Crackdown is built upon the free-roaming play principle that has made games like Oblivion, Dead Rising, Grand Theft Auto, and even Super Mario 64 so successful. Players can just go through the missions, or lose themselves completely by roaming around and exploring this vertical urban world. Once you start playing, the game sucks you into addictive behavior. You feel compelled to upgrade your Agent by collecting more orbs, jumping higher, and wielding more powerful weapons. They certainly have the “crack” part of Crackdown right.
Even though the game can look complicated, it’s really very simple and straightforward. Set in a third-person perspective, this action game’s ficticious world is called Pacific City, and is a sandbox-type environment consisting of three islands (is this starting to sound like GTA?). An over-the-top game-show-host type narrator explains the opening story… the world is a horrible place, there’s crime everywhere, blah blah blah. Whatever reason you need to tell me to crack some heads open is fine with me.
One of the interesting aspects of the story to explain your near-superhuman powers is the use of experimental bio-engineering drugs to increase the Agents’ powers. The semi-ethical science also incorporates human cloning, which “explains” why you have infinite lives when you die (which will happen often).
Action is the main focus of Crackdown, which is good, because the storyline couldn’t pop it’s way out of a wet paper sack. Characters are fully interchangable, so not only is there no character storyline, you don’t really become emotionally attached to any one Agent.
You start off in the Agency “bat-cave”, a small island smack-dab in the middle of the other three (how convenient), with no powers, no cars, no women… You can choose between one of three vehicles, a muscle car, an assault-level SUV, and a truck cab. As your character progresses, your vehicles become upgraded, becoming more powerful.
Rival gangs, drug-lords, and other ne’er-do-wells are fighting to rule Pacific City, and you start out with two standard-issue sidearms to help establish order. You can pick up weapons from your fallen enemies, or purchase new ones as you progress through the campaign. The game also provides three levels of difficulty: Tough, Ruthless, and Psychotic (which is insanely difficult and pretty much requires co-op to survive).
