Following on yesterday's Crackdown 2 hands-on here is an interview I did with James Cope, lead developer at game creators Ruffian. We talked about story, cranking everything up to 11 and why Crackdown 2 is the first true open world game.

Crackdown was one of the first games to really show that Xbox Live, and online console gaming generally, didn't just have to mean first person shooting. Crackdown was an open world urban playground that made up in freedom and sheer entertainment what it lacked in gripping narrative. Climbing, shooting, driving, jumping – Crackdown had a bit of everything and was easily my game of the year in 2007. The online side was particularly impressive. Two players could play in the same game but chase totally different objectives. One could be attempting to take out a stronghold while the other was on the far side of the map hunting down collectable orbs or driving cars off ramps. The clincher was that most things you did in somebody else's world were applied to "your" game next time you played. Addictive wasn't the word...

Ok, calling upcoming space trading/combat game Darkstar One an "Elite for the Xbox 360" is going too far. For a start it has a storyline and is a lot more forgiving than Elite ever was. If anything Darkstar One - originally released on PC in 2006 - is more reminiscent of games like Freelancer and Privateer. However the Elite-style trading element is important and there appears to be a large of amount of freedom to simply roam space, picking up side missions and trade opportunities.