Crackdown 2 Review

Crackdown 2 stumbles in trying to prove there's much more to do in Pacific City than orb hunting.

The sandbox genre is a strong candidate for poster child of the 21st century’s most exploited design choice. Following the landmark playground of Grand Theft Auto 3’s Liberty City the demand to open up tightly wound structures into sprawling landscapes as far as the eye can see has spread across the gaming spectrum at an alarming rate.

Whilst the lack of boundaries is quite liberating, it does beg the question of how far can we leave the player to his own devices before they lose focus on the objectives at hand.

Crackdown 2 is the answer to that question. There’s a story there if you want to find it, there’s a protagonist if you choose to personally instil one into the agent’s blank canvas and there’s a game here but you decide how to approach it. Just seconds after you complete a brief tutorial and touchdown in Pacific City you’re pretty much free to do as you please.

Pacific City is in a state of anarchy – mutants populate this worn-out metropolis at night whilst any humans left appear to have formed a rebellion against you called CELL simply because you’re there to rectify a messy situation. 

Your primary objective is to aid the execution of Project Sunburst by activating trios of beacons before detonating a large energy force which eradicates large numbers of mutants in their own lairs. This makes up the main objectives of Crackdown 2 – run from beacon to beacon before detonating a larger beacon and maybe taking out a few enemy strongholds along the way. 

What makes Crackdown 2 unique is the way to which you are rewarded for almost every single action you make levelling up your agent’s skills. If you like to be trigger happy then the more you squeeze that trigger, guiding a spray of ammunition into a CELL or mutants skull, your rewards will be reflected in the way of better aim and new weapons. Maybe you enjoy roaring an Agency vehicle down the highway, swerving between traffic and executing daredevil stunts, do so and you’ll be rewarded with faster and better cars.