Title: Driver 2   Developer: Reflections   Type: Racing Action

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	Driver 2 "You're a cop who's gone DEEP undercover to infiltrate some of the most feared gangs in the world - one false move and you're a dead man. While most of this sequel will see you involved in amazing car chases, it has the added bonus of allowing you steal other vehicles and run around on foot too. Just remember kids - don't try this at home..!"

PSone REVIEW:   For those of you who missed this first time around, \'Driver\' pulled together the best elements from both \'Need for Speed\' and \'Grand Theft Auto\', into an amazing three dimensional living world full of personality - with a cast of vehicles and pedestrians that went about their daily chores regardless of what you were doing. Cars stopped (and even queued) at the traffic lights, changing lanes to overtake and turning intelligently at intersections. You could spend hours with your vehicle parked by the curb just watching the residents of each city going about their business. The developers have attempted to take to concepts of this masterpiece to a whole new level. Let\'s find out if they have succeeded… Probably the biggest change in the gameplay is that \'Tanner\' (your character) can now get out of his car and run around the cities on foot. The prospect of hi-jacking a school bus at the traffic lights sounds wonderful, but in practice he staggers around all over the place like someone who\'s just finished his tenth pint of lager - making simple tasks like crossing the street a really frustrating ordeal. On the plus side, each of the four cities featured in the game are huge. The highways now have on (and off) ramps, many of the roads are curved rather than grid-like and the residual traffic all moves around in a far more realistic way. These subtle changes make for a far more believable (and frantic) driving experience. Also much improved is the intelligence of the pursuing cops who now seem far more deadly than before. Even when played on the medium difficulty setting, we found that many of the little tricks we used to escape from them in the first game, were no good this time round. At the heart of Driver 2 is the STORY MODE. Here you are taken on an adventure into the underworld gang scenes of Chicago, Havana, Vegas and Rio and asked to complete various different tasks. Most of these have to be done in a VERY tight time limit, forcing you to learn your chosen route through the city until you can do it with your eyes closed. The missions themselves are far more adventurous than those seen in the previous game and include: · Deliver a car wired with a bomb before it detonates · Crush all of the gang\'s cars using a huge Bus · Chase a villain through the city at speed without losing them · Tail a suspect at distance so they don\'t spot you · Escape from a warehouse compound (like a maze) · Beat a train to reach a stranded car on the tracks Obviously, the car chases are the most fun and are now much more random than before, with the escaping vehicle showing off some truly amazing skills as they weave in and out of oncoming traffic and fake sharp turns to get you to go the wrong way. Enemies also throw grenades at you during later levels, which adds another new aspect to the game. Even the vehicle lineup has been spruced up to include: Vans, Busses, Fire-Trucks, Limousines, Ambulances and Money-Trucks. The drivability of each vehicle varies massively, with the larger ones being slow and cumbersome (but great to smash other cars out of your way), while others are far sportier and handle like a dream - even at dangerously high speeds. Graphically, Driver 2 is a total disaster… If the original was a little like \'oil painting\' - rough around the edges, but if you stood back from the screen a little you could appreciate its genius… then I guess the sequel would have to be a piece of \'modern art\', because no matter how you look at it you really can\'t understand what the hell the artist was thinking of when they made it..! Buildings appear a few feet in front of you, roads suddenly end without warning