 |
|
72 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
CRACKDOWN 2 REVIEW Posted by PlayDevil.com Staff on Aug 2, 2010 14:53 (Aug 2, 2010 14:53) |
Written by: Ian
 Does this game crackdown on the original’s flaws?
With a new studio, and a short development timeframe, how does "Crackdown 2" shape up when compared to the opposition? Many will be quick to dismiss it as a quick money-spinner for Microsoft, and I certainly wasn’t impressed with the demo (read my comments here)... so how does the full game compare?
Story:
Crackdown 2 is still set in pacific city- albeit ten years after the original game. The agency has been rocked by two separate events- the rise of ‘cell’ terrorists, and by the ‘freak’ virus, that has turned many of the city’s population into mindless mutated zombies. Like with the first game, there is far more freedom to go anywhere and see anything than even the average open-world game offers you.
This has positives and negatives- whilst the freedom and sandbox nature of the game can be really fun, and is still totally liberating three years on from the original, Ruffian still hasn’t found a way of having the plot be anything other than threadbare.
 Most updates will just come with a few lines of speech and text from your trusty agency handler, who has thankfully made a return for the sequel. There are audio logs, but they don’t add that much to be honest.
Gameplay:
Crackdown 2’s biggest disappointment or biggest triumph (depending on how you feel) is the fact that the gameplay has changed so little. Basically, you are a super-powered cloned agent, hunting down crimelords, terrorists and mutants. Using your key skills (e.g. explosives or driving) gives you XP- when you hit a new level, it unlocks new abilities, vehicles or weapons, making you stronger and more powerful, opening up new areas in the game.
There are also hundred of hidden orbs scattered around the city, which can improve various abilities, whilst the tasks themselves are all opened up from pretty much the word go, allowing you to truly complete the story in any way you want. Many people will find it too similar- with tasks and a city that have been used before, the new gameplay aspects are few and far between.
The main changes are with the online and with orbs. Orbs now also have ‘renegade’ counterparts, which try and outrun you, requiring some canny jumping or driving to catch up- but they do give you a powerful boost if you can get them.
Online is the area with the most work- there is now four player online co-op, which works really nicely. I couldn’t detect any lag, and whilst there is no compulsion to work together, doing so will make the game (which is really tough on anything other than the easiest difficulty) a little more palatable.
There are also some co-op orbs which can only be collected when playing online with at least one other player. The way driving levelling up has been changed, and the fact that that, explosives and hand-to-hand seem a little easier to level up in are fairly minor but welcome changes- but that is it as far as I could see- more minor tweaks than a total overhaul to be honest.
 The game isn’t massively long either- completing the story and getting a few orbs will probably take 10-12 hours- pretty short for an open-world game to be honest. However, getting 100% will take more like 100 hours of pure grind, seeking out those last orbs.
If you loved the first game, then just getting the 800-odd orbs will probably keep you entertained for hours. However, if you weren’t a massive fan of the original game, then so little has changed that it definitely won’t change your mind.
|
 |
Comments |  |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Aug 9, 2010 15:53:32 (Aug 9, 2010 15:53)
