Crazy taxi

Review by : The Ragin Cajun

Format : Dreamcast

Type : Racer

Players : 1

Taxi driving, not exactly the most exciting premise for a video game, is it? But this is no ordinary taxi driving; for starters the taxis are bright yellow convertibles, driven by one of four characters that wouldn’t look out of place in an MTV music video. Add to this a work ethos of “ get them there as fast as you can” extra bonus’s for driving like a demon and narrowly missing other cars, plus the fact that your little yellow death trap is indestructible, you have one of the most refreshing and innovative games on the dreamcast so far.

Graphically Crazy taxi is impressive; your taxi is a joy to behold, with its reflective bodywork and impressive lighting. Likewise the cities themselves and all the other cars are equally well realised and are completely breath taking the first time you see them. There are few faults in this area, namely the odd piece of pop-up on the “original” city and some glitches like customers walking through cars and metal poles. But they are nothing that would spoil you enjoyment of the game.

The sound is perhaps one of the most astounding parts of the game. The FX is indeed fitting, with the character voices being very well done, but the highlight has to be the sound track recorded by big name bands Offspring and Bad religion, they are one of the best parts of the game. The music suits the mood of the game well and unlike many “Vocal and music” game soundtracks (sonic adventure, anyone) this is very professional and unlike sonic adventure won’t leave you cringing.

All these Visual and audio wonders would be for squat if the gameplay itself was rubbish, thankfully like the rest of the package the gameplay of Crazy Taxi is pure gold. The handling of the cars is instinctive and intuitive, with the handy training mode/ mini-games of the Crazy box mode to help you get to grips with the subtleties. This makes for a very enjoyable game and makes it very easy to enjoy the game from the start, rather than having to spend ages learning pointless control nuances.

However the only black mark on Crazy Taxi’s report has to be its replay value. As an arcade game Crazy Taxi was designed as a “quick 5-min adrenaline rush” dispite the new city and the Crazy box mode this game is severely challenged by the lack of long term appeal. Despite the fact that you will probably tire of the game in about a month or so, it will be one of the most refreshing games you will play on the dreamcast. And a few months down the line you will take it down form the shelf and play Crazy Taxi again, and wonder why you haven’t played it in so long.

Sound         : Excelent soundtrack

  9/10

Gameplay    : Easy to control

  9/10

Difficulty     : Very arcade so wont last that long

8/10

Graphics      : Almost flawless

  9/10

  9/10

Overall         : One of the best games for the DC so far

Review by : Crazy Review