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The Driver series has gone through quite a transformation. The original titles in the series were beloved; then came the big-budget near-disaster of DRIV3R, followed by Atari selling off (er, abandoning) the franchise to Ubisoft; nowadays, it’s making the climb back up the mountain to reclaim its rightful place among the open-world action game elite. The latest title in the series’ canon is Driver ‘76, a PSP-only prequel to the console release Parallel Lines. It’s clear that Ubisoft is intent on re-establishing the brand in a big way.
A Ray Liotta voice twin does a darned good Goodfellas-style narration over comic book cutscenes to introduce and advance the story at the various chapter intervals. Taking place deep within the grimiest timeframe of the Me Decade in a much dirtier and rawer version of New York City than we enjoy today, ’76 puts you – conveniently named Ray - in the shoes of a nobody who falls for a gang boss’s daughter. For some reason, you and your buddy Slink decide that it’s totally worth it to risk life and limb committing crimes across the Big Apple in the hopes that you can impress the old man and get the girl.
Your quest through a series of assaults, misdemeanors, and other assorted violent tomfoolery involves lots of tearing through a surprisingly large and fully-realized Big Apple. The missions that you’ll embark upon will take you all over the five boroughs (and even across the Hudson to Jersey). There were more than a few times I found myself impressed and surprised by some highly recognizable landmarks, such as the Coney Island Cyclone, the Brooklyn Bridge, and, of course, the Twin Towers. It’s quite a surreal feeling to be driving through the town with the World Trade Center buildings looming off in the foreground or, even moreso, when you pull right up to their instantly familiar base.
Immersed in the Seventies by period-specific music, cars, and people sporting the most atrocious fashions ever invented, you’ll drive, steal, shoot, and evade your way through six chapters of various missions to ultimately score the woman of your dreams. Some of these are blisteringly enjoyable, including my two favorites – the first has you bringing some bank robbers back safely to your home base while being chased across Manhattan and Brooklyn by rampaging police officers, while the second involves delivering a still-beating heart to some black market anatomy thieves before its storage ice melts. For the most part, the main story missions aren’t terribly difficult; conversely, most of the side missions are painfully tough to pull off. It’s a curious balance, but it’s preferable to me – otherwise, I may never have made it through the story.
All is not perfect in the naked city, though. There are plenty of quirks that will cause you to do double takes, such as the cars and vans that squirt blood when they’re shot by your enemies, the ridiculous flop that your main character does if he so much as brushes against a vehicle, or the beyond-stereotypical sidekick who directs your character through the story. The graphics won’t make you stand up and take notice, especially when compared to some other recent PSP action titles. Lastly, the continuous barrage of profanity seems entirely tacked-on and unnecessary, adding nothing of value to the story.
Ultimately, Driver ‘76 is a game staunchly aimed at those in the GTA camp. Considering how much that series borrowed from the earliest Driver games, it’s got more reasons than any other “clone” to borrow heavily from Rockstar’s juggernaut. On its own, it’s a good enough time for those of us who love this sort of thing. While it’s not in the league of the PSP’s best games of the genre, Driver ‘76 will keep you well entertained if you’re looking for an open-world, crime-filled portable diversion. If nothing else, it’ll make you really glad that the Seventies ended a long, long time ago.
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