and it seems that every other car on the road is the same make as yours..? The night time missions look terrible due to grainy reflections on the road, blocky smoke effects from your tires and sky that\'s drawn using only 4 colors and looks like something a child has produced with a few crayons. Worse still are inexcusable little bugs like the brake and reverse lights on the truck that appear in the wrong place, pedestrians who leap through cars and buildings to escape from you and vehicles that just disappear when the train appears on screen..! Thankfully the sound effects are wonderful, as is the voice acting used to play the various characters in the game. FEATURES:   · 3 levels of difficulty · Story mode takes you through four different cities · 2 Player games include - Take a Ride, Cops n Robbers, Checkpoint, Capture the Flag · 1 Player mini-games include - Quick Chase, Quick Getaway, Gate Racing, Gate Racing, Trailblazer, Checkpoint, Survival · Film Director mode allows you to create your own mini chase movie OPTIONS:   • 2 Disk(s) • CD Media • 1 Block required on Memory card per save (min) • Up to 2 Players (without Multi-tap) • 2 way split screen multi-player option • Uses Dual Shock Pad Buttons • Uses Dual Shock Pad Analog Sticks • Uses Dual Shock Pad Vibration facility

	Stevie Vincent  "I found it strangely ironic that this game has been released on the PSone at around the same time as the PS2 was launched around the world… why… well for the simple reason that it proves beyond a doubt that graphics are secondary to gameplay when it comes to making a great game - something that I hope many of the developers of games for our new console will realize soon. The storyline is fantastic, as are most of the missions… however, be warned that some of them have such tight time limits, that you will be forced to play them over and over (and over) before you get through them. Also the chasing cops and escaping villains offer a far greater challenge than in the first game due to their much improved driving skills. 2 disks, 2-player games and some great sub-games (see above) make this great value for money… Its just a shame its so darn UGLY..!" Graphics  13/20 Playability  47/50 Sound  9/10 Lastability  18/20 87% This is a fantastic game that we think you will enjoy playing for quite some time.

	Tom Rooney  "Following Up On The Mega Hit From Last Year, Driver 2 Storms On Playstation Consoles With Enough New Gameplay To Put A Smile On Any Self Respecting Gamers Face. Driver 2 Is Much More Polished In The Gameplay Department Than Its Predecessor With Deeper Gameplay And Storyline. There Are Also Many More Missions And Options With Players Now Able To Run On Foot In Some Missions And Highjack Other Forms Of Transportation. This Game Is Also Much Harder Than The Original So Don't Come In Expecting A Cakewalk Here. About The Only Thing That Has Taken A Turn For Worse In Driver Are The Graphics. This Is Game Much Grainier And Raw Looking When Compared To The Original. There Is Also A Lot Of Pop-up And Occasional Slowdown Due To The Amount Of Activity Taking Place On Your Screen. The Good News Is That This Game Is So Good, The Graphics Take A Back Seat To The Action And Doesn't Really Interfere With The Overall Enjoyment Of The Title...but It Could Have Looked Better To Be Sure. Overall, This Is A Top-notch Follow-up To One Of Last Year's Biggest Hits And Is Sure To Keep Fans Totally Satisfied." Graphics  13/20 Playability  47/50 Sound  9/10 Lastability  18/20 87%

	Martin  "Loved The Cg Scenes And Story Line... Is That Really Vinnie Jones? Hated The Control System For Tanner. Great Idea But Should Have Been Left Well Alone If Reflections Couldn't Program It Properly. The Game Has Definitely Lost That 'adrenalin Rush' That The Last Game Provided. I Suppose Those Playing Their Very First Driver Game Will Still Get It, So It Must Be One Of Those 'first Time' Feelings We Get When Seeing Something Original. Missions Seem To Be More Against The Clock Rather Than Allowing Time To Check Out A City. Restart... Restart... Restart. Proximity Meter Great Idea When Tailing Someone. Ai Much Improved - On Normal Setting It Was A Bitch To Shake Off The Cops. Still Got That 'one More Go' Feeling To It. Noticed Slowdown On Some Of The Night Missions. It Really Feels An Old System Pushed To The Limits. Overall, Much As I Expected... More Of The Same With A Few Extra Tweaks And Turns. Another Nice Farewell To The Psone System." Graphics  13/20 Playability  47/50 Sound  9/10 Lastability  18/20 87%

