Driver: Parallel Lines Parking in March

Lessons learned, Atari and Reflections are back with a new Driver game, this time with (apparently) less suck and more driving. New screens.

Before Grand Theft Auto III propelled Rockstar's series to its present status, the Driver series was the place to go for illicit action-slash-driving fun. Driver 3 dealt the series' reputation a brutal blow, but Atari has staggered back knowingly, using its hard-won knowledge to better the next game in the series.

In Driver Parallel Lines> you play the role of TK, going through events in both his troubled past and, after nearly 30 years in the clink, in the present day. Unlike the previous game, where the action-to-driving balance was skewed towards the frustrating on-foot parts, here the behind-the-wheel bits have been put centre stage again.

The latest Driver also swaps the multi-city approach of Driver 3 for a one location - New York City. You'll experience the Big Apple in its seedy '70s incarnation and also a highly realistic representation of today's glossy metropolis.

Atari is promising 15 missions set in the two time periods and also several dynamic mini-games. During the course of the game you'll also get hands on with 80 vehicles, from bikes and trucks and cars and buses.

The big question is whether developer Reflections Interactive has been able to inject the fun back into the experience. We'll find out soon enough. Driver: Parallel Lines is due for release on Xbox and PlayStation 2 this March.

Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo Games