Crazy Taxi Games Arcade

Crazy Taxi 1: A Brief History

The first game of the Crazy Taxi car driving games, Crazy Taxi 1, was created by Hitmaker and then published by Sega. It is a sandbox racing game that was first released as an arcade game in 1999. It was made available for Dreamcast (it is featured in the Dreamcast Collection), then for PlayStation 2 and GameCube by Acclaim, and finally for Microsoft Windows in 2000, 2001, and 2002, respectively. On November 16, 2010, Crazy Taxi 1 was released for the PlayStation Network, and then it was released for the Xbox Live Arcade a few weeks later, on November 24. A slot for this game on the Zeebo is a future plan, although it is unknown as to when the release might be.

The game Crazy Taxi 1 has had mostly positive feedback and even is considered one of Sega’s All Stars games. In addition, it achieved a status of Player’s Choice on the GameCube system and a Greatest Hits position on the PS2. Upon seeing the success of the first Crazy Taxi game, Sega created Crazy Taxi 2, another of the Crazy Taxi games and the sequel for Dreamcast. Several changes are prevalent in this sequel, which went on to be paired with Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars in a bundle and which later was made available for purchase with other Dreamcast Collection hit titles. On July 23, 2002, the third release of Crazy Taxi, Crazy Taxi 3: High Roller, was made available for the Xbox. In 2004, the game was released for the PC.

Crazy Taxi 1 Gameplay

Players’ main goal in this game is to collect customers and bring them to the destinations of their choice in the shortest amount of time possible. Players can earn money on the way by performing stunts with their vehicles, for example, just nearly missing crashing into other cars and trucks. At the top of the screen is a big green arrow that directs players to their destinations. Rather than adjust as players encounter obstacles, the large green arrow points in the general direction in which the player is to travel. Players must halt within a designated zone upon approaching their final destination. Upon reaching a customer’s final destination, a player receives money from that customer, which is added to his or her total income earned. Depending on the time it takes players to reach their customers’ destinations, ratings are awarded. The customer will jump out of the taxi if his or her timer runs out prior to the player getting to the final destination.

Players can choose from three-, five-, or 10-minute settings or select the original arcade rules. Play continues in the time-limited settings for the set time period; after time is up, the taxi automatically will come to a halt, meaning the opportunity to score points ceases. If playing by the arcade rules, players initially have a one-minute time limit; however, this can be extended with time bonuses, which players can earn by making quick deliveries. The game’s console versions feature Crazy Box mode, which is a collection of challenging minigames. These include bowling (with the taxi as the ball), giant balloon popping in a field, and delivering as many customers as possible within a time limit.

Crazy Taxi 1’s arcade version features 60 levels. Console versions feature an addition “original” stage. Both original levels are located in sunny California hilly coastal locations, reminiscent of San Francisco. Players can choose between being four different drivers and their cabs; each has varying attributes.

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Crazy Taxi 1’s Development and Marketing

Hitmaker developed the arcade version of Crazy Taxi 1 at a variation from the other arcade games of the period. The cabinet version of Crazy Taxi ran on hardware from Sega Naomi and was originally a sit-down machine. Later, an upright machine was released. The game was made available for Sega Dreamcast, Nintendo GameCube, PS2, and Microsoft Windows over the next couple of years. On June 1, 2010, the South Korean game rating board revealed that Crazy Taxi 1 would soon be released on the Xbox Live Arcade. This information, as well as the fact that it was one of a number of Dreamcast games that would be made available for the PlayStation Network in the Fall of 2010, was officially released by Sega on June 10, 2010. These new game ports originally had an aspect ratio of 4:3, meaning when played on widescreen monitors, the game would be played between two blue bars. It was revealed in October 2010 that a widescreen version of the game would be implemented that would be a Dreamcast version featuring the game’s original arcade level. On November 23, 2010, the game was released for the PlayStation Network, and its release for the XBox Live occurred the next day.

In 2001, Sega received the 6,200,138th U.S. Patent for moving direction as an indication of method, method of game display, and drive-simulating and game apparatus. The 138th patent’s mechanics compared the arcade cabinet to previous Sega arcade games (L.A. Riders and Harley-Davidson, both released in 1997) but made sure to note Crazy Taxi 1’s unique pedestrian avoidance feature and arrow compass system.

Kenji Kanno, the producer of Crazy Taxi 1, made note that the gameplay’s time extension was implemented to differentiate the game from the three minute/100 yen status of arcade games at the time. The arcade version of the game gave players the reward of longer game periods for exceptional performance. In addition, Kanno designed the game to explore a taxi driver’s life and daily routine. For the original arcade game’s Dreamcast version, the designers featured a larger onscreen map to give players the feeling of being lost and the opportunity to learn while playing. This version also featured some unique minigames, which featured educational and fun challenges, such as longer gameplay for players who achieved improved skills. Over 100 minigame ideas were created, but they were then cut down to make room for the game’s minigame Crazy Box challenges.

