Car Jack Streets doesn't reinvent the sandbox wheel, but it does a nice job of shrinking it down for a downloadable service. The interesting application of real time plays strongly to the DSi's portable nature and could potentially keep you going for a good while. It's ambitious, although not without its share of flaws like floaty physics, and the end result is an enjoyable little sandbox game for short sprees.
NZGamer writes: "Car Jack Streets is a good game. It’s a very good game. Hampered only by the fact that it is in attitude, look and gameplay between ninety to ninety-five percent identical to Grand Theft Auto. Or, at least, to the first couple of Grand Theft Auto games. It’s a top-down view on car jacking and police avoidance, complete with taxi missions, hidden packages, and rampages. For those who have had any interest in video games in the last ten years, there is very little left to say. For those who have just been rescued from a deserted island, or have recently woken up from a coma, I’ll continue."
The iconic top down sandbox action that was introduced in the original Grand Theft Auto still has a place in many gamer’s hearts, with players wanting to relive the classic car jacking and money stealing which GTA delivered so perfectly. The PlayStation Portable title Chinatown Wars offered just that, satisfying the craving for the classic GTA, while expanding and improving upon the genre. Now PlayStation Minis title, Car Jack Streets, aims to do exactly that – bring back the beloved style of the original GTA action and add something new. However, is this just a complete and utter clone of Chinatown Wars?....
There is a difference between inspiration and copying. This looks unfortunately like the latter.
IGN writes: "This is a cheap ripoff of Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. If you want to steal more cars and commit more crimes, this will let you do it. But if Chinatown Wars is a high-class escort, Car Jack Streets is a $5 corner girl".
