High Roller – Transport a group of people

The original Crazy Taxi was one of the most physically painful yet emotionally satisfying games I've ever played.

The game mechanics put a lot of strain on the hands, but as painful as it was, it was impossible to put the game down. The second Taxi came out on the Dreamcast, and although some people deny it, it's still a solid game. Now comes Crazy Taxi 3, exclusive to the Xbox. And while the mere thought of Crazy Taxi using Xbox's incredible hardware is enough to make a person drool, the results were pretty underwhelming.

I was never a big fan of Crazy Taxi 2, but at least it had some innovation. It offered multiple client drops and Crazy Hop, which changed the dynamics of the game considerably. And while the new towns weren't that great, the minigames were fantastic, and that at least made the game different from the first Taxi. But the only real innovation in Crazy Taxi 3 is the redesign of the West Coast city from the first TC, so you can use Crazy Hop and multi-customer pickup. I'm sure they've done a great job, but what's here feels more like a port of a game from a year ago than a new version. In any case, it should be called Crazy Taxi 2.5. And that's a shame.

Game

If you've never played Crazy Taxi, there's something wrong with you. But the matter is the following. You are a taxi driver who wants to make a big deal taking strange clients to their destination. It's up to you to press the buttons, trying to accelerate, drift and jump to meet the luxury. There are over 40 different locations in the game (many of which are actual stores like KFC and Tower Records), so you'll need to memorize a bunch of shortcuts to be successful. Add to this a few mini-games and we have a game that caused a sensation when it was released.

The series has retained its roots. It is essentially the same game as CT 2, but with some cosmetic changes, a new city, and some new mini-games. It's not too different from what most games in the franchise do. A few new tweaks and then launch the game to huge sales. The problem only arises when the old fun gameplay stops being so fun. That is exactly what happened here. The gameplay has not been preserved very well, or rather, it has not behaved very well to the latest version.

To get around in Crazy Taxi 3, you will need some crazy skills. Those who master TC 2 will have an advantage over the others, because there are no new skills to learn. The Crazy Dash (driving and accelerating at the same time) is still the most important skill of all. You have to be elegant all the time. There is also the Crazy Hop, which allows you to use the hydraulic system to raise the cabin in the air. Not forgetting Crazy Drift, Crazy Stop and Crazy Drift Stop. It doesn't lose any of the features of the previous Taxis, but it doesn't gain any either.

The key to defeating Taxi has two parts. First of all, you have to master the different abilities of the crazy people. This will help you get through all twenty-five mini-games, as well as ensure success in normal play. Another thing you need to do to be successful is to explore the city. This has always been a feature of all Crazy Taxi games, but perhaps even more so in the latest one. The new city, Glitter Oasis, stretches out in slightly different directions. Within the city itself (which is somewhat modeled on Las Vegas), getting your bearings isn't too difficult. In fact, the city is too easy to get around. But outside the city limits, you sure need shortcuts. When driving on a desert road or through the Grand Canyon, it's easy to get lost or take a wrong turn. There are a lot of little shortcuts in these parts that will take an expert to learn.

If you're not that cool of a taxi driver, you'll still find some fun at Glitter Oasis. But you're unlikely to achieve a great result, simply because those shortcuts are vital to long-term success. Sure, you'll be able to get customers to their destination, but you won't be able to do it fast enough to add to your allotted time. The West Coast of the first Taxi and the Little Apple of the second have been redesigned. The Little Apple redesign is nothing special, but the West Coast is fantastic. Still the best city in the series, and now it's even better. You can now drop off multiple customers, and a Crazy Hop is available (which was not possible during the first Taxi).

Take a walk through the hills of San Francisco, but this time go up to the rooftops. There are not just a few roofs. You'll find lots of little surprises all over the West Coast. Not only will you have access to new places (such as the great ocean), but the city itself will be slightly enlarged. The old banners have remained the same, such as the church and the Fila store. The clients have changed to reflect the multiple groups that are now available in the series.

Multiple clients were a great addition to CT 2, and it's nice to see that Hitmaker has kept them in 3rd edition. Basically, you can pick up small groups of like-minded people, like bodybuilders or pets, and drop them off at different locations. As cool as this is, Crazy Taxi has yet to take it to the next level. Why not make it so you can pick up multiple individual clients as you go? For example, you are already taking the lady to the casino when you see another customer and she decides to pick him up too. You can't do it yet, but it's worth considering why not. Of course, with the power of the Xbox and two solid Taxi games under his belt, Hitmaker could make that leap for CT XNUMX.