Crazy Taxi 1’s soundtrack, for the Dreamcast, PS2, GameCube, and arcade versions, features songs from the famous bands The Offspring and Bad Religion. The game’s PC version featured a completely different soundtrack with music from Total Chaos, Too Rude, and Pivit. The XBox 360 and PS3 versions also feature original soundtracks; customized soundtracks for these game ports are available with the use of console system firmware.

Crazy Taxi 1: Advertisements within Gameplay

While passengers within the game can request to be taken to generic city locations, such as the lookout point, rail terminal, and police station, they may also choose to be driven to Tower Records, the Levi’s store, Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken, or the FILA sportswear outlet. Vans with the WOW! logo are also featured in the game. Each brand name chain is modeled as a game location. Crazy Taxi 1 hence is perhaps the best example of in-game product placement and marketing in the history of video games. Due to licensing difficulties, however, later versions of the game have had to replace the chain locations with generic business outlets.

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The Reception of Crazy Taxi 1

This game was received extremely well by video game critics with its original Dreamcast release. On GameRankings, the video game site, it averaged at 90.3 percent. Unfortunately its subsequent ports have had lower scores, for example 80/100 (Metacritic) and 78.8% (PS2 ranking at GameRankings). The game’s GameCube port ranking scored lower yet with scores of 69/100 and 70.9 percent. At 55.7 percent (GameRankings), the game’s PC version scored the lowest of all. The sales of Crazy Taxi generally were high; for example, in 2000, the Dreamcast port version sold close to 750,000 units, making the game the second most popular Dreamcast game for sales in the United States. In addition, the PS2 and Dreamcase versions together sold over one million units.

Overall, critics praised Crazy Taxi 1’s gameplay. The game was labeled addictive by one IGN staff member, and a Game Revolution reviewer of the Dreamcast port game said it was a great game to play at home. Critics further brought positive notice to the high difficulty level of the game, ensuring it wasn’t frustrating but challenging. PALGN’s Michael Goncalves noted that people would either love or hate the Crazy Taxi games. He also made clear that the game occasionally had some clippings and pop-ups. The reviews across the various releases were split in their opinions when it came to the Crazy Taxi soundtrack. According to PALGN, The Offspring and Bad Religion made the game more exciting, but on the other hand, Game Revolution found the soundtrack too repetitive. Jeff Gerstmann from GameSpot stated that players’ personal music preferences would probably affect their opinions of the game’s soundtrack. His coworker, Andrew Park, found the new music fit the game exceptionally well.

Hilary Goldstein from IGN thought that the Crazy Taxi’s XBox Live release was a lot of fun despite the fact that it seemed to lack any depth. He appreciated that the XBox port release didn’t stray too far from the original arcade version of Crazy Taxi; however, the soundtrack change really ruined the game for him. Other critics complained about the game’s low-quality graphic updates; they though, for example, that later versions could have incorporated models and textures of higher resolutions. Dave Rudden from GamePro concurred with Goldstein that the XBox version of Crazy Taxi was similar to the original but had poor graphics. Robert Workman, a GameZone employee, liked that Crazy Taxi had stuck to its Sega roots and praised it for its ability to entertain and relieve stress.

Crazy Taxi 1’s Legacy

Sega decided to create more than one sequel to Crazy Taxi following the game’s extreme success and reception. Crazy Taxi 2 saw a release in 2001, and the release of Crazy Taxi 3: High Roller followed just a year later, in 2002. In 2003, Crazy Taxi: Catch a Ride was published by THQ’s Graphic State Games for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance, the only one for that console. In 2007, Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars, the newest of the Crazy Taxi games, saw release for the PlayStation Portable.

Several games with gameplay similar to that of the popular Crazy Taxi games have followed their releases. The year 2001, for example, saw the release of The Simpsons: Road Rage racing game. Sega sued Electronic Arts, Fox Interactive, and Radical Entertainment in 2003, for The Simpsons: Road Rage title, claiming it infringed on Crazy Taxi’s patent. The case was privately settled; however, the amount remains undisclosed. The Emergency Mayhem Nintendo Wii game features core gameplay very similar to that of the Crazy Taxi games; however, it features more driving elements than simply emergency vehicles.

We hope you liked our brief history of Crazy Taxi 1, check out the rest of our arcade for more articles and fun games to play.

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