Crackdown 3’s exquisite explosions explained

If Battlefield is littered with destructible environments, Crackdown is a landfill. The series is lovably enthusiastic when it comes to blowing things up, and Crackdown 3 is no exception. So it’s only right that Microsoft gave the game’s explosions the spotlight in their most recent developer blog.

“We start by looking at explosions as science experiments, cause and effect on clear display,” said Senior Narrative Designer Dave Mongan. “No matter if it’s born from a rocket, a grenade, a limpet mine, or a breaching charge, something detonates and damage spreads—and in the world of Crackdown, that’s when opportunities arise.”

Mongan points to multiple applications of explosions beyond just toppling skyscrapers. Blow the glass off a building to reveal the enemy sniper within, for example, or corral enemies with well-placed fires. All with the help of a good old fashioned boom.

“In Crackdown 3, explosives take front-and-center when it comes to the destructible world we’re building for our multiplayer, and for the open-world [campaign],” Mongan continued. “Whether you’re deploying a cluster grenade to disassemble a squad of mechs, or taking down a skybridge while another player runs across, or toppling a tower to create a path for your teammates to infiltrate the enemy’s stronghold—explosives and the explosive skill are a critical part of making every corner of the Crackdown world versatile and exciting.”

Exciting may well be the word, along with demanding. As Microsoft said at Gamescom 2015, Crackdown 3’s expansive and explosive multiplayer is largely reliant on cloud computing. As a result, individual ISPs and Internet speeds may affect the game’s performance.

Source: Crackdown blog