Crazy Taxi

About

Crazy Taxi is a single-player, open-world comedy game that offers perfect, frantic, and humorous gameplay. As a cab driver, your goal is to pick up passengers and deliver them to their destinations as quickly as possible, pulling off stunts and crazy combos along the way to earn more cash. With time being of the essence, only the craziest cabbies will come out on top.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

87%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,177 reviews

music58 positive mentions

story5 negative mentions

A nostalgic trip down memory lane, bringing back fond memories of the original arcade and Dreamcast versions.
The gameplay remains fast-paced and chaotic, providing addictive fun for short bursts.
With some modding, the game can be restored to its original glory, including the classic soundtrack and improved controls.

The port lacks the original soundtrack and branding, replacing them with generic music and store names.
Controls are overly sensitive and lack analog support, making precise driving difficult.
Performance issues such as frame rate drops and graphical glitches detract from the overall experience.

music
369 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
73%
11%
The music in this version of Crazy Taxi has been widely criticized for lacking the original soundtrack, which featured iconic tracks from bands like The Offspring and Bad Religion. While the new soundtrack is described as decent, many players feel it doesn't capture the same energy and nostalgia as the original. Fortunately, there are mods available that allow players to restore the classic music, which many recommend for an authentic experience.
- “The soundtrack isn't the original from the arcade, but still has its fair share of songs that can get caught looping in one's head if this style of rock suits you.”
- “This game is proof that great music makes a game 1000x better.”
- “Crazy Taxi is a really great game diving with poor driving mechanics, an addictive gameplay loop, and a fantastic punk soundtrack.”
- “The lack of the original soundtrack is unfortunate, but the new soundtrack is pretty decent, and ultimately, this is still Crazy Taxi, and it's still as great as ever.”
- “The original lineup of punk rock music from bands like Bad Religion and The Offspring captured and escalated the game magnificently, whereas the new soundtrack is just serviceable.”
- “It's just not the same without the original soundtrack.”
gameplay
109 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
65%
7%
The gameplay retains its fast-paced, arcade-style essence, offering a simple yet addictive experience centered around picking up and delivering passengers. However, the port suffers from issues like pop-in, clipping, and a lack of the original soundtrack, which detracts from the overall experience. While the core mechanics are enjoyable and can be mastered, the gameplay may feel repetitive over time, especially with limited new content to unlock.
- “The gameplay is fun and frantic, and it's cool to find that balance between being reckless and cautious so you can rack up the points.”
- “Proof that a solid gameplay loop makes a game age better than its graphics or polish.”
- “Sure, graphically it hasn't aged too well, but it makes up for it with the crazy fun gameplay that encourages you to get the highest score possible while honing and mastering techniques with each run.”
- “The gameplay is repetitive because there is nothing new to unlock, but I admit that the game has an addictive element and you pick it up again from time to time.”
- “Sega screwed around with the controls, and the end result is that this version controls horribly and it ruins the entire gameplay experience.”
- “The gameplay is outdated, especially with this PC port that is... honestly pretty mediocre.”
graphics
63 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
63%
14%
The graphics of the game are generally considered outdated, reflecting its origins as a Dreamcast title from 1999. While some players appreciate the nostalgic aesthetic and vibrant art style, many note that the visuals have not aged well and can appear simplistic or spartan by modern standards. Despite these shortcomings, the gameplay remains engaging, often overshadowing the graphics' limitations.
- “The graphics are simple, but not bad and easily bring you back to a great old gamer's day; it fits right in with the arcade atmosphere, maybe because the original was also an arcade game first.”
- “Some of the aesthetic choices certainly mark the game as a bit of a period piece, but the city and cars still look really vibrant, and it's as fun to look at as it is to play.”
- “The graphics are spot on.”
- “Yeah, it’s quite obvious that the game’s graphics are extremely outdated.”
- “The graphics are not the best and have not been remastered, but the gameplay more than makes up for that.”
- “The game launcher has better graphics than the game itself.”
story
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
64%
20%
The game lacks a traditional storyline, as it is primarily an arcade experience focused on completing missions for high scores. Players express a desire for a more developed narrative or career mode to enhance the gameplay, but the current structure emphasizes challenge and skill over storytelling. While the missions can be engaging, they do not provide a cohesive narrative experience.
- “Apart from the arcade game modes that are available, a career mode with at least a really basic storyline would’ve made the game pretty cool and also gave it more value due to the addition of more content.”
- “If this was more like Jet Set Radio and had a bit of a backstory, that would enhance the experience significantly.”
- “The game itself is not very long, with only a few missions, but it is fun to play in arcade mode or against the clock, picking up your passengers and 'run, Forrest, run.'”
- “Unfortunately, this game is an arcade-type game with no storyline.”
- “Beware that this is an arcade game, so there's no story mode or anything; you play just for the score.”
- “You need to complete missions in order to figure them out, and even then they're hardly described.”
humor
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by its chaotic and absurd nature, featuring hilarious one-liners, quirky characters, and a mix of slapstick moments that evoke nostalgia for many players. While some find the use of violence and rudeness off-putting, the overall comedic tone, including funny sound effects and unexpected scenarios, contributes to its charm and entertainment value. Players appreciate the blend of humor and gameplay, making it a memorable experience from its original release on platforms like Dreamcast and PS2.
