Arnold-KatayevIf you haven't played Crazy Taxi yet, you've been doing yourself a huge disservice by missing out on one of the best arcade experiences of all time. It was the sole reason I got myself a Dreamcast, and it remained one of my most played Dreamcast games ever. PS2 owners were then treated to an iteration after Sega closed up shop and gave, the now deceased, Acclaim the rights to publish the franchise on other consoles. Either way, it exposed millions of gamers to a game that deserved to be seen by many. But in case you still haven't played Crazy Taxi, and you're a PSP owner, then get ready for a treat. Sega will be publishing the most complete Crazy Taxi game later this year for Sony's handheld unit.
Not just a port, Crazy Taxi for the PSP will actually feature cities from Crazy Taxi 1 and Crazy Taxi 2, so you're already getting two games in one. You can choose from the standard Arcade Mode or Time Attack mode. In Arcade Mode you will have to keep the clock running by picking up and dropping as many passengers as possible, with the best times as possible. There are green, yellow, and red time-ranks. Green = good. Red = bad. Likewise, based on the rank you achieve, that's how much time will be added on to your meter. At the end of it all, you will be awarded a license ranging from S, A, B, C and D.
Where as Time Attack is different and requires you to pick up and drop off as many passengers as possible within an allotted time frame of 3, 5 and 10 minutes. When selecting your city, you can pick either the Arcade version, or the larger console version – so you'll have both types to play with.
In addition to having cities from both CT 1 and 2, the game will also boast the mini-game modes Crazy Box from CT1, and Crazy Pyramid from CT2. With the development cycle in the early stages, the game still has ways to go until its release. That in mind, while the game looks decent so far, expect it to improve as the game's development progresses. Additionally, we know that the game will have multiplayer modes and will allow for ad-hoc (LAN) gameplay, but there are still a number of features that Sega is withholding, apparently. What we do know is that in multiplayer competitions you can steal passengers by bumping into a competing cabbie. And Sega's even boasting a co-op mode, as well. Looking over the fact sheet, it's unfortunate that there's no word of proper online multiplayer gameplay at this time.
In the meantime, enjoy the screens and look forward to more as Sega passes them on. Hopefully we hear about some more features in the game as the release date nears. Until then, set your sights to the end of Summer for Crazy Taxi's release.