Ah, Crazy Taxi. That name alone brings back fond memories of the last Sega console, Dreamcast. I really enjoyed the Dreamcast during its short, abbreviated lifespan. Sonic, NFL 2K, Phantasy Star Online and Crazy Taxi were all great games for the Dreamcast. Many of these historic Dreamcast games have made appearance on other consoles but now we get a portable version of a Dreamcast game.  The PSP version of Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars features both Dreamcast games, Crazy Taxi and Crazy Taxi 2, squeezed onto one UMD.

The premise behind Crazy Taxi is in the name. You’re a taxi driver cruising around the city, taking customers to their destination. Since the emphasis is on Crazy, you’re actually rewarded for driving as crazy and reckless as possible on the way to deliver your customer. The only rule in the game is making sure your customer reaches his or her destination within a designated time frame. One passenger might have a time limit of 30 seconds while another passenger has a time limit of a minute. The faster you reach your goal and the crazier you drive, the more money you will earn in tips. Once the time has expired for the initial run you earn a license grade depending on the number of passengers delivered and the amount of tips you’ve collected.

The original version of Crazy Taxi was an arcade game before being ported over to the Dreamcast. The majority of the gameplay is still centered upon the original arcade version, including the sequel. Each game includes an arcade rules mode where you can only play as long as you keep delivering passengers. There are additional options such as a 3-minute, 5-minute and 10-minute option. Honestly, these are perfect for a portable system since you might only have a few minutes to play a game before going to work, school, etc. It still would have been nice if the game included a free form option where you can play as long as you wanted.

The mini games are really the other main portion of Crazy Taxi. After not playing Crazy Taxi for several years I should add that a mini game isn’t the proper term to use. Instead the mini games should be called the training mode since the game offers no formal explanation of how to pull off special driving maneuvers. The Crazy Dash, Crazy Drift and other special moves are essential to you getting your passengers to their destination in the fastest time possible. The Crazy Box mode, in Crazy Taxi 1, has you tasked with performing the special moves in a very brief amount of time in order to complete that goal/mini game. As you complete each mini game another mini game will be unlocked which expands on you mastering the special moves. In Crazy Taxi 2 the Pyramid Mode lets expands on the moves from the first game with an additional move, the Crazy Hop.

Now I said that the mini games should be called the training mode and I strongly believe in this because of the PSP controls. The game still controls fine when just driving along going from point A to point B but pulling off the special moves was always a challenge for me. Pulling off the moves was never consistent and felt more like an act of luck. Or if I pulled off a special maneuver I would go too far and miss my goal almost every time. At one point I even turned off the PSP by accident trying to perform a special move because my finger was pressing against the power switch. Fortunately the game includes two control schemes to select from, which can be saved individually for each game. The controls schemes help but having a customizable control layout would have been even better.

Fare Wars for the PSP is a solid title especially considering that it contains not just one, but two games. Granted both games are very similar to each other, the game still offers a fun experience. Just try to remember that the game was originally an arcade game that expanded with two console sequels, Crazy Taxi 2 on DC and Crazy Taxi 3 on Xbox. For a quick gaming session Crazy Taxi still offers a wild driving experience that everyone should enjoy, especially those that have never played Crazy Taxi. 

Gameplay: 7.0
Just driving from place to place, jumping over cars, nearly running over bystanders is still a blast to play. Trying to pull off the special moves only to fail miserable brings the fun down considerably.

Graphics: 8.0
Visually the game looks almost identical to the original Dreamcast versions. I didn’t notice any differences in the first Crazy Taxi when compared to the DC version. However Crazy Taxi 2 did seem to run at a slower framerate than the DC game and had a few problems with the graphics not loading properly in certain areas. For example, I noticed, several times, that I was no longer driving on the road. The game would take several seconds to load in the road which made it seem as if I was driving in the air or on water.

Sound: 7.0
The game gets a 7.0 for the ability to play a custom soundtrack in the game. If you have MP3’s saved on your Memory Stick you can use those as a custom soundtrack in the game. You probably want to use those since the tracks and voice acting in the game stink. I’m sure Sega couldn’t get the original licenses back from Crazy Taxi 1 but the songs they included in the PSP version just don’t compare.

Concept: 6.5
Really we just get two games that were released almost five years ago packaged together on one disc. The game doesn’t include the original destinations found from the first game, such as KFC and The Original Levi’s Store. I guess advertising actually costs money.

Multiplayer: 6.5
Once again another PSP game with Ad Hoc only wireless support. Surprise, surprise.

Difficulty: Easy/Medium
Playing the game with the regular moves is a piece of cake. Actually mastering all of the special moves and using them correctly in the game is another story.

Overall: 7.0
Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars proves once again that a good game is still a good game no matter when it’s released or on which platform it’s released. While the allure of the original Dreamcast versions has worn off by now, the game is still a nice collection of two fun games. Just remember to take your Crazy Taxi in small dosages or you might get a little indigestion.