Driver: San Francisco Is Actually Quite Good
When was the last time you can remember playing a Driver game and actually liking it? Well if you are like me it was probably eleven years ago when Driver 2 was released for the original Playstation. So in that regard, Driver: San Francisco is the exact opposite of what you might think it would be. That is to say, that it’s actually quite good.
Driver: San Francisco tells the story of John Tanner, a SFPD officer who just put his arch-nemesis, Jericho, behind bars. Within minutes of the game opening up, though, Jericho escapes and Tanner is injured during the pursuit. As a result, John finds himself with a brand new ability to possess any driver in San Francisco and take control of their car. What Tanner does not realize, is that he actually in a coma and this ability only exists in his mind. And that is where a bulk of the game takes place, in this made up version of San Francisco. Throughout the course of the game John is still on the hunt for Jericho not realizing that he really in a hospital bed. However, as you progress throughout the story, parts of the real world bleed into Tanner’s fake world leading him to inevitable realization that nothing he is doing is real.
The game is set up like most open world games. There are story missions and side activities. Before you can progress to the next story mission you are forced to take on these side story missions where you help out the citizen of San Francisco. What is interesting here though is that, these side missions feature fully fleshed out storylines and characters that you will revisit throughout the course of the game. For example: one of the side missions has you helping out a brother racing team by taking control of their car and placing them in first place. Unfortunately, this single act of kindness spurs them deeper into the racing scene until you are forced to continue help them win just to get out alive.
In addition to the main story missions and the side story missions there are literally hundreds of side activities such as speed tests, races, stunt missions, etc. where you can earn currency. You are also constantly earning currency from the story missions and just generally driving well. The currency can then be used to buy garages which in turn let you buy upgrades–such as a larger boost meter–and vehicles. The vehicles you can purchase are strictly for use during the side activities or free roam. Since you are constantly either driving Tanner’s main car or shifting into random cars, I never felt the need to buy that many cars.
The handling of the cars felt a bit weird at first. It took some time for me to get used to it but once I did I greatly enjoyed it. Everything is weighted in such a way that every corner you take results in slide straight out of a 70s era cop show. I really felt like I was acting out some insane, Hollywood car chase scene every time I took a corner. It’s not always for the best though. Sometimes you will unintentionally slide into a wall or another vehicle but that is when the shift ability becomes really handy. Instead of trying to recover from your crash, just simply shift into another car that is closer to your target. Thanks to the shift ability I never found the car physics to be anything other than a blast.
There really is a ton of content here but if you bored with what the campaign has to offer you can take your shifting ability online to compete in an array of standard racing modes against other players. I found the use of the shift ability in multiplayer to be well integrated just liked the campaign. This unique ability really does a lot to mix up the standard racing game tropes online and off.
Driver: San Francisco is also a great looking game. The characters are really well modeled and animated. The car models, interior and exterior, are also quite good. I even found myself driving in the cockpit view for most of the game. Which is something I normally only do in simulation racers such as Forza. The game also features an array of licensed vehicles from a handful of different manufactures. Each car is really well modeled with complete, fully modeled cockpits.
It really is quite astounding the amount of effort that the development team at Reflections Interactive put into this game; especially considering this the same studio that has been turning out terrible Driver games for over half a decade now.
I had a blast with this game. I found the story to be intriguing and complete with a satisfying ending. The shift mechanic added a great deal of fun to the standard mission types; there is simply nothing more fun than shifting into a car and steering right into a head on collision with your target. Simply put, Driver: San Francisco should not be missed and I look forward to seeing if Reflections can make lightning strike twice on the inevitable sequel.
