Here's a sneak peek of the game:
While there is still much game testing, bug fixing, production, marketing, and distribution to come before the game will be on the shelves, Mike's role as Art Director is pretty much done.
Early reviews are starting to come in. And the reviews have all been great!
Last week in L.A., Driver San Francisco had a booth at E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo, one of the biggest and most important industry tradeshows). The game won some awards and was nominated for others, including:
- Winner, Best of E3: Best Racing Game by Machinima.com
- Winner, Best Racing Game by Digital Trends (Yahoo!)
- Nominee, Best of E3: Best Racing Game by XPlay (G4)
- Nominee, Best of E3: Best Racing Game by Shortlist.com
- Nominee, Best Multiplayer by Digital Trends (Yahoo!)
And here's some Driver buzz. This video features YouTube star Freddie Wong, who said Driver San Francisco was his game of the show:
And here are two interviews with Martin Edmonson, the Creative Director at Reflections:
And check out these excerpts from industry reviews that have come out since E3.
“Of all the things I wasn't expecting at this year's E3, Driver: San Francisco's multiplayer turning out to be the "have you tried that yet?" game is definitely in the top three. The genius "shift" system brings a whole new dimension to driving games and delivers the "still in the race" feel whether you're a veteran of the genre or dabble in it from time to time.” - Alexander Sliwinski, Joystiq
“I played several rounds and each became more intense than the last, as the other players learned the tricks and tested strategies.” - Alexander Sliwinski, Joystiq
“… Ubisoft Reflections could have the surprisingly solid multiplayer experience of the year on its hands. We were pleasantly shocked a year ago by the polish of Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood's multiplayer and Driver: San Francisco is causing that same type of rubbernecking.” - Alexander Sliwinski, Joystiq
“Driver: San Francisco was one of my biggest surprises of E3.” - Lawrence Soontag, Machinima.com
“The game looks amazing, sure, but where it really shines is in the gameplay department.” - Lawrence Soontag, Machinima.com
“Driver: San Francisco is a truly original experience, and one that will challenge the preconceived notions of the genre.” - Lawrence Soontag, Machinima.com
“When you add an open-world San Francisco setting filled with hundreds of miles of roads and the sort of eccentrics unique to the city--believe us, GameSpot is based there--you have a pretty good idea of what sort of craziness this game has in store. And now that we've seen what you can get up to in multiplayer, it somehow seems even crazier. “ - Shaun McInnis, GameSpot
“It's a weird system, but it's one that works oddly well in an open-world driving game where sometimes you just really want to be driving a different car.” - Shaun McInnis, GameSpot
“But in multiplayer, it's just plain-and-simple insanity.” - Shaun McInnis, GameSpot
“It's a fast and frantic game mode that breeds a sort of paranoia and tension we haven't seen in a lