We got off to a rough start this morning, but everything smells of roses and fresh baked cookies now. Bungie sent word that the Halo 3 beta is finally available to download for those of you who are getting access through Crackdown. Simply pop in Crackdown, make your way to the main menu, select Downloads, and then Download Halo 3 beta. It's easy as pie! And yes, we know the public beta is going live a few hour later than promised, but can't we just forgive, forget, and get to fragging already? Or just take your anger out on the unsuspecting foes that you meet in the beta and unleash the fury! Have fun guys.
PS: They've extended the beta a few days longer until June 10th. How nice ...
Golly gee willikers, it looks like the Bungie team has finally posted an update on this whole Crackdown slash Halo 3 beta fiasco. According to SketchFactor, Microsoft has pinpointed the download problem, implemented a fix, and is doing some final testing as you read this blog. So, with any luck, the Halo 3 beta will be available for Crackdown downloaders in roughly 3-6 hours which is only like ... 15 or so hours later than expected. But don't worry, Bungie cares about your feelings and apologizes for the minor (some say major) inconvenience, because they really do feel bad. Keep your eyes peeled and your Crackdown disc at arm's length, we're in for one long night of extremely slow downloading.
As reported earlier, with the new Crackdown update being rolled out some players have been experiencing a total game reset, wiping out all game saves. Well, the dev team over at Realtime Worlds has acknowledged the problem and has a temporary workaround until they get things permanently fixed. And, in brief, this is their quick fix. When you pop in Crackdown download the auto update, start a single player campaign, once loaded choose the quit option, and either exit to the dash or restart your console. Now, you should have no weird progress deletion and can download the other free or paid content. See, not so hard. Realtime Worlds is looking into a fix and will notify everyone when they have a permanent solution to the update problem. Happy gaming.
If you've been playing Crackdown co-op lately, you may have run into a serious problem. Forum goers (and X3F reader, DualCORE1) have discovered a major issue with the new Crackdown downloadable content. It seems that under the right conditions, the DLC can cause your progress to be reset. In other words, remember all those agility orbs you've collected? Gone. Start over. The issue seems to occur when players join co-op games and then return to single-player. Agent G, a Real Time Worlds employee has made it clear that Real Time Worlds is aware of the issue and is working on it. In the meantime, you might want to stay away from co-op.
The Crackdown "Free-For-All Pack" and "Getting Busy Bonus Pack" are both now available on Xbox Live Marketplace. Complete with fresh Achievements, you can have a jolly ole time with the new equipment, game modes, and vehicles. So, honestly, if you've taken a look at our videos on the content, what are you still doing here? Apparently you feel the price is right, right?
In Major Nelson's post this morning about the new Crackdowncontent, he put up some Xbox.com videos about some of the new features. Later on in the day, he hosted them up on his fresh YouTube account, and we have them here for your viewing pleasure. The above video shows the "Keys to the City" mode, giving you full control over the chaos and carnage that you cause in Pacific City. After the break we've got videos showing the new Game Types, Street Racing mode and equipment. Enjoy.
The guys over at TeamXbox received an exclusive preview of the new downloadable content that will be available for Crackdown later this week. And overall we're impressed. Yup, the new Crackdown content dramatically changes up gameplay and will have you putting the game back in your weekly gaming rotation. But let's look at the specifics.
First off, there will be an auto update for the game which will address various game issues from louder orb notification sounds to a new gang reset option. They even made the fire hydrants less evil. Second up is a free piece of DLC called the Free-For-All Pack which will add exciting features like a new Keys to the City mode and an Impounding Vehicles option. Again, all for free. Thirdly is the Getting Busy Bonus Pack which will cost an unknown amount of Microsoft Points and will include new vehicles, weapons, and various other game modes. Stay with us now.
Finally, Realtime Worlds is adding a total of seven new achievements that spread across the free and paid content. Two achievements (totaling 140 Gamerscore) are attainable with the Free-For-All Pack while five other achievements (totaling 210 Gamerscore) are in the Getting Busy Bonus Pack. Also interesting to note is that the premium Getting Busy Bonus Pack can be played in co-op with a friend who doesn't have the content and, as such, a few achievements exclusive to the pack can be obtained by both players. Full writeup and videos after the jump.
Update 1: Xbox.com states that the Getting Busy Bonus Pack will cost 800 Microsoft points.
One of the developers at Real Time Worlds released a screenshot of some downloadable content for Crackdown. The image showcases four buggies being driven down a dirt track. The models on the vehicle look nice, though the red color scheme would suggest that they are unfortunately not Agency vehicles, and won't morph based on your character's Driving skill level. Still, it looks like taking one for a spin would be a lot of fun.
The fact there is four on screen could be interpreted as adding 2 more players to co-op. Or perhaps it will be a separate mode, like Time Trials, and you'll select courses with the ability to have 4 players. We'll have to wait and see, but our interest is piqued, what about you?
If you've been playing Crackdown lately, you may have noticed an auto update has been released for the title. And before you ask, no it's not the Halo 3 beta activation. Major Nelson got word that the Crackdown auto update helps fix minor technical junk to make the game more silky smooth and increases the number of gang vehicles cruising Pacific City. But we still haven't heard from Realtime Worlds about the new achievements or downloadable content. So, we must exercise that "patience" thing we always hear about ... patience, patience, patience.
Has anyone noticed a smoother experience or more vehicle goodness after you downloaded the update?
In an Eurogamer interview with Crackdown's producer Phil Wilson, we get a smidgen more information about Crackdown's upcoming downloadable content. Mr. Wilson (we just had to) openly answers fan's questions with brute honesty, even going as far as to say that the studio came to terms with the Halo 3 beta inclusion by looking at it as a "marketing stunt". But the cream filled center of this interview is the promise of a boss reset option in the next update. So, no more creating new gamertags or other lame workarounds, a reset is on its way. Wilson also touches on the addition of a new co-op game mode, the possibility of four player co-op, and flying high ... all possible in future updates. Make the jump for the full interview, that is, if you've collected enough agility orbs agent (we just had to).
In the past we've brought you a few of the coolest sound clips from Crackdown and the Xbox 360. Today, our good friend Major Nelson posted the hidden orb sound clip for you to download in three exciting flavors. Yes, it's short, it's simplistic, but it still warms our Crackdown gaming soul. And remember, you can still grab the infamous agility orb and the 360's achievement unlocked sound clips for your downloading pleasure. Now quit whining about not being able to get your hands on the hidden orb sound clip and download it ... you know who you are.
Crackdown's hidden and agility orbs are an addictive little treasure hunt for gamers. We posted up a guide for finding the hidden orbs, and now we're bringing you a top down map showing off all the agility orbs, courtesy of Achieve360Points. Sure, while the dots on the map don't exactly tell you what height the orb is at, the top left corner has some vital info for orb hunters. It tells you how many orbs are on each gang's territory. 212 for Los Muertos , 155 for the Volk, 128 for Shai-Gen, and the remaining 5 can be found at The Keep.
Combine that information with IGN's guide, which only has 498 Orbs pictured, or completely photographed lists for both types, but plagued with duplicate pictures, and you have a shot at finding the last ones you're missing. So, how many orbs, agility or hidden, do you have yet to obtain?
Last week had the return of Arcade titles to the Live top ten, and this week continues to do so. As is the trend of the moment, we have Gears of War, Crackdown, and Rainbow Six Vegas taking the top three spots. Worms moves to fourth, three spots above its introduction to the list, followed by GRAW 2, which had its demo in sixth last week. Now, Call of Duty 3 moves has that slot, with newcomer TMNT for XBLA starting in 7th, like Worms did before. Oblivion and Madden 07 swap spots, and Lost Planet continues to round out the list. For the complete breakdown, check out our list after the break, which includes last weeks results for comparison.
Golly gee willikers, it looks like the Bungie team has finally posted an update on this whole Crackdown slash Halo 3 beta 
The guys over at TeamXbox received an exclusive preview of the new downloadable content that will be available for Crackdown later this week. And overall we're impressed. Yup, the new Crackdown content dramatically changes up gameplay and will have you putting the game back in your weekly gaming rotation. But let's look at the specifics.
In the past we've brought you a few of the coolest sound clips from Crackdown and the Xbox 360. Today, our good friend Major Nelson posted the hidden orb sound clip for you to download in three exciting flavors. Yes, it's short, it's simplistic, but it still warms our Crackdown gaming soul. And remember, you can still grab the infamous 
Crackdown's hidden and agility orbs are an addictive little treasure hunt for gamers. We posted up a guide for finding the hidden orbs, and now we're bringing you a top down map showing off all the agility orbs, courtesy of Achieve360Points. Sure, while the dots on the map don't exactly tell you what height the orb is at, the top left corner has some vital info for orb hunters. It tells you how many orbs are on each gang's territory. 212 for Los Muertos , 155 for the Volk, 128 for Shai-Gen, and the remaining 5 can be found at The Keep.
Last week had the 
