To talk about Crackdown 3 now usually brings with it the baggage of multiple delays, and mentions of lackluster preview showings from media. While the Xbox One exclusive finally has a solid release date years after it was first announced, head of Xbox Phil Spencer has put good faith in the project after spending some time with the game.

While responding a fan question on Twitter, Spencer mentioned that he has recently had the chance to play what he says is a full build of Sumo Digital's Crackdown 3, and it seems he was pretty happy with the results.

While Spencer's quote doesn't give any details about his experience from playing the game, it's a step up from the general buzz which has plagued the game for the past couple of years. Originally announced in 2014, Crackdown 3 was set to launch all the way back in 2016. Development however appears to have had its ups and downs.

Part of the reason for Crackdown 3's multiple delays could be do the ambition of Sumo Digital to create a world that is fully destructible, thanks to cloud computing. The software, called Cloudgine, would allow for any part of the game's massive city to feel the effects of the player's gameplay choices. However, with Epic Games stepping in and acquiring the Cloudgine software, both the technological requirements and internal development teams have seen major shakeups.

The long list of delays for Crackdown 3 include a push from 2016 to November 2017, then farther into the second half of 2018, to now seeing the official launch set for February 2019. Shortly after the most recent delay, Microsoft appeared to have put their foot down, refusing to allow Crackdown 3 to be released any later.

Given the numerous internal changes in staff and issues with the game's tech, the delays don't come as surprise unfortunately. To add to the uphill battle already placed in front of Crackdown 3, the game will release on the same day as BioWare's highly-anticipated Anthem, Bend Studio's PS4 exclusive Days Gone, and Metro Exodus. One advantage Crackdown 3 has over its competition however, is that as an Xbox One first-party title, anyone who subscribes to Xbox Game Pass will be able to play on launch day at no extra cost.

Crackdown 3 releases on February 15, 2019 for PC and Xbox One.