DRIV3R

Your investigation jump-starts reckless car chases through more than 150 miles of highways and city streets in detailed re-creations of Miami, Nice and Isantbul. Slam into any of the 30,000 buildings and your car crumbles realistically. [Apr 2004, p.38]

No matter the situation, whether you're sneaking around a dark building or barreling through a shopping mall with three police cars in pursuit, you always feel on edge, as if you're living the 007-like "danger is my middle name" lifestyle at all times.

Although the gameplay loses out with its linearity and the walking episodes are weak, it makes up for it with awesome driving sections, a great story, fantastic graphics and the wonderful casting of A-list Hollywood actors.

Stays true to the series blueprint and moves things forward into the current console generation with style.

The story is gripping and rich in content.

It is very enjoyable to play through and does feature moments of brilliance. However, we think a lot of you will be disappointed by what it has to offer.

This is the first game to successfully mix death-on-the-freeway antics with a plot you might actually care about, and it's worth a shot for that alone.

With more development time, the guys at Reflection could have fixed the spotty AI and graphical problems. As is, fans of the series will certainly want to pick this up since this up since it is the best iteration of the series.

Don't listen to the review[s] out there that are knocking the crap out of this game. Driv3r is not that bad at all. It is a game that is far from perfect but you may find yourself having a good time with it.

An above average game. Most people will love the intense action and gunplay that features so prominently, whilst putting up with the control issues, occasional camera problems and sometimes downright annoying fact at you can complete a mission and feel very proud of yourself, before being told that you failed and that you have to do it all again.

It may take you a long time to create the perfect directors cut but it is fun.

There are moments of controller-throwing frustration, but also many flashes of true craftsmanship and design excellence. DRIV3R is a game for those who love the feel of the wheel, but only for those with the patience to slog through the rough patches.

If you're looking for a racing or action game, you're better off buying a title more focused on those genres.

DRIV3R is next-gen in neither concept nor execution. Issues like pop-in should not be a part of a next-gen title. Even though DRIV3R relies much more on driving, it still smacks of the genre innovator, Grand Theft Auto.

The jump animation seems very stiff and looks like Tanner hasn't stretched in years. Tanner can also swim which looks marginally better than his running technique.

Ultimately forgettable.

The decision to create so much gameplay outside the car could have reinvented the series, but instead, it merely bogs it down with clumsy and frustrating gameplay. The poor save and checkpoint system will have you playing and replaying portions of the game to the point of insanity.

It's so depressing to complete an exhilarating chase only to face a bland shootout before you can complete a mission.

It hints at brilliance on occasions, but is ultimately flawed by poor execution, sloppy glitches and an overall unfinished feel.

The game's controls and animation also feel unresponsive and stiff.

I suspect the developers might have been better off contstructing this as a pure racing title (as it does do the basics of racing well) and avoiding the shooting action altogether. [Aug 2004, p.94]

The game's online presence is a joke, only effectively offering a way to check out other people's film director clips instead of playing mini-games with them. This is completely lame.

We can't forget the single-player game that's over in less than three hours once you've learned the routes of each mission, a series of me-too mini-games that offer no reason to play them, and an offensively small number of rewards. That's the DRIV3R package; all flash and no substance. [*Reminder: GameSpy equates 2 stars with 60/100.]

This whole game is just too linear for its own good. I think there are a lot of great things in Driv3r, Reflections just decided to hone in on the CG movies and the city graphics over having any normal sense of gameplay that was fun.

Hours to complete: That depends on how long you can deal with mediocrity.

After creating such large cities,Reflections have failed to use this potential offering no incentive to utilise the surrounds. With no hidden extras or surprises Driver 3 is strictly what you see is what you get.

While the city is large in itself and fun to explore and the cinematic cutscenes are semi-inspiring, DRIV3R is a continuously frustrating and boring affair.

The on-foot aspect is near abysmal and takes the wind right out of the sails. The numerous graphical glitches and bugs don't help matters, either.