REVIEW SCORE GUIDE: OUR PLEDGE: We promise that we have fully played 'Driver 2' before writing this review. The scores given above are our honest opinion and were not influenced in any way by the manufacturer or distributor of the game. SUMMARY OF FINAL RATING (%) 00 - 59 This makes your console seem like an older machine. It utilises little or none of the PSone power. 60 - 69 This game is little more than average and we advise renting or play-testing before considering a purchase. 70 - 79 This is a good solid title that should still appeal to those who like this type of game. 80 - 89 This is a fantastic game that we think you will enjoy playing for quite some time. 90 - 100 This game either pushes the boundaries of it's genre further than ever before on this system, or creates a completely new gaming experience. Either way, it should not be missed and is an essential purchase in our opinion. IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ: It is very important that you are aware that the criteria we use to obtain review scores on the PS2 is very different to that used for games on the original Playstation (PSone). The Processing and Graphical power of the two consoles are vastly different and as our reviews are graded against what we estimate is the achievable potential of each system, it does not mean in any way that a game scoring 80 percent on PS2 is worse than a Playstation (PSone) equivalent which scores 95. A more detailed breakdown of this guide can be read here. READERS REVIEWS: Tom Haigh  "Driver Was A Brilliant Game But Driver 2 Surpasses It With A Number Of Great Gameplay Tweaks. The Cities Are Now Bigger And More Realistic With Fly-overs, Curved Roads And Bridges. This Makes The Take A Ride Option Alot More Fun To Use With Such Large Interactive Cities Like Vegas And Rio To Run About In. Perhaps The Must Influential New Feature In Driver 2 Though Is The Ability To Get Out Of Your Car And Leg It About Nicking Other Motors Which Include Ambulences, Limos And Fire Trucks. This Also Adds Depth To The Take A Ride And Alows More Interesting Missions Where You Have To Think More (you Start A Chase Mission On Foot. Do You Choose The Easily Accesible But Slow Van Or Fast But Blocked Car?). The Story And Cut Scenes Are Now Alot Better And Clearer Than The Glitchy, Gloomy Original Ones And The Sound Captures The 70's Atmosphere Perfectly Making It Seem Like A Movie Like Bullit Or The French Connection.theres Also A 2 Player Mode Although This Is Slightly Dissapointing And The Playstation Really Struggles With The Graphics. Ahh The Graphics, Possibly Driver 2's Weakest Link. It Really Is A Step Back From Driver With Glitches And Seeming Everywhere And Buildings Popping Up Just Yards In Front Of You. Also The Bugs Where Pedestrians Run Through Walls To Avoid You From Driver Haven't Been Sorted And It Spoils A Otherwise Great Game. But What Can You Expect As The New Gameplay Pushes The Old Playstation To Its Very Limits And If Its This Good Who Cares. Also Look Out For The Great Secrets." Graphics  18/20 Playability  50/50 Sound  9/10 Lastability  18/20 95% Mike Vergilio  "I Am Highly Impressed With Driver 2. I Never Owned Driver 1 But I Heard It Was Good. I Have Always Loved Driving Games Like Gran Turismo 2, Formula 1 2000, Etc., But Driver 2 Is So Much More Diverse Than The Other Racing Games. It Is Almost An Rpg Which Demands Tons Of Driving Skill. I Am Currntly On Mission 12 Where I Have To Destroy 4 Cars, And I Am Getting Very Close To Completing It. I Have Been Within One Or Two Bumps Away From Beating This Level, But I Always Seem To Run Out Of Time. Did You Know You Can Steal Cop Cars In This Level. Since I've Found This Out I Always Get One For Their Great Speed And Strength. Also