Driver San Francisco review

There have been concept car games, but could this be the first high-concept car game? Ubisoft Reflections’ Driver San Francisco is given a ludicrous but ultimately rather brilliant twist – a narrative crutch for extravagant mechanics that’s no less weird than the metaphysical premise of Life on Mars or Quantum Leap. A nasty prang leaves petrolhead detective John Tanner in a coma, plunging him into an imagined version of San Francisco in which he must thwart the devious plans of his nemesis Jericho, recently broken out of jail. The rules of the road are a little different in this dream state – at any moment, Tanner is able to initiate ‘Shift’, an out-of-body experience that enables the player to soar high above the city and all its traffic, before swooping upon any vehicle to possess its driver. 

Tanner’s not immediately aware that he’s dreaming, and has to come to terms with his new-found powers while pursuing Jericho – whose devious plot is inspired by the TV reports of his waking-world criminality, which Tanner is unconsciously absorbing from his hospital bed. Obviously the body-swapping mechanics are the real motivation, but Tanner’s tall tale has the amicable feel of a Sunday afternoon TV serial, told with a light heart and easy wit. As he jumps between bodies, we dip into incidental stories. A pair of brothers struggling with their college fund find themselves swept up in the dangerous world of street racing; a secretary elopes with her embezzling boss/boyfriend; a man bitten by a ‘Colombian dream widow’ spider needs a quick shot of adrenaline at the hospital. These vignettes are dispatched with a cheery humour and a dramatic irony as Tanner hurriedly adapts to each new situation, blagging his way through the suspicions of his passengers, who are often baffled by the sudden change in mood of their companion. Even vehicles that aren’t plot-critical dish out snippets of conversation, in which Tanner apologises in advance for the imminent insurance claim. 

The premise for these diversions: in order to pursue Jericho, Tanner must first help the city, swooping upon mission markers seen from on high to help San Francisco’s hapless citizens. Once you’ve completed enough city missions, the next Jericho mission unlocks, with Tanner hunting down peripheral members of the gang, working his way towards the big cheese himself. Sometimes you’ll be cops on a fugitive’s tail, sometimes you’ll be the fugitives, sometimes the hapless civilians caught in the middle. The hallucinogenic conceit gives Driver carte blanche to play with perspective – one mission sees you pursue kidnappers by Shifting to the victim’s perspective, popping open the boot so you can see where you are, then Shifting back to the cops on the trail; another has you remotely controlling Tanner’s car from the perspective of a would-be assassin. Nightmarish episodes see civilian traffic turn against you, or feature a desperate pursuit while bolts of lightning send cars flipping in your direction. 

The Shift mechanic is deployed with such ingenuity and variety that the game rarely gets stuck with its formula, pushing the possibilities to ever more outlandish effect. Even familiar racing game modes are given a thrilling spin – you’re able to tip the odds in your favour by Shifting into oncoming traffic and screeching across the central reservation to smash your leading opponent into the sky. The dreaded escort mission also gets a much-needed shot in the arm, dispatching incoming enemies by turning civilian cars into battering rams. 

Whenever you leave the mission-critical vehicle, an autopilot keeps the seat warm for you. It’s the game’s Achilles’ heel: it’ll keep pace in the most basic of races, but will reliably fluff more complex missions. You also lose control of your vehicle in the moments following any major crash – the game is so eager to show you cinematic cutaways whenever you total an opposing car that it leaves you careening off into scenery. One mission, with your truck ploughing through countless cop cars, is made exasperating by the frequency with which you’re ripped from the wheel. Driver’s not above conspicuously loading the dice, either, and this occasionally cheapens the challenge: cops can be maddeningly tenacious as it is, but even if you manage to shake them, the game may decide you haven’t had enough and spawn some more right in front of you.