Crackdown Verticality

Douglass C. Perry from IGN recently published a superbly written article on the vertical dimension to the free-roaming gameplay of Crackdown. Much of his insights appear to be based on his play experiences on an advance copy of the full game, due for release on February 20th, 2007. The demo that was released last week is expansive enough to capture a similar experience.

No other sandbox game has integrated vertical exploration into its environments as well as Crackdown has. Period. This element alone has really set this game apart and in my mind, tags Real Time Worlds as one of the new development studios to watch for.

What do you think? While playing the demo, did you prefer driving and stay grounded on terra firma? Or did you take to the dizzying heights of the many balconies and towers of Pacific City, hunting down those addictive Agility Orbs?

Read the IGN article