
There are no specific missions you ever need to do in the game, other than the boss fights themselves which are largely terrible. What’s even more frustrating is that every single one of these objectives are nearly all identical to one another with the completion of each feeling more like busywork rather than being enjoyable and unique.Įssentially, Crackdown 3’s entire mission structure feels like an amalgamation of the side activities that other open world games will throw at you nowadays. Some of these missions or objectives will see you saving imprisoned citizens of New Providence, climbing tall beacon towers, or destroying random vehicles that are stashed away in garages. The issue I have with challenging these, mob bosses, as I’ll call them, is that the objectives you have to complete before fighting it out with each one are downright mindless.Ĭrackdown 3 throws a litany of different tasks at you to accomplish, but none of them are enjoyable in the slightest. As mentioned, you’re tasked out of the gate with traveling around New Providence and taking out many of the different bosses associated with Terra Nova before eventually challenging the organization’s leader. The biggest problem with Crackdown 3 above everything else though is that the game just lacks any sort of structure. If you’re fine with that formula and that’s what you’re looking for, it’s still here, but the surrounding aspects of the game don’t do that base outline any favors.

If you like the way in which previous Crackdown games have played out purely on the basis of leveling up and running about collecting orbs, that’s still found in Crackdown 3 and it’s the best part of the game. It's a wonderful step forward in game development and delivers on tech that was first promised several years ago.Before I begin endlessly laying out the issues that Crackdown 3 has, I will say that the leveling structure of the game as a whole is likely its biggest saving grace. What's most impressive about Crackdown 3, though, is something that gamers won't even notice in their play sessions it's a first-party title from Microsoft Studios (now known as Xbox Game Studios) that harnesses the power of Microsoft's Azure, thereby allowing cloud-based destruction throughout the entire game. (We won't spoil the story or the boss fights.) Instead of spending extra time trying to find the bosses, players can now harness the new Gangs Bite Back system, which has Terra Nova's lieutenants and gang leaders attack you after you've caused enough problems for them. It's every bit what has been promised, and more in some cases. Related: Joseph Staten Interview: Crackdown 3 & Player FreedomĪside from the gameplay, franchise fans will appreciate Crackdown 3's story, which takes place 10 years after the events of Crackdown 2. Of course, that could depend entirely on the person playing. But since Crackdown 3's campaign only lasts for approximately 15 hours, the antiquated combat system isn't detrimental enough to the gameplay to warrant passing over the sequel completely. Crackdown 3 is an Xbox 360 game pretending to belong in the current console generation.Ĭertain mechanics, though, are unquestionably outdated, namely the lock-on aiming system, and that's what makes the otherwise exciting gameplay feel monotonous after a few hours.

It has all the touchstones of previous Crackdown games, like the neon-lit streets, the Skills for Kills leveling system, and an extensive arsenal of weapons, but there's little that sets it apart from those original games.

This is evident in Crackdown 3's single-player campaign. That's what many people would want in a game like this, but as a whole, it's also a game that appears to be underdeveloped and a concession for making a triple-A title rather than being one. In fact, it's filled to the brim with destruction and mindless fun, truly. The problem is, it's not the game to do that.
#CRACKDOWN 3 PC RELEASE DATE SERIES#
Coming 12 years after the first Crackdown released and nine years after the second, Crackdown 3 aims to revive the series for a new batch of gamers around the world. Sumo Digital's Crackdown 3 was originally announced way back at E3 2014 - a little less than a year after Microsoft's Xbox One hit store shelves - and it's only now releasing just as the current console generation is starting to wind down. Crackdown 3 is finally here, but it wasn't worth the wait.
