24 out of 24 people found this review helpful.
Crazy Taxi: Director's Cut
Date of Review: Sep 15, 2002
The Bottom Line: for what your paying for, no matter what it is, your getting your money's worth with all 3 CT games.
Crazy Taxi manages to show it's face for the 3rd time on a video game console, and while some gamers may be crying "no, no more!" I beg to differ and ask that SEGA to "just bring it!"
As with the 2 previous Crazy Taxi's it's up to 4 crazy and unique taxi drivers to scatter the streets (this time being Glitter Oasis / Las Vegas), picking up customer(s), which range by distance and number, and dropping them off to their destination ASAP. So in order to get that much needed money, you'll be forced to do some psychotic stunts such as driving on the wrong side of the road, jumping over cars, accelerating speeds well beyond the cars around you, and much, much more. Which is where the learning curve comes in.
Driving your passengers to and from is basic and simple, but when time is against you, you'll bet your *** you'll be willing to do practically anything to gain more (by being your tip(s)). This is done by pressing a combination of buttons, such as switching gears while at the same pressing on the accelerationand/or brakes. Sounds confusing, and it is at first, but thanks to the Crazy Taxi mini games, you'll be pulling off crazy dash's, drift stops, and much more without thinking about it. Just be sure to have patience and an open mind because the mini games tossed at you will cause you to break your controller, but the hidden extras are all worth the trouble.
Visually, the game doesn't do anything you haven't seen before. The vehicles look sharper compared to previous CT games, but besides that, the same blocky characters, randomly placed bystanders, busy streets, and detailed locations return once again in the game. Personally, I don't find this as a negative thing, until the game slows down, that's when it becomes a bother. Especially when on such a power hungry console as Microsoft's XBOX. Speaking of the XBOX's capabilities, it's almost a shame that CT3 doesn't enable the option of having the game play your own cd's. Granted I still enjoy The Offspring as well as the other bands in the game, it can become repetitive when playing for 30 min straight. Maybe next time.
The replay value on any Crazy Taxi game depends on the gamer's attention span and ability to have the patience and time to improve their skills. Sure, the amatuer can do the same as the professional and pick up a customer while dropping them off moments later, but it's the amount of money that will show your crazy skills and mad talent. Plus the mini games alone should hopefully have you coming back for more as you improve your skills as well as set new records and most importantly unlock such goodies as maps, alternative routes, and hidden characters.
So for those wanting to bank in one owning all 3 crazy taxi games (San Fran, Big Apple, Glitter Oasis) should without a doubt pick this game up. However don't expect to log in hundreds of hours on this game, that is unless you have the determination to achieve a crazy license.