I Try To Work My Way Into Getting Head On Colisions With The Other Cars, I Find This Works Best. Anyway, Enough About Level 12, I Want To Conlclude By Saying That This Game Is Awesome And Regardless Of Your Limited Vehicle Selection It Still Feels Great To Prove You Can Be A #1 Wheelman." Graphics  18/20 Playability  48/50 Sound  9/10 Lastability  18/20 93% Craig Cumberton  "I Found Driver2 Basically Just The Same As Driver1, Although, It Does Have Much Better Features. To Improve This Game I Think That It Should Be Like Gran Theft Auto, You Know, With Guns And Police Getting Out Of Their Cars. I Also Think That You Should Be Able To Say Things By Pressing R1 And Be Able To Walk Up To People In The Street And Give Them A Big Punch! The Ramps In Chicargo Are Fun To Ride Up (at A Slant) So That You Go Flying Over The Other Side. There Should Also More Boxes, Oil Cans E.t.c To Hit In Your Car. The Graphics Aren't Really The Best I've Seen Either...they Should Be More Like Final Fantasy. And Finally, There Should Be A More Bigger Selction Of Cars, Todays Models Infact, Like Ferraries And Jeeps And Maybe Even Limbos! Overall I Would Say It Was A Good Gameplay, But Dissapointing!!!" Graphics  11/20 Playability  48/50 Sound  9/10 Lastability  11/20 79% Gupper Gaz  "I Witd So Long To Get This Game. After I Got It, I Think I Played It Non-stop. Now I Am A Little Disappointed. I Think Some Parts Of The Game Are Just Too Impossible. Trying A Mission A Dozen Times To Win Are Fine, But Doing Them 50 Times Or So Just Get A Little Out Of Hand.my Only Complaint Are The Chases. When You Have To Chase The Bad Guys In An Alloted Time, They Dont Give You Any Room For Mistakes.even Those Of Us Who Have Practically Mastered The Runs, Car, And Streets. I Have Been "chasing The Gunman" Now For Three Days Now.seeing That It Lasts For A Minute And A Half, If You Dont Screw Up, You Can Never Catch Him.i Have Tried This One Over A Hundred Times!(i Lost Count After A Hundred Or So...) Another Problem Is The Freezing Up, And Watching The Beginning Scenes Without Skipping Them.(i Have Seen The Gunman Drive Off Plenty, I Dint Want To Watch It Again.) Otherwise, It Is A Great Game. A Good Way To Let Out Road Rage After Driving On The Louisville Expressways!!" Graphics  18/20 Playability  50/50 Sound  9/10 Lastability  15/20 92% Francesco Amati  "Driver 2 Has Been Put Down A Lot On Several Sites Stating That It Wasn't As Good As The Original Driver, Or That It The Most Disappointing Title Of 2000. I Believe That Driver 2 Is A Better Game Than The Original In Several Aspects. The Graphics Aren't That Much Better Than The Original, The Fun Is Still There, If Not More, But The Dramatic Amount Of Slow Down Might Keep The Expert Gamer Away From Having Fun. Now What Makes This Game Better Than The Original? Well There Were Alot Of Extra Things Added In This Title That Weren't Simply There In The Original. The Ability To Walk Out Of Your Car And Take Another Is Simply My Favorite Aspect Of The Game. It Brings More Fun And Appreciation To The Game. Remember In The Original Driver When You Were Playing "take A Ride", And Your Car Had Serious Damage And You Couldn't Do Anything About It But Wreck Your Vehicle Or Just Restart Take A Ride?... Well That Isn't The Case In Driver 2! You Can Get Out Of Your Car Whenever You Want Wherever You Want In Your Favor In "take A Ride"! The Coolest Thing Is If You See A Pick-up Truck, A Fancy Car, A Cool Car, A Limo, A Bus, A Fire Truck, Or Even A Cop, And You Really Dont Like The Car Your In For Some Reason And You Have A Burning Desire To Drive Any Of Those Cars, You Don't Have Stare At The Car In Jealousy, Now You Can Get Of Your Car And Hi-jack The Car Of Your Choice! Oh Baby Do I Love Doing That! The Rodes In Driver 2 Are More Realistic Than The Original, Now There's Opening Bridges Where You Can Literally Fly Over Them! The Environments Are Larger For More Realism And Fun! The Missions Make More Sense This Time But Can Get Very Irritating. The Cut-scenes Are Simply Near Perfection And Are Much Better Than The Original. The Game Is Even Longer Than The Original, Packing 2 Discs! And