Crackdown 2 – Hands On

Ruffian's sequel is unapologetically entertaining

Realtime World’s Crackdown was one of the standout titles from the early days of the 360. A fast-paced sandbox romp that added a superhero twist to the GTA formula, Crackdown built up a cult following on the back of its high-octane gameplay and strong multiplayer element.

Sometime last year, Microsoft took the decision that the game warranted a sequel. But with Realtime’s staff burning the midnight oil to get APB up and running by early 2010, the decision was taken to hand development over to new studio Ruffian Games. The developer was showing off the latest public build of the game at NEoN in Dundee last weekend, and I was keen to see it in action.

Anyone who enjoyed the first game will be in their element, as Crackdown 2′s action is again set in Pacific City. An early design decision by Ruffian was that the environment of Realtime’s title was too good not to re-use, but the new developer stresses that players shouldn’t expect the location to be too familiar. A civil war is raging across Pacific City, and the neon glow of the original game has been replaced by something altogether grittier as three factions vie for control of the city.

Crackdown 2's generous environments will be prefectly suited to wide-open battles and multiplayer romps.

Alongside the first title’s Agency and Cell, a new group has appeared in the decade since Crackdown’s denouement. The Freaks are a remnant of the first game, a group of genetic mutants who stalk the streets at night generally causing chaos and mayhem. Ruffian is keen to point out that the day / night cycle will have serious repercussions in Crackdown 2; while the Agency and Cell battle over territory during the day, the night belongs to the Freaks. To highlight this, we’re shown a few minutes of after-hours gameplay, which looks like being equal parts GTA, Arkham Asylum, and Carmageddon. The streets are overrun by the deformed Freaks, and Ruffian’s demonstrator takes obvious pleasure in using an overpowered sports car to turn groups of them into puddles of goo before exiting the vehicle to show off the game’s overhauled melee system.

Taking inspiration from Fable II, character actions are now mapped to the Xbox controller’s face buttons, theoretically making close combat a far more immediate affair than it was in the prequel. The system isn’t really shown in depth though, so we’ll have to wait and see just how effective this design will prove to be. Ruffian is confident that players will grasp the benefits though, especially when combined with what the developer calls “hugely OTT melee weapons”. Anyone who’s familiar with Marvel comics will immediately recognise their influence, as virtually anything can be turned into a weapon – we were shown a sequence where the demonstrator held off a group of freaks using an uprooted lamppost, and the likes of massive girders and barriers can also be wielded to great effect.

Environmental considerations will also come into effect during the game’s action sequences, and we’re shown a couple of new toys and techniques that Ruffian has added to the sandbox. First up are magnetic grenades, which can be attached to any of the game’s objects to imbue them with a powerful attractive charge. In gameplay terms, this can lead to building bridges of floating vehicles, tethering gas cylinders to the road then shooting their caps off to create whirling deathtraps, or even constructing a giant slingshot with which to hurl cars at enemies – a technique that drew a generous round of applause from NEoN attendees.

Hollwood-style explosions and non-stop OTT action: what's not to like?

It turns out that a large influence on Ruffian’s approach to the game was the wealth of YouTube videos posted by players of the first Crackdown who used sandbox elements to create explosive situations that the developers could never have foreseen. As the demonstration winds up, we’re shown a few instances of what we’ll be able to do when Crackdown 2 is released. Without wanting to give too much away, one memorable demonstration involved turning an industrial chimney into a giant cannon by filling it with cars, gas canisters, and giant golf balls and then tossing in a live grenade.

Crackdown 2 will also come complete with a plethora of multiplayer modes, including 4-player co-op with an open mission structure. We played a quick round of 8-player deathmatch, which not only was a blast but also highlighted how responsive the controls are: locking on to an opponent, we had no problems in tailing them over rooftops and through alleyways, and the verticality that’s always been a highlight of the franchise led to some truly epic moments.

It might be pertinent here to mention that I really didn’t play a lot of the first Crackdown, and as such I haven’t exactly been waiting with bated breath for the sequel (if memory serves, I’d become a bit bored of sandbox games by 2007 after overdosing on the magnificent but incredibly bloated GTA: San Andreas). In all honesty, the NEoN demo didn’t entirely win me over, but it’s certainly piqued my curiosity. Ruffian’s decision to focus on the playground aspects of the IP will certainly appeal to a large group of gamers, but the danger with this approach is that players who want a more focused experience might easily get bored. If the new developer can strike the balance between the two play styles, though, then Crackdown 2 could be a welcome oasis of unashamed entertainment when it’s released next year.