It’s no surprise that Crackdown 3 has had its fair share of delays since its first announcement at Microsoft’s E3 conference in 2014. During this time the prospect of new technology and advancement in game-making seemed like a viable option in expanding the series in new directions. The end result is a game that feels dated.
Ostensibly disregarding much of the series’ previous stories and characters (with the exception of Director Goodwin), Crackdown 3 takes place years after the events of Crackdown 2, with a new terrorist group named Terra Nova taking control of the series’ new locale, New Providence. The Agency gets reinstated and it’s up to Commander Jaxon – modeled and voiced by actor Terry Crews – or any other default agent (but who doesnt want to be Terry Crews?) to bring justice to the city.
Crackdown 3’s play-by-play design is something extraordinary (not in a good way). Eliminating enemies come across as boring and uninspired. The game’s main villain has a variety of lieutenants that operate various parts of the map and run different operations that must be eliminated in order to weaken them. Once weakened, the success rate of eliminating these bosses increases substantially – unless you grind-out the different stats for your character.
Your character comes equipped with a series of skills that gradually level-up over time consisting of agility, melee, shooting, explosives, and driving. The improvement of these skills goes a long way in making you feel like a super soldier out to save the world. The same goes for your arsenal of weapons ranging from laser-equipped heavy weapons to tiny pistols that pack a punch. The auto-lock on each enemy also makes it incredibly easy to take out enemies as the only amount of skill involved includes locking-on with left trigger and pressing right trigger.
Crackdown 3’s design choices feel dated and shallow. For example, climbing enemy control towers using your platform abilities enable access to hidden markers throughout the world, much like how Ubisoft games use this same design. This approach even transfers to the driving. Jaxon comes equipped with his agency vehicle – that can also transform to drive up buildings – allowing him to traverse the city how he pleases.
This choice feels pointless in hindsight since the driving feels dated as well. I found the best comparison to the mobility is that of Borderlands’ driving. Driving is even harder when activities are presented. Street races are available resulting in orb rewards depending on placement, whether it’s bronze, silver, or gold. I only completed two or three races since the driving feels lackluster.
However, the design of New Providence is one of the few things I actually liked. The city is varied and distinguishable based on the sections of the map; albeit a small map. It’s quite easy to tell where you are at based up the enviroment around you. For instance, if I’m located around an industrial district, I know that I’m east of the city.
The same goes for the rest of the map. The design of the map makes for cool moments of traversal when bouncing from building-to-building collecting different orbs along the way, while also hearing Terry Crews exclaim, “f**k you, gravity” on random occasions never got old. Rooftop races are also fun to accomplish compared to that of driving since the traversal was that different.
Crackdown 3 is neither good or bad. The end result is a game that is undeniably dated – yet can still be fun for a weekends worth of relaxation.