverly Pl). For a while, the brothels co-existed with barbers on the same street, where sailors and miners can get a haircut and a shave for 5 cents, and later, 10 cents. So the area was also known as Five Cent Street or Ten Cent Street for a while. But the street remained mired with vices.  A "crime map" prepared for SF City Supervisors in 1885, note the blue and red vices mapped.  courtesy Cornell U...
Post a Comment
Read more

Restaurant Reviews / Battle of Beef Stew Noodles: Utopia Cafe vs. Spicy Shrimp

Contestants In a battle between two "beef stew noodle" shops that are across the street in Chinatown, which one will come out ahead?   Utopia Cafe, 139 Waverly Pl ( Google Map )  Spicy Shimp, 150 Waverly Pl ( Google Map ) Category Beef Stew Noodle and variations Background Despite the simple name, it's actually not easy to make a decent bowl of beef stew noodle soup. The beef must not be too chewy, the noodle must be al dente yet not mushy, and the soup must be flavorful.  Utopia Cafe's Chinese name is 牛緬王, or "beef noodle king", so this is their supposed house specialty.  Spicy Shrimp, on the other hand, sound like a seafood place. But if you read their menu (in Chinese) their specialty seems to be brunch hand-made rice rolls where you can order them to add eggs, vegetables, and different types of meat or seafood.  When it comes to beef stew noodles, the advantage would appear to be in favor of the Utopia Cafe.  Results at Utopia Cafe Went in,...
Post a Comment
Read more