One of those games that seems addicting, but then the game gets boring too soon
DRIV3R's game play is a great achievement for the GBA, and I think everybody should or would realize it. There are two huge cities with ally ways, busy streets, and the unfortunate pedestrians that seem to get in your way. You can swim, which sounds interesting, but it really isn't. At time to time, you can ride a motorcycle or a cruise boat, but you should enjoy it while it lasts, because these methods of transportation do not last long. Of course, you have cars. In fact, there should be no reason why you should not have a car. You can get into any car you see on the street and take it for a spin. That game play has aged quite a bit, but nevertheless is still fun, especially on the GBA.
Plot development is weak and boring. The story is laid out in beautiful screen shots, but it isn't intriguing enough to hold your interest. The controls work very well for the GBA, and anyone would be satisfied with them. When you start this game, the menus are bare in presentation, but it is made up for the huge locations you can explore. You can expect your usual assortment of weapons, such as pistols, magnums, sub-machine and machine guns, and shotguns. In fact, there are seven weapons in all.
The graphics in this game are well designed and would be a real treat if not for some of the glaring bugs. You may often find yourself stuck in the wall, and crashing your cars into others is not exciting. As soon as you collide your car into another, you come to a complete stop a fraction of a second later, and you to reverse, turn slightly, and continue driving. IF this happens in a mission, you would have failed before you even had a chance to regain speed.
There are many indicators that will point out important things on the game screen. These are displayed either on your radar, or on the game screen itself. In missions that require you to get from point A to point B in a certain amount of time, an access zone will stand out, letting you know that you must stop there to completely arrive at point B. In missions that need you to get out of your car and into another, there will be an access vehicle symbol pointing out the specific car you need to get into. Sometimes, you may need to rendezvous with characters, which are pointed out. You get the picture.
One problem about this game is the variety of sounds you here. To be more specific, there are only two bullet sounds for seven guns. This isn't much of a problem, but it would have been nicer for a bit more variety. The music in the background gets extremely irritating after a while, but it is also very quiet, so it does not drive you insane.
Overall, this game will satisfy any gamer who can enjoy a hard, action packed racing and shooting game. But if these problems are ones you simply can't overlook, then skip this title.