Sega's classic Dreamcast driving game returns to modern formats and somehow makes competitive multiplayer work, with deeper driving mechanics than expected. During the recent closed network test of Crazy Taxi: World Tour, the chaos of the original's downtown San Francisco is multiplied by five rampaging taxis, with increased traffic and a finish line to foster competitive spirit. The new sequel to the classic 1999 arcade driving game revives the formula of ferrying passengers to destinations as quickly as possible, but now you're competing against other taxi drivers.
New modes and controls
When released next year, the full game will feature a mission-based single-player campaign across five open world cities, plus a time-based arcade model. The network test included two online modes. The first was a five-player race format where you speed through a linear route, stopping in designated zones to pick up passengers before heading to their destination. This creates a racing game with constant stopping and starting every 20 seconds, but the relentless speed, destructible environments, and nuanced control scheme make it fun.
There are different ways to pick up passengers. You can hold the left trigger to break, or press circle and then left trigger for a sudden stop. To accelerate, hold right trigger or press circle then right trigger for a 'crazy dash'. Timing rhythmic presses of circle and right trigger keeps you crazy dashing, with circle serving as the crazy button. This results in a compelling driving game where you're constantly pressing button combinations, almost like prompts flying at you in Guitar Hero. Overshooting the mark allows a quick reverse dash by hitting circle and left trigger.
Boost management and strategy
Triangle triggers nitrous, giving a burst of speed with blue flames from your tyres. The best time to use it is in heavy traffic, sending cars flying out of the way. More aggressive players can save boost to hit rival drivers, hurling them out of the way and shutting down their engine for a second. Dangerous driving builds nitrous, including drifts, shunts, and airtime. In the San Francisco map, dashing off hill crests builds juice to wipe out other drivers, especially on corners. In Germany, which combines a Cologne Cathedral lookalike with Sega's take on Neuschwanstein Castle, chaining drifts and spending nitrous on a packed autobahn was effective.
The game is at its best when five players are neck-and-neck, blazing through traffic as pedestrians scatter, parasols splinter, and congested traffic barrels down the road. An on-the-money rock/punk soundtrack featuring songs by The Offspring, including 'All I Want', adds to the experience.
Cops and Robbers mode
The second online mode was Cops and Robbers. In a small hub, one team of taxi drivers picks up passengers while another team of police cars smashes into them. Doing enough damage shuts taxis into a fenced-in car park until other taxi drivers break them out. It's fun, but only as the cops, as the 15-second gameplay loop for law enforcement is driving then crashing, while taxis are driving then being crashed into, with the 'reward' being a time-out. It's like Mario Kart's balloon-popping Battle mode: something to play occasionally before returning to the main event.
Vehicle customisation
Crazy Taxi: World Tour lets you modify your ride with perks, such as generating boost faster, turning corners sharper, and suffering less penalties off-road. However, the effects are hard to notice, and your choice of vehicle offers a bigger difference. There are three car types: the racer is built for speed but slows massively upon impact, the heavy carves through traffic but falls short on long straights, and the all-rounder is a solid mix. Your vehicle tends to dictate the optimal route through the race.
Multiplayer Crazy Taxi shouldn't work, but after a weekend in the network test, it's a pleasant surprise. It's an absolute riot of colour and collisions, and Sega has managed to make a quintessentially single-player game work as a competitive online title. Formats: PlayStation 5 (previewed), Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC. Publisher: Sega. Developer: Sega. Release Date: 2027.
