Took me 3 or 4 times restarting this game to finally sit all the way through it. It ended up being a memorable experience absolutely though.
Crackdown isn't really much of anything special aside from it's super powers, the feeling it's open world brings to the table isn't anything that wasn't already done with the early 3D GTA games at the start of the previous generation. It also harkens back to some of the Spider Man games of that prior era in giving new approaches to getting around the world. But in turn it lacks some of the unique identity both those series had in their stories and worlds. There's nothing very unique or alive or remotely interesting about the crime addled world Crackdown just throws you in to. The hardware advances of PS3/360 era really saw a rush of games centered on superpowers and open worlds and Crackdown probably lacks the most individual identity in this entire genre.
With that said, there doesn't much need to be. What Crackdown lacks in identity and tone, it makes up for in the fun of actually playing it and the honestly astonishingly good sense of player progression it has. Crackdown isn't some nuanced super power story, nor does it have any kind of unique gimmick to be had in it's approach to it's power system. It is really just a straightforward generic sandbox filled with enemies for you to kill and obstacles to surmount so you can get stronger and better at the game at your leisure.
Rarely in a game, especially in that era, have I enjoyed the sense of climbing buildings to get some collectable. But in Crackdown those collectables were tied to the progression of making your character better at climbing and jumping. Eventually running faster than a supercar and leaping to the tops of buildings in a single jump is it's own reward. Effortlessly throwing semi trucks makes all the effort of drop kicking endless boring goons over and over worth it.
It would almost be one of the more forgettable games I've ever experienced, but there really was just a sense of fun there that I eventually latched on to that gives me pretty great memories of playing it back then despite it's generic shortcomings.
Crackdown isn't really much of anything special aside from it's super powers, the feeling it's open world brings to the table isn't anything that wasn't already done with the early 3D GTA games at the start of the previous generation. It also harkens back to some of the Spider Man games of that prior era in giving new approaches to getting around the world. But in turn it lacks some of the unique identity both those series had in their stories and worlds. There's nothing very unique or alive or remotely interesting about the crime addled world Crackdown just throws you in to. The hardware advances of PS3/360 era really saw a rush of games centered on superpowers and open worlds and Crackdown probably lacks the most individual identity in this entire genre.
With that said, there doesn't much need to be. What Crackdown lacks in identity and tone, it makes up for in the fun of actually playing it and the honestly astonishingly good sense of player progression it has. Crackdown isn't some nuanced super power story, nor does it have any kind of unique gimmick to be had in it's approach to it's power system. It is really just a straightforward generic sandbox filled with enemies for you to kill and obstacles to surmount so you can get stronger and better at the game at your leisure.
Rarely in a game, especially in that era, have I enjoyed the sense of climbing buildings to get some collectable. But in Crackdown those collectables were tied to the progression of making your character better at climbing and jumping. Eventually running faster than a supercar and leaping to the tops of buildings in a single jump is it's own reward. Effortlessly throwing semi trucks makes all the effort of drop kicking endless boring goons over and over worth it.
It would almost be one of the more forgettable games I've ever experienced, but there really was just a sense of fun there that I eventually latched on to that gives me pretty great memories of playing it back then despite it's generic shortcomings.