Driver (video game)

Driver is an action-oriented racing game and the first part of the Driver series. The game was developed by Reflections Interactive and published by GT Interactive. It was established in October 1999 under the title Driver - You are the Wheelman first brought only for the PlayStation to the market. These were followed by versions for Windows, Mac OS, and Game Boy. In December 2009, Gameloft put the game for iOS has to offer.

The game is a racing game. It is about the undercover cop John Tanner, a former race car driver who is introduced in a criminal organization and it tries to break from the inside out. The story takes place in four American cities, New York City, Miami, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

In 2000, the successor Driver appeared 2

Gameplay

Generally

For the first time in video game history car chases were offered in a three-dimensional freely navigable city as a game world. The driving behavior of the 1970s cars is more oriented on realism and there is a damage model for the cars.

A first in the history of video games was the film director contained in Driver. Thus, it was possible to record a completed mission, free ride or a driving game and with an internal editor camera position, angle, define and pans and thus retain his personal chase film.

The setting of the game in the 1970s with the corresponding vehicles on the roads and composed mainly of funk and soul background music are other characteristics, while references to the mental models of the game. These include especially films like Bullitt, The Streets of San Francisco, Gone In 60 Seconds or French Connection, all of which offered spectacular car chases. The most common has the game with the Driver feature film from 1978.

Modes

The game is divided into a so-called "Undercover mode ", " Free Ride " and several " driving games". The Undercover mode is the heart and tells a story about the undercover cop Tanner. In a motel room, the player plays by answering to different orders. With the mission in raised to start the car given task must be satisfied, where it is in principle not possible in the game, to leave the vehicle. Overall, told via prerendered cutscenes history includes 35 missions in four different cities, with the basic structure of the two-part tasks always similar: In the first part of the players a certain goal in the game environment must reach under time pressure, in the second part it is, unnoticed by the police and complete with good working car the mission.

In the mode " Free Ride ", the player can move freely through one of the four selectable cities without a goal tasks. It is, as in undercover mode, not possible to leave the vehicle or to change. Again, there are on the streets next to the normal civilian traffic patrol police patrol car, the record for a traffic offense, the prosecution of the player and this ram until the player's car has a total loss. " Free Ride " is to get to know a city or to provide rapid chases with the police.

In the "Speed ​​Games " mode, there are several variations to choose from, such as "escape", "persecution" or "Survival". So you will be exposed to "escape" in a selected city with a pursuing police cars and objective of the game is to shake off the pursuers within a very short time. In "persecution", the player must pursue another vehicle until either expired for a certain time, or to be tracked vehicle is driven to scrap.

Cities

The game includes four American cities: Miami, San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York. All are modeled on their real life and have original sights, but are abstractions due to technical feasibility of reality. This is the orthogonal street grid and the plane modeling of the cities most clearly.

At the beginning of the game, only two cities, Miami and San Francisco, selectable in Free Ride mode. The other two cities are unlocked once the player in the career achieved between these two cities.

As a hidden fifth city there are the British place Newcastle -upon- Tyne, the place where the developer is established. This level is considerably smaller than the other four. Available to the player is a Jaguar here. Newcastle is enabled by the completion of the Campaign ( PC version ) or by entering a cheat code ( PlayStation version).

Action

Lieutenant McKenzie of the New York Police Department has received information of criminal activities around the alleged killers Rufus from Miami and sees the cop Tanner, a former racing driver, due to his driving skills to the appropriate man for undercover investigations. Thereupon Tanner goes to Miami and recruited by local petty criminals as a getaway driver. His talent gets around fast and he also comes relatively soon approached the infamous Rufus. The criminal cartel is larger than expected. The investigation eventually lead Tanner to the west coast to San Francisco. Deeper and deeper he gets into a network of crime and corruption. At the top of the crime boss Castaldi is suspected. Employed with the fear in the neck to be able to fly up undercover to Tanner moved along a narrow ridge on the edge of the law. The tracks eventually lead him to Los Angeles. There he made ​​the acquaintance of Castaldi daughter. Tanner manages to consolidate in the circles of Castaldi and can approach him further. Ultimately he returns to New York, where the great coup to take place: an attack on the President. With great difficulty and highest use his driving skills, he finally succeeds the President Tanner into safety and to deliver Castaldi the police.