I was a big fan of the original Crackdown. Its over-the-top open-world shenanigans scratched just the right itch. As you can assume, I was pretty excited to get my hands on Crackdown 2 at PAX East. They only had two competitive multiplayer game types available to play: 4v4 Deathmatch and a version of keep away called Rocket Tag. 

In Rocket Tag, a golden orb spawns somewhere in the map and the first player to get said orb becomes “It.” When you’re “It,” you glow golden and a long trail follows along behind you. Making matters worse is the fact that everyone who isn’t “It” has a rocket launcher with infinite ammo and a marker showing exactly where you are. The only weapon the “It” player has to defend himself is a concussion shotgun that does only knock-back but no damage. Throughout each match, rockets exploded everywhere and it was sometimes more dangerous for the people chasing the Orb than the person carrying it. All the while, I was berated by the familiar voice of the Agency (Michael McConnohie, who PC gamers might also know as the voice of Arthas, the Lich King in WoW).

Deathmatch is what you’d expect it to be, but features the all of the aerobatic action you want out of a Crackdown title. A careless jump means a long arc for someone to snipe you in the middle of, making it feel almost like old-school Tribes multiplayer. Fights were hectic, with heat-seeking rockets flying everywhere and attacks coming at you from every angle. 

The Deathmatch map was also home to a selection of vehicles from Crackdown 2. In addition to the typical armored cars with guns was the newest form of transport to the series, an armored and armed helicopter. According to developers I spoke with, the helicopter will be unlocked in the single-player game when you max out your agility, making searching for those remaining orbs a bit easier. 

That’s right, searching for orbs is back. Just when I had managed to stop hearing that sound everywhere I went and had stopped scanning the roofs of my neighborhood for Agility orbs, Crackdown 2 decides throw me right back into the hunt.  In the multiplayer, however, all your stats start out at full, giving you the most powered-up agent available to pit against eight of your friends, acquaintances, and strangers. In single player, you’ll be able to team up with four other agents online to take down the freaky criminals that now populate Pacific City.

The matches were fun and frantic, but not flawless. Jump height was occasionally hard to judge, leading to some frustration when trying to maneuver. My agent would sometimes grab onto a ledge that I had meant to jump beyond, leading to more than a few deaths. When this happened it usually ended in a death so comical it was hard to be frustrated for long.

All in all Crackdown 2 seems set to improve on the original on just about every level and will be heading to stores for Xbox 360 only in July 2010.