Lastly, Driver 2 Has A Multiplayer Mode That Is Good, But Not Great. Still It Comes To Show That There Was More Effort Put Into This Title Than The Original Driver In Many Aspects. Driver 2 Should Get A Lot Of Credit For This And Should Have More People Interested In This Title. It's A Very Good Game Considering That I've Had It For More Than A Month, And I'm Still Trying To Beat The Game And I'm On The Second Disc, And That It Is Still Fun In My Opinion. I Won't Stop Playing This Game Right Now Considering That There Are A Lot Of Mini Games, Especially My Favorite "take A Ride", In Driver 2 To Play After I Have Finally Beaten The Game. The Multiplayer Mode Will Still Have My Brother And I Coming Back To Play A Little "cops And Robbers", Our Favorite Of Multiplayer Modes. Overall, This Is Just One Of Those Games Where It Has Unlimited Replay Value Due To It's Plenty Of Depth Within The Game Aside From The Undercover Mode! Driver 2 Along With Driver Are Still One Of My Favorite Games Of All-time At #9 Out Of 30!" Graphics  18/20 Playability  48/50 Sound  10/10 Lastability  20/20 96% Eric Esele  "Yes, The Graphics Are Horrible. But The Developers Are Working With A Highly Memory-challenged Machine. Pop Up Is An Issue, But Everything Seems To Show Up In Time To Drive Accordingly. The Greater Issue May Be The Frame Rate – Like In The Original Game, The Program Seems To Bog Down When Too Much Is Going On At One Time. These Are The Only Complaints, Though, As The Game Came Out Looking At Least As Good As The First. I Wasn't Expecting A Huge Graphical Improvement, As The First Game Seemed To Be Pushing The Old Playstation's Limits Already. What I Do Like Is The Widely Expanded Gameplay. The Option To Get Out Of A Damaged Car Into Another Vehicle And Continue Your Getaway Adds So Much To The Game. Yes, Tanner Runs Like A Girl, But I Didn't Find The Controls As Impossible To Master As Many Reviewers Are Saying. You Can Drive Tanner With The Accelerator Button And The Left Analog Stick Just Like You Drive The Car. I Only Wish The Burnout Button (circle) Could Make Him Sprint For Short Distances. Getting In And Out Of Cars Requires A Short Learning Curve, Too, But Soon Becomes Second Nature. The Missions And Cities Have Been Expanded For The Better. The Variety Of Challenges Tanner Faces Throughout The Mission Mode Are More Inventive. And The Cities Are Absolutely Huge. The Storyline Is More Cohesive Than In Version One, And The Cut Scenes Are Far More Polished. The Story Is About As Watchable And Easy To Follow Now As A B-movie - Which Is The Comparison That Came To My Mind Throughout. Still, It's A Huge Step Up. Beating The Game Doesn't Come Easy. There Are Misisons That Seem Impossibly Hard Mixed With Some That Are Just Plain Easy. The Game Definitely Builds In Instensity And You Get A Better Feel In This Version For Being A Part Of The Action. It's One Of Those Games I Find Myself Talking Back To. As An Aside, I Was Fortunate Enough To Receive My Ps2 While Still Working Through Driver 2 And There's Good News. The Slower Framerate Goes Away On The New Machine, Which Makes The Driving Far More Realistic. Those Slowdowns That Used To Give Me Time To Think Are All But Gone, So You Have To Be More On Your Toes. The Look Didn't Improve On Ps2, Although I Haven't Tried Any Of The Texture Smoothing, And It Did Lock Up On Me Once. No, This Was Not Good. Overall, Though, I've Been Pleased With Driver 2. I Attribute Its Shortcoming To The Fact That It Was Programmed For The Original Psx. And I Appreciate Just How Much The Designers Are Getting Out Of So Little Processing Power. I Can't Wait To See How They'll Utilize The Next Next-generation Console. Until Then, He Who Expects Little Will Not Be Disappointed - Accept The Game For What It Is And You Should Have Loads Of Fun." Graphics  18/20 Playability  48/50 Sound  9/10 Lastability  18/20 93% If you have owned 'Driver 2' long enough to have formed a solid opinion on it, then why not send us your own personalized Game Review using this form. Alternatively, if you would like to read what other gamers who already own this title think of it, click here.