I've always been a fan of the Driver series.
First game was great, I enjoyed it, then again, I'd play anything that was like GTA. Always been a sucker for open world games. It was different too, couldn't run a red light, nor go over the speed limit, which sucks since you drive muscle cars, the most fun I had was escaping the bacon patrol, so satisfying man.
Second game... uh... meh? Good, in my opinion, but not as good as the first. I did like the ability to get in and out of cars though.
Third game, I really liked, even if a lot didn't.
Then... after that... silence. Nothing except for a PSP game, I'd worried the series had gone dark. But low and behold, San Francisco has something to show, at first, the shift mechanic troubled me, because last time I checked, the series is setting is set in a realistic and gritty world. And surprisingly it actually works and is fun.
Anyways on to the story.
It follows good ol' John Tanner again... finally. About six months after the events of Driv3r, Tanner actually survived the events of Istanbul, Maybe he was in a coma? Maybe not, nonetheless he eventually ends up in ANOTHER coma. This is when shift takes place, it can actually happen since the rest of the game takes place in his mind. His little accident only happens because his "arch-nemesis" Jericho (secret lover probably) gets out of prison and is once again terrifying the streets. Tanners BFF Jones is back too... and is actually kind of funny and likable.
To sum it up, the story is pretty interesting, voice acting is good, not super duper amazing. But in no way bad, they're good. Surprisingly , the facial animations and detail are fantastic! Everything else in the graphics department are good but some low res textures and and faceless pedestrians are present. However, 60 frames per second throughout is very welcomed.
In gameplay terms, its very fun. Shift works well, and allows for more complexity in how you handle a car chase. Speaking of car chases, they're fantastic, handling is well, it may take a while to master though. One thing that I find is amazing and very nostalgic is the movie challenges. Essentially, these allow you to play a scene from your favorite car chase related movie. From Bullit, to Starsky and Hutch, to Dukes of Hazard, to Gone in 60 Seconds, hell even freakin Blues Brothers! Major props for that. There is also activities and dares to further lengthen the enjoyment, there is also multiplayer, on it's own is good, but with shift mechanic, it provides a fresh spin on it. Which is highly enjoyable. Oh, and uh... the online pass is kind of free, thanks to a printing problem, it says it costs money, but it doesn't, when the game says to purchase it click yes, then go on and download it, pretty neat. Suck it online pass.
Overall, very enjoyable game, it feels good to see to Driver series back with Ubisoft being the publisher, lets hope to see more in the future.
Now if I can only find Tanners jacket cheap.
From VG247: "When cars slide, they leave tyre marks. In a game like Driver, they’re an aesthetic touch, part of the inherent cool of a handbrake turn. But those dark shadows in the road also tell a story. From tyre marks, you can determine the speed of a vehicle, when it started to skid, and its ultimate direction of travel – long after the car itself has vanished into the distance."
Why did they stop making some of the best games ever? Driver was one of them.
Assassins Creed 2 showed Ubisoft how to make money and Far Cry 2 showed them that gamers don't like complex ideas. Now Ubisoft just turns out games that are just variations of the same thing.
A story driven game with pure driving gameplay. I'd love to see a new Driver game or a remake of the first one.
Yes. This one. A definite remake of the first without adding any ridiculous fluff. The first game had great physics and sound for its time. The start of the car in the beginning cinema I watched constantly. My father and uncles were big muscle and classic car freaks. Only thing crazy about the game was the relentless cops in the last level. Insane the way those police cars were and launched at you.
Bleemcast made it look better just like PC emulators. But would definitely take a remake.
Player 2's Matt Hewson looks at five games from his past that seem to have been forgotten by the masses and perhaps deserve a second look.
There’s more to Ubisoft’s back catalogue than its Templar-bothering flagship franchise and we’re here to prove it. By grovelling for remasters, of course.
You forgot to mention Driver: Parallel Lines. Will probably pick up San Francisco. It's pretty cheap now.
Nice review btw. :)
Fantastic game. Rented a few weeks ago myself and found it so addictive. I was worried that the whole coma 'Life on Mars' thing was going to make me care less about the characters you help by shifting into within missions. Luckily, it went through a funny script and wit path. Ended up finishing this game wanting a copy next to Burnout Paradise, I only really played the story but have plenty of stuff left to do.
A very impressive engine allowing you to zoom out twice in the map and still be able to see those cars around the corner in a car.
After being used to shift, I'm not sure how the Driver series can use a similar mechanic again.
This really took me by surprise last year, I loved it!
Top review too:)
I like these type of games, but wasn't sure about this.
Nice to know its fairly good. Been thinking about picking this up now its cheap and I think I will now. I take player reviews (like this), more serious than websites/mags etc.