As with any new console, the
first two months has a slim selection to choose from. Usually there are one or two stellar
titles that get quickly purchased along with the new system. The rest of the titles float
in limbo waiting for someone to give them a shot. Following the current trend in the video
game industry of porting a game to every system, the titles that are in purgatory are
familiar to anyone who has played a gaming system within the past year. Crazy Taxi is one
such game. Becoming a journeyman in the gaming industry, it finds itself on its third
platform. It adds another option to those looking for another game to add to their
library, but for those who have played either installment there is nothing new to warrant
a purchase.Crazy Taxi is a free roaming arcade game that has two environments: arcade and
original. There are four drivers to choose from each with certain characteristics. Both
cities can be played with either a set time limit or a certain amount of time per customer
that you pick up. Either way, you must be quick in your trek around the metropolis area.
As with any taxi driver, you collect a fare for taking a passenger to his or her
destination, but in Crazy Taxi you can earn bonuses for performing insane maneuvers
through traffic, off buildings, and over anything too slow to get out of your way in order
to get your fare to their destination as soon as possible. Boasting a large amount of
familiar locations such as Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and Tower Records actually
makes some of the mundane tasks more enjoyable. Not to limit itself to just the main focus
of the game, SEGA (yes this is a Sega game on a Nintendo system) has added a series of
mini-games to test your driving skills. Upon completion of the driving tests, you are
rewarded with a bicycle pulling a cart to take the passengers in. Unfortunately this is
all there is to unlock.
One defining characteristics of the late Dreamcast system was the bright colors
that each game was full of. With Crazy Taxi originally being a Dreamcast game, it has that
same characteristic. Whether its the car or the passenger or even the buildings,
each displays a color palette that would make Disney proud. Whimsical is be the best way
to describe the design of the game. Everything carries with it a lighthearted feel that
does not allow the game to be taken too seriously. Everything runs smoothly with little
slowdown, adding to the hectic pace already found in the game. Though colorful and solid,
the graphics seem dated now when compared to other games that are out on the GameCube.
Offspring
and Bad Religion are the two bands featured in the game. After hearing their limited song
selection I was quickly wishing for something more to listen to while driving. The songs
do set the pace, but they quickly become repetitive and a distraction. Weve all seen
movies and TV shows that have a witty taxi driver sharing one-lines with their passengers,
right? SEGA has, and they decided to include it in Crazy Taxi. Passengers praise you, tell
you off and squeal in delight with regularity.
If there is one thing this version of Crazy Taxi has over the original is the
controls. No longer does the bulky Dreamcast controller plague Crazy Taxi. This shows that
a game as fast paced as this needs a controller that is designed for the more long-term
comfort that the smaller controllers give. Responsive controls, customizable button
commands, and the comfort of the GameCube controller makes Crazi Taxi easy to pick up and
play with little effort needed.
Crazy Taxi has made its way onto three systems so far and is starting to show
its age. There already has been a sequel that was released for the Dreamcast earlier in
the year. If that sequel was the one that was ported or some new features had been added
then there might be some reason to try this, but as it stands, fans of the original will
find nothing new here. Even if you have never played this game before, it still has
drawbacks; it suffers from a lack of real depth and no multi-player games, which may make
it enjoyable to play for only a short period of time.