Pacific City is in trouble, and its police force are nigh on useless. Gangs run riot, drugs are rife and mental mutants harangue old women. Gutted. How does one solve this social apocalypse? Build a genetic super soldier capable of leaping entire buildings, chucking buses and other forms of extreme crime fighting athleticism - obviously. You take control of this GM freak, utilising his skills to enact a social purge – as ordained by 'The Agency' – and removing the three kingpins to bring about peace. That is Crackdown: you are free (really free – there is no plot, and everywhere in game is accessible) to do this however you want – run in, guns blazing with a couple of grenades between your teeth, or take to the hills and snipe the don without getting near any plebs. The choice is yours. Which is nice… for the first gang you wipe out, anyway. However, after your first cull, everything becomes a smidgen samey. This is the game's one failing. Even with impressive graphics and a massive and beautiful city, which does add variety, you can't help feeling somewhat let down by the actual gameplay - as fun and innovative as it is. Eliminating the second gang is largely just a repeat of the first, jumping a bit higher and pointing a slightly bigger gun. Can you really be bothered doing it all again? You might head back in game to make some nifty explosions, but it's far more likely you will get gun apathy and go and play something else. [Josh Wilson]