DRIV3R [PC]

It's been a long time since Reflections delivered the bliss-filled car-driving action that was Driver 1. Almost four years, to be almost exact. And while some folks got excited about Stuntman, others didn't find themselves revving up for it like they did for the all-encompassing assault that Driver was. Reflections has returned to its roots, however, and is nearing the final three months of development for the third installment of the series.

Due this March on PlayStation 2, PC and Xbox, Reflections Driver 3 (or "DRIV3R") will be delivered to the current generation of systems and a huge, eager worldwide audience. We took the first playable demo build out for an exclusive drive to get a feel for what the studio in Newcastle England has up its sleeve.

While many game magazines and websites (including this one) have tried to explore the similarities of Driver 3 with the likes of Grand Theft Auto, The Getaway and True Crime: Streets of LA, Development Director Martin Edmonson has always made a clear distinction between his game and the others. Driver 3 (apologies to Atari, we just can't muster the same enthusiasm for "DRIV3R") is a game based on driving action, with insane American cars sliding through the wet city streets chasing other cars in long terrific sequences. It's designed to re-create, in videogame form, the cinematic intensity of Bullitt, The French Connection and Ronin. So, though you surely, desperately want to compare Driver 3 to those other games--and in some cases, there are good comparisons--think of this as a return to Driver's roots--riding, chasing, escaping, and general wild driving action.

Like Driver 2, which introduced out-of-car experiences, Driver 3 looks to be about 70% car gameplay versus about 30% running and gunning on foot. The pre-beta build we played in San Francisco, California, yesterday gave us a good idea of the details behind all that gloss. Players could enter into Free Drive, Missions or Driving Games; and yes, for all you potential Spielbergs out there, the Director mode is back. All three cities were available in this build, so we got a good look at Miami, Nice, France, and Istanbul. Each location offers huge asymmetrical grids, long, narrow streets, wide-open parks, slim alleyways, and tons of little realistic layouts in which to ditch a car or get trapped by the cops.

The striking thing about playing Driver 3 is that there's nothing terribly unfamiliar about it. It's like sitting down with any other Driver game. The game modes are relatively the same, and the interface is basically the same. What's new is the physics engine, the missions, and the way in which you go about playing the game. If you played Stuntman and were impressed with the physics engine, you're going to love this game. The huge variety of cars still hasn't been revealed, but there were at least seven to drive just in the demo, ranging from GTs to trucks to puny little two-seaters, and even motorcycles. The cars all felt different--the smaller ones cars were quick with less horsepower, while the trucks packed more torque, and the muscle cars including a Corvette lookalike drove like a monster - fast, slide-heavy and great on straightaways (which is the classic American way, right?).

Since the game is pre-beta, a lot hasn't been finished, from the walking animations of Tanner, the lead character, to the enemy animations to final textures, clipping problems and the like. A lot has yet to be done, so much of the game we can't really judge too definitively because it's sure to change. For instance, Tanner's walking animations are not complete, so when he strafes, it doesn't look real or good. But we know it'll be fixed.