As fun as it is to drive around cities, minigames are the way to go. This time, players are offered a Crazy X game with twenty-five mini-games. In them, you will learn the skills you need to compete at various levels. If your skills aren't up to the task, these mini-games will be a real torment. But as frustrating as they are, it's impossible to stop trying. And that is what has made the series so popular. This inability to let go of command.

Although CT 3 has more minigames than the previous two versions, they seem a bit cheap. Some of the missions are taken almost directly from earlier parts of Taxi. And instead of creating new and interesting sets, Sega has reused sets from previous minigames. Some might call it nostalgic, but it really just looks cheap.

Crazy Taxi is still fun, especially the updated West Coast, but the gameplay hasn't changed much. Not bad, since the game has always had robust controls, but not offering anything new in the new version? Disappointing.

Graphics

Not only the gameplay has been left intact, but also the graphics. Save for Glitter Oasis's stunning neon lighting, similar to Wreckless, Crazy Taxi 3, from the head lights to the tail lights, looks like a Dreamcast game. For the most part, the game runs smoothly, but it does slow down in places, especially in the sparkling Glitter Oasis. Xbox's graphical additions are so minimal and subtle that they're hard to spot. The most striking are the bright neon lights of Las Vegas. But these beautiful lights only illuminate a small part of the city, and they look incredibly out of place against a backdrop of rather unsightly cars, sidewalks, buildings, and people. Such is the contrast that it makes the rest of the game seem worse than it really is.

Where are my nice reflective cars? Or the varied pedestrian animation? Why is there so much unevenness? You can't make a small part of a scene Xbox-worthy and leave the rest as Dreamcast footage. If you're going to give it your all, do it.

The lighting, including the headlights, is the only major visual improvement over the Taxis of the past. But even without the lighting, Glitter Oasis is a complete disappointment. Las Vegas is a great place to be inspired, but the city here is anything but inspiring. In fact, the city is quite small and many of its fairs will take you to the rather barren areas of the Grand Canyon and the desert. Why isn't there a roller coaster building here? Why aren't there more interesting people walking around? How about some humorous signage? A few flashy cars for traffic? A reference to Liberace or Elvis? How can you make Vegas uninteresting?

It's clear that no effort has been put into this version, as the new city, Glitter Oasis, misses a lot of the exciting prospects of Las Vegas. The city could have been a real feast for the eyes, but it is not. It's flat (except for those big guns) and lacks vibrancy. And if you're going to recreate Las Vegas, you can't miss the vibrancy.

Sound

Crazy Taxi 3 is the only thing keeping Bad Religion and The Offspring in business. There's a rare thing in video games where a shitty group like The Offspring can be really likable on a console. On the radio or at a concert? Total shit. But for some reason, the hours spent listening while playing CT 3 don't seem so bad. It would be nice if the other two bands, Bad Religion and Citizen Bird, had more visibility, as they are talented.

Although many things about Taxi have not changed, although they should have, it is good to know that The Offspring will always be associated with that name. It would be wrong to crash into buildings if their awful music didn't soothe my sore fingers. The fact that there are only nine songs (three from each band) is a bit disappointing. Especially if you take into account that most of them are taken from previous Taxis. But maybe three Offspring songs is all you need each year to survive.

As for the sound effects, there's nothing here that you haven't heard in previous versions. Screams, crashes, burning tires and obnoxious taxi drivers: it's all business as usual. The city still doesn't vibrate with sound, and the residents don't offer enough diverse conversations to be worth listening to.

Verdict

It's weird how a game can have new mini-games and even a great new level and still feel old. Fans of the Taxi series are sure to pick up this game, whatever it says. For those who have never faced Taxi, the game will seem like a new experience. But for us veterans, this one-trick game is already a bit boring. The mini-games are still the best of the series, but here they get pretty easy once you get the hang of taxi driving. Also, some of them are lifted directly from previous versions of the game, which seems downright cheap. You can still find fun here, but this game certainly won't drag you down for months (or even weeks) like the original. It might be great for $30, but the $50 price tag might be overkill. Evidently, the creative instinct that brought the Taxi series to life has been considerably weakened. Either Hitmaker needs to step back and rework the franchise into something new and exciting, or it just needs to drop the ghost and let what was once a great game escape to greener pastures.