Crackdown 2 Review

05 Jul 2010 at 14:00:00 by Richard Walker
Systems used to review this title: (360)

You can't help but wonder if Crackdown might have been quite so successful had there not been the added bonus of getting in on the Halo 3 beta. From the sandbox pedigree of ex-DMA man Dave Jones and Realtime Worlds – who have since continued to go open world with APB – Crackdown seemingly came out of nowhere and many were delighted to find that not only was Crackdown a decent game, but it was also a fun and recklessly enjoyable guilty pleasure, packed with explosions, action and plenty of little, gently glowing orbs to collect, mamer's obsessivnmy f libtls, ge desire to pick up shiny things.

Playing as a new genetically enhanced Agent, tasked with single-handedly cleaning up the streets of Pacific City by getting rid of 21 entrenched crime bosses, Crackdown created an illusion of freedom remarkably well, despite the game's structure actually being relatively linear. Tackling the later bosses before the game wanted you too, would often end in your untimely demise in a hail of gunfire, but it was a nice touch to at least be offered the flexibility to take on your targets in whatever order you deemed fit.

Once again, Crackdown 2's crux lies in hoarding agility orbs and performing actions to upgrade your fledgling Agent until he reaches the peak of his powers. As you boost his attributes, your enjoyment of the game rises with it, providing huge incentive to max out every one of his abilities. This time around however, your objectives are quite different, although the mechanics remain the same. Instead of hunting down and executing a host of colourful villains, you play as a new Agent in a destroyed Pacific City overrun with freaks, and as such your mission is to configure and activate 27 absorption units, which link to create a network of nine beacons that you must protect as they're deployed. Once all nine are ready, you'll climb to the top of Agency tower and switch on 'Project Sunburst', which will hopefully make the streets safe once again.

What this essentially means is that the same structure remains, but now it seems even more linear than before, as you're encouraged to follow a specific order to complete each absorption unit. Of course you don't have to, but you probably will anyway. And sadly, this means that you'll be performing the very same actions repeatedly which, when coupled with the removal of any kind of personality or character to your targets, becomes pretty dull and perfunctory. And when Mr. Voice-over man utters the same phrase for the umpteenth time, you'll be ready to throw your pad to the floor and scream in exasperation. Our advice? Turn him off in the audio options.

Side missions help break the repetition though, although tasks like closing Freak breaches, completing Road or Rooftop Races and chasing Renegade Orbs start out fun but soon grow frustrating over time. There's almost too much to collect in Crackdown 2, which means it'll take real perseverance to hit the 100% mark, and beating you 10,000^th Freak into a squishy pulp or pumping the 50, 000^th member of antagonist Catalina Thorne's rebellious Cell gang, you'll be desperate for something different to aim at.

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