Reader Reviews

DRIV3R (Xbox)

by Peej

Sometimes you have to sit down and ask yourself why it is you have a bizarre hobby like playing computer games. What is it you’re looking for? Escapism? A story? The chance to act out some long-buried fantasy on a screen using a character you have complete control of? Or do you just play them because it’s the “big thing of the moment”?

Me, I play computer games to have fun. I’m a stubborn sod and I will not take someone’s word about a game until I’ve had the chance to play it myself. And so it was with Driver 3 (forget all this backward 3 malarkey!) and for once I’m glad I listened to my own gaming instinct and decided to try it.

Forget what has gone before. GTA 3? Yes we know it’s good and sold by the bucketload. Vice City? Same again. The Getaway? Yes it was flawed but a lot of people bought it and a lot of people had fun playing it. True Crime? Er, we’ll just skip that one shall we!

Anyway, Driver 3 is a much anticipated successor to Reflections Studios “Driver” series (well, duh!), and tries to take the franchise kicking and screaming onto the current generation of consoles (and later PCs). Did they succeed? Well I think it’s fair to say “yes and no” because this one game has probably caused more controversy on Eurogamer than any other title released in the past year or so. Most people are horrified at the number of bugs in the game and will dismiss it on that basis. A few people will dismiss the game because it doesn’t quite live up to their expectations. Even fewer people, myself included, will have bought the game because of their stubborn streaks and are now finding themselves as some sort of social outcasts because they’ve dared to say “Hey, this isn’t all that bad…in fact, it’s quite good. No, it’s BLOODY good!”

For all its faults and failings, Driver 3 represents a bit of a gem in my humble opinion. It delivers just the sort of mix of mission-based driving and (though not quite as good, still not horrendous) on-foot action that I thought it might. Many have complained about the slowdown, the popup, and all manner of other idiosyncrasies with the game engine but when you dive straight into the game, play “free ride” mode, and choose a city to drive around in and a vehicle to use, the game is instantly accessible and the driving dynamic feels so fantastically right, that if you’re prepared to over look a few minor failings, you will have a lot of fun. All the things that you could do in GTA 3 (and this is the last time I’ll make any sort of comparison, because they really are poles apart) like setting up crossroad “sting” operations, crashing and stealing car after car or shooting people just for the hell of it (if you’re that weirdly inclined) you can do here, but with a slightly more realistic edge (in fact I can almost hear tabloid presses churning into action, as Driver 3’s realism somehow makes the experience of killing anyone in the game slightly more unpalatable).

“Undercover” mode is Driver 3’s career mode, if you like. The story-based missions are a real mix of difficulty – some are nigh-on impossible but then you’ll suddenly get through them once you figure out where you’ve been going wrong. Some are so easy that you can use them as a good way of setting up a flashy “mini movie” using the inbuilt (and quite fantastic) director mode, common to other Driver titles. During some 10 hours of play so far I’ve not once stopped to tut listlessly at the screen to moan about scenery popup or slowdown (I’m not denying it’s there, oh boy it’s there in spades, but given the complexity of what’s happening I’m really quite frankly not surprised!)

Driver 3 also has some rather cool mini-games (under the heading of “driving games) which also give you objective-based things to do, like chasing criminals or navigating tricky obstacles and cone layouts. Once again this adds to the package as a whole and serves as a worthy distraction should you find yourself frustrated or stuck in undercover mode.