- “The one-liners are hilarious, and there are so many sounds at the same time that you will feel like you are sitting in a central square with everything screaming at you for no particular reason.”
- “The passengers laughing as I narrowly avoid oncoming traffic and crash into silos is a mood.”
- “People happily fist bump if you deliver them in time or hilariously announce that you suck if you run out of time.”
optimization
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
60%
25%
The game's optimization has received significant criticism, with many users reporting poor performance, including low frame rates and stuttering, particularly on certain hardware setups. While some players have found ways to improve performance through patches and configurations, the overall consensus is that the port is poorly optimized, with outdated controls and graphical issues that detract from the experience.
- “The performance is top notch, though.”
- “After configuring the controls and settings, the game runs smoothly and plays like I would expect it.”
- “The game is well optimized; we've got extras like the crazy box mode which consists of completing different challenges with our drivers, we can play both the maps from the arcade and Dreamcast versions and even determine how long we want to play, not necessarily following the arcade rules, which is nice.”
- “What isn't easy to fix is the absolutely horrid performance (fps lock?) that this port uses.”
- “Only downside is that it's quite an unoptimized port and has really outdated controls.”
- “This port of Crazy Taxi seems anything but a port, since it seems to be using Crytek middleware that, while keeping graphics intact, makes performance go from 60fps to 10fps, where it seems to stay most of the time, going up only in scenes with not a lot to render.”
replayability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
25%
38%
The game boasts exceptional replayability, particularly through its run-based modes that encourage repeated play. Players appreciate the fast-paced gameplay, unique art style, and engaging controls, which contribute to a fun and addictive experience. Overall, the replay value is highlighted as significantly high, making it a worthwhile pick for those seeking lasting enjoyment.
- “The first two modes are run-based modes, meaning that they have a high replayability rate.”
- “Fast paced (depending on what strategy/mode you use), unique art style, and so much replayability.”
- “Replay value out the wazoo.”
- “Whilst it is still not as much fun as the arcade and original, it is far better and much more playable than it was before.”
- “+arcademachine level of replayability.”
stability
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
57%
The stability of the game is mixed; while some users report significant bugs and freezing issues requiring hard reboots, others praise its smooth performance and lack of glitches, especially in comparison to its original console versions. Overall, experiences vary widely, with some players enjoying a stable experience and others encountering frustrating technical problems.
- “Great port from the Dreamcast and other consoles, works and runs great.”
- “I was expecting an unspeakable mess because of this game's age, but it all runs incredibly well, no glitches of any kind, no need to patch or fix anything. It feels like the good old one I remember, and there's even full Xbox 360 controller support.”
- “But it was consistent with hardware available at the time, and it still runs great.”
- “Doing so freezes the screen and you have to hard reboot the computer.”
- “Very buggy, you can't even alt-F4 out of the game.”
- “The game will have momentary freezes throughout.”
atmosphere
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's atmosphere is characterized by its nostalgic arcade graphics and a vibrant punk/rock soundtrack that enhances the experience, though some players feel the new music lacks the iconic quality of the original. While the overall ambiance is lively, there are mixed opinions on the darker tone of this version compared to its predecessors. Despite some nostalgia for the original soundtrack, the new music is generally well-received once players acclimate to it.
- “Good punk/rock music and a very 'living' sound atmosphere.”
- “Not sure, but I think this version has a darker atmosphere than the others.”
- “Granted, I do miss the original soundtrack from Bad Religion and The Offspring, but the new songs, while not as iconic, are pretty nice once you're used to them and they don't ruin the atmosphere of the game.”
- “Not sure, but I think this version has a darker atmosphere than the other ones.”
- “You'll not regret, but you'll lose the atmosphere, which was concluded in the soundtrack, real brand names, and normal voices of pedestrians.”
- “Some people say that the music doesn't fit into the game's atmosphere, which to me is nonsense, but it's all a matter of personal preference.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience; while some challenges, like the bowling challenge, are seen as tedious, others appreciate the opportunity for experimentation and familiarization with maps in modes like 10-minute. Despite the grind being frustrating at times, many still enjoy the overall gameplay in arcade and original modes.
- “Some, like the bowling challenge, are painfully tedious to complete.”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “While it was really tedious in the crazy box mode, the arcade and original modes still are a damn blast to play through.”
emotional
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is primarily viewed as fun rather than emotionally engaging, with users noting a lack of a compelling story or emotional depth. The gameplay mechanics, particularly the control scheme, detract from the experience, making it difficult to navigate traffic smoothly, which may further diminish emotional investment.
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Reviewers express disappointment with the monetization strategy of the latest Crazy Taxi games, labeling them as cash grabs that prioritize profit over quality, particularly in the mobile format.
- “But Sega doesn't care; the last Crazy Taxi games were just phone cash grabs.”
- “The monetization in this game feels exploitative and takes away from the overall experience.”
- “I can't believe how much they charge for basic features that should be included in the game.”