Game play is where Driv3r really falls short. The controls are a bit fidgety and on the loose side. This is especially noticeable on foot, as it just plays so awkwardly. No matter what control scheme you choose, it just never feels comfortable.

A series of impressive ideas that just aren't implemented well enough to make this game really shine through its too numerous to count imperfections.

For a long time, DRIV3R was one of mine and many other gamers' most anticipated titles this year, and, with all the publicity and hype it was receiving, it was one of the biggest letdowns I've ever experienced.

On its own, it's troubled with unforgivably terrible AI, poor out-of-car controls, and some awfully designed levels...Compared to other games of its kind, DRIV3R falls on its face.

The poor controls and physics problems are exacerbated by a laundry list of bugs.

Maybe DRIV3R is trying to cash in on the success of the Grand Theft Auto franchise, but in reality it's not even as good as "True Crime: Streets of L.A.," and that game was mediocre at best.

While the game itself isn't completely broken, it's uninspired and frequently frustrating or boring. Consider that, along with all the glitches, and it adds up to be a game that isn't worth your time or money.

A great idea gone horribly wrong. Unless you're a masochist, then the cut scenes are about as entertained as you're bound to be while playing.

Here was a game with real potential to be what everybody had basically hoped for: "Grand Theft Auto" with really good graphics. Instead, what's here needs an air bag.

With all of the hype and anticipation surrounding Driv3r, it's a shame the game had to fail so miserably like it did.

The action when you are walking is sub par at best in the best of scenarios and even with the heavy firepower you can acquire such as, m16's, Uzi's and even grenade launchers, it doesn't make it all that much better.

An intensely frustrating trial of patience that's rewarded with only the most fleeting glimmers of fun.

A potentially great game released in what looks, sounds, and plays like the game never left beta stages.

The shoddy on foot action and the terrible AI, the bugs, including bad pop up, bad collision detection and glitches in animation both in cut scenes and in game, the terrible mission design and trite story add up to a really average game.

Playing DRIV3R is as much of a chore as watching some crappy old cop movie at 3:00 A.M. All we want to do is close our eyes and make it all go away. [Sept 2004, p.80]

Simply put, the cities just seem dead. There are few things to interact with that make each city seem alive, and there are even fewer points of interest to keep your attention while you're driving around.

The cities are huge and beautiful, with country-appropriate cars, and while the gameplay is muddy, it's easy to see how it could have been better. But as it is, DRIV3R is all flash and little substance.

A game of two halves, neither of which is finished … It is so cursed by glitches and bugs, and so devoid of anything approaching AI, that it's really impossible to believe the code sitting in your local store is anywhere near complete. [Aug 2004, p.100]

Despite the enjoyment that the moments of driving can offer, the astonishingly poor "walkabout" sections detract so much from the game, and crop up in such a number, that even those who adored the first Driver wouldn't be able to put up with it.

On the whole, the extremely variable difficulty level, the bugs, the graphical pop-up that makes the driving so infuriating and the overall poor standard of the on-foot missions mean that this is, unfortunately, Driv3l.

If Driv3r were a car, it would be recalled for crippling performance issues.

Most of my complaints have to do with the shoddy graphics and technical glitches. But the gameplay is also suspect and will not escape my wrath. I can't think of one positive aspect of this game to recommend even renting it.

Performance gets choppy in certain parts of the city (Istanbul especially). Cars tend to pop into view and there are never more than maybe four or five other cars onscreen at any given time.

It's astonishing that a series with such unlimited potential has turned into such a farce, but I guess that's what happens when you drive blindly without taking to the time to ask for directions. As is usually the case, that leads to a dead-end street.

Utterly deflated. [Aug 2004, p.58]

This game did not need to be a bad one: the premise remains ripe with extraordinary possibilities. This, however, simply squanders them, showing a determination to prioritise style over substance which cripples the game and damages gaming as a whole. [Aug 2004, p.94]

The simple, unpalatable, grisly truth for everyone connected to this important summer blockbusting title is that it's so far away from being the title it deserved to be, it could well be reflected upon as one of the biggest disappointments in the history of videogames.