Crackdown doesn't reinvent the sandbox genre, but steers it in a totally different direction.

Game Summary	Popzara Rating
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Written by Nathan Evans

Tough on crime!

There's a lot of talk about the sandbox genre of gaming, about having a a large and open-ended world in which our digital heroes (and mostly villains) can wreck havoc to our hearts content, limited only by the design of the game. But for myself, it's been precisely those designs which have typically led me away from these popular franchises, as I often feel lost in the amidst the very complexity that drives so many other gamers wild with excitement. Don't get me wrong - I'm all about exploration and plot driven experiences, but there's still that animalistic part of me that's never really satisfied with your standard thug-life supporting city crawler.

What a surprise Crackdown for the Xbox360 was! Developed by relative newcomers Realtime Worlds and sporting the always trendy Renderware engine, this Microsoft original isn't concerned with trying to replicate the experience of its more lauded counterparts as it is re-imagining them. Where series like Grand Theft Auto, Godfather, or even Saint's Row are concerned with story, plot, and character development, Crackdown happily discards these trifles as mere window dressing...it's all about the action, the explosions, and feeling mighty cool as you leap and smash your way across a vast open-ended city run by ruthless thugs.

I mentioned the game discards plot and character, which isn't entirely true as you assume the role of the most generic of generic genetically-enhanced, evolutionary-capable (their words) super soldier who's been bred to battle against a conveniently accented group of baddies who've managed to set up shop across the corners of the city. That's about it for characterization, unless you count the game's narrator, the nameless and omnipresent voice that'll provide both tips and words of encouragement throughout the game. He's fun at first, but soon borders on the inane when his advice is often wrong and inaccurate.

I've heard complaints from some about the general lifelessness of the city and its inhabitants, but in the game's defense I would imagine that's what the developers were shooting for. Much like the hordes of brain-dead (but brain lovin!) zombies in Capcom's Dead Rising, these civilians offer little more than walking scenery, and in most cases obstacles to avoid while driving. Your narrator even quips at one point to "not kill too many of them". Fun stuff, and a stark reminder that the game is more about guns blazing, car throwing, and building hopping than being side-quested to death in efforts to develop your character.

Speaking of development, that's half the fun. Your guy starts out strong (super strong, really), but soon progresses to even greater heights of insane strength and weapon handling. This part is key to making Crackdown the gameplay joy it soon becomes, as you'll go from lifting trash cans to garbage bins, eventually hoisting cars themselves and using everything to assail the stereotypical forces of evil! This is all accentuated by the ridiculously fun gravity-defying jumping abilities that make standard driving (also included) seem dull by comparison. Heck, you'll have fun chucking dead bad guys around, really giving the game a surreal form of environmentalism all its own. Ok, I'm kidding, but when fully powered up you'll be a force unto yourself, effectively making Crackdown the best non-superhero superhero game ever made.

As much fun as the actual gameplay is, there's really not much to it. There's running, jumping, shooting, and some nice interaction with most items (used as weapons). While driving the game's many vehicles does eliminate some of the tedious back-tracking through locales, using your superpowers is where it's at, and the first time I side-kicked an entire car off a bridge I actually laughed. It's fun! By keeping things as basic and intuitive as possible the game opens up a variety of combinations if you're so inclined, allowing for some incredibly cool looking set-ups. Jumping off the roof of one building while using the body of a dead baddie as a weapon, then making head-shots to others, all while landing on a mini-van...which can then be used as another form of justice-rendering goodness, really makes for some interesting maneuvers and really adds to the experience.

I have to add that super-jumping works EXACTLY like it should, giving the game a real feeling of weight the likes I've never experienced before. For extra fun, notice how a high jump leaves cracks on the surface after you land. It's well done and beyond addicting.

Online multiplayer is both great and disappointing, dependent on your expectations. It's the one part of the game that really feels unfinished, and while still outrageously fun with buddy co-op, it still feels tacked on and missing options for customizing and balance. Still, being able to take on such a sprawling and immense playing field together is a fantastic idea that definitely needs fleshing out if we're to get any sequels. We ARE getting sequels, right?

If I could use one word to sum up the game's visual style, it would be solid. The game employs a hybrid cell-shaded/textured look to bring its world to life, and while this results an incredibly smooth and detailed package, don't look for any minute detail or jaw-dropping photo realism. Much like the plot, it's obvious that realism wasn't in the details, as the surreal look these strange graphics give really help blend the cartoon violence without sacrificing the sheer visceral joy of such wanton destruction and superhero antics. I was really impressed with how smooth and colorfully rendered the world was, and how incredibly large the city was. It's really gigantic, almost too big at times (causing poor old me to get lost on several occasions). The on-screen map only brushes the surface of how large these locations are, and with each district having its own feel and look, giving the game much ground to cover.

The game's sound is adequate, with the only real music played while you're rolling in one the game's many autos, but that's nothing to brag about. I noticed a few familiar names (the game gives you all the details, artist, album, etc), but generally speaking its silent city in the tunes department. The voice-acting is generally good, with several screams and yelps from the baddies in all their stereotypical glory. The narrator, while often wrong, does a good job at keeping the enthusiasm level up, often bordering on the absurd. But it's all in good fun, and when those explosions go BOOM!, you won't be complaining.

It's a recognition that not every game need be a classic, where there's less emphasis on being epic and more put on being entertaining. Quite frankly, it's a breath of fresh air to see a game so naked in its ambitions to offer an old-fashioned good time, paying less attention to being trendy and more time inside the overall experience. The world of sandbox gaming may have transformed the linear adventure into something of substance and depth, but my world requires the occasional Crackdown to let 'em know where they came from. By no means perfect, but it could be the perfect fix when you just wanna see things go BOOM!

p.s. oh yeah, mustn't forget the inclusion of the Halo 3 beta-test pass. Apparently that drew some attention to the game as well.