Crazy Taxi 3 is more of the same, but that's not necessarily a bad thing, especially if you love arcade games.
Crazy Taxi 3 is a compilation of maps from each of the first two Crazy Taxi games, West Coast and Small Apple, and adds one new map, Glitter Oasis, which is based in Las Vegas. It also includes the Crazy X mode, a series of challenges in the form of mini-games, such as long jumping, hitting a baseball as far as possible, or a dash through one of the primary maps.
Gameplay has changed minimally throughout the series, and unfortunately, unlike the transition from the first Crazy Taxi to the second, there doesn't appear to be any new significant gameplay changes. For example, Crazy Taxi 2 introduced multiple passengers in one fare, and also the Crazy Hop, in which your cab can jump on top of buildings and other objects, making for more shortcuts. This time around, Crazy Taxi 3 doesn't introduce any new moves or options that drastically change the gameplay. Graphically, it does add a motion blur effect, and also, flaming trails that appear behind your car when you successfully execute a Crazy Dash, which are useful, since in previous games, you had no idea whether or not you pulled off the move if not for the Dreamcast jump pack.
For Crazy Taxi veterans, the old maps provide a combination of old and new. Crazy Taxi 3 allows you to play the West Coast map with the new gameplay elements introduced in CT2 (multiple fares, Crazy Hop). This map is largely unchanged from the first game in terms of destinations and their locations. This is not true for the Small Apple map, taken from Crazy Taxi 2.
One difference you'll immediately notice is that Small Apple now takes place during the night, which is a nice touch. However, after playing it thoroughly, you'll notice that the map isn't exactly as it was in Crazy Taxi 2. A few destinations have been added and a few removed, for example, the stock exchange and the basketball court have been removed, and the jazz club and TV station have been added, but for the most part, the shortcuts that you remembered from CT2 are still there.
Unfortunately, Glitter Oasis, the new map, isn't all that interesting. As mentioned, it's based on Las Vegas, but the downtown strip area is only a small part of the map. The majority of the map is in the outskirts of town, which are located in canyons, and by a lake, including a dam. For some reason, the game also slows down considerably on this map.
As veteran Crazy Taxi players know, mastering the advanced moves are essential to getting high scores. The Crazy X mode will help you practice these moves, which include the Crazy Dash, Crazy Drift, and the Crazy Jump. Through the various challenges, you'll hone your skills, and if you've done an exceptionally great run, you can save the replay. Progressing through the main game and Crazy X will allow access to a few unlockables, but there's nothing really exciting. You can unlock a variation of the main game (Another Day mode), different cabbies for use on all the maps, and different vehicles (baby stroller, cart), which do make gameplay different, albeit, not too much.
Crazy Taxi 3 isn't for everyone. If you're not into arcade games with only a few maps and in which you play to get better scores, not to unlock new levels, then you probably wouldn't enjoy Crazy Taxi 3. However, for anyone else, Crazy Taxi 3 is a good way to kill time, either for a few minutes at a time, or for hours on end, trying to achieve higher scores or to shave seconds off your Crazy X time.