Images of the “Grand Theft Auto” series will immediately come to mind when first starting a game of “Crackdown,” the latest release from developer Realtime Worlds.

The games are similar in that you control a character from a third-person view in a “sandbox” setting, where you are given free rein to wander a large city and cause massive amounts of destruction.

The premise of “Crackdown” is simple: You are a super agent dispatched to clean up Pacific City by disposing of three murderous gangs, each lorded over by seven crime bosses. The plot isn’t one that will win awards anytime soon, but the focus here is on gameplay, and that is where “Crackdown” delivers.

The coolest aspect of the game is the ability to improve your skills to perform some truly amazing feats. There are 500 agility orbs in the game, hidden around various buildings. Collecting them will level up your agility and allow you to move faster and jump higher.

Eventually, you will be high above the city leaping from rooftop to rooftop in superhero fashion. Defeating enemies with melee attacks or by tossing objects at them will increase your strength. With enough strength, you’ll be able to throw huge items such as semi cabs to crush your foes. Similarly, defeating enemies with weapons and explosives will level up those skills, respectively.

Finally, running down enemies in your vehicle or winning various checkpoint races will increase your driving skills. Not only will your vehicles handle better, but some will morph to reflect your current driving skill level.

Visuals in the game are pleasing and unique, falling somewhere between cartoon-like cel-shading and a more realistic approach. On the audio side of things, town inhabitants will utter forgettable phrases and vehicles will pump out forgettable music. Luckily, the sound of explosions is entertaining in itself.

A cooperative mode is also available via system link or Xbox Live. Here, a second player can freely drop in and out of your game to assist in whatever it is you might be doing.

If a large arsenal of weapons and vehicles in a free-roaming environment is your thing, “Crackdown” is a fair bet. But if that still doesn’t interest you, perhaps a match of “Halo 3” will.

All launch copies of “Crackdown” include an invitation to the “Halo 3” multiplayer beta, accessible through the game disc. Although the beta has yet to launch, Halo developer Bungie hopes to have it ready to play sometime in the spring.