all games are not created equal

So when I played Crackdown, I was absolutely overjoyed. FINALLY, somebody was doing something different! Overlooking the ridiculously generic storyline, the game finally did what I had been wanting to see done; sandbox with superpowers. To a certain extent, Ultimate Spiderman had done this before, but not to this scale. Crackdown had so much going for it; RPG-esque character leveling + customization, crisp graphics, nary a glitch to be found, and a pretty awesome soundtrack.

So why is it that Saints Row 2, a game I should loathe in all manner of loathing, was more entertaining by far?

Sadly, Crackdown missed the boat entirely on replay ability. Once you'd beaten the game, leveled up all your skills, and found all the placement markers, that was it. The RPG leveling wasn't nearly as deep as it seemed, and character customization was shallow at best. Worst of all, there were NO diversions at all to speak of. Oddball Achievements, yes, that you could attempt, but nothing quite as interesting as expected. For a game with such potential, it was sorely limited in scope.

Saints Row 2, on the other hand, not only has a ridiculously, painfully deep character customization setup, but has the most entertaining side missions of any sandbox crime game before it, hands down. The Insurance Fraud diversion had an entire room of my friends rolling on the floor, laughing like maniacs. 

To make a long story short, Saints Row 2 provides a much more robust and engaging experience, despite being a blatant GTA wannabe. Crackdown is fun, but is more of a rental than something you'd want to own. On the other hand, Crackdown is a very cheap used game at my local store, so if you're looking for cheap fun, Crackdown is the way to go. But if you want the absolute BEST in sandbox gameplay, got for Saints Row 2. They're both good games, but Saints Row 2 is the better value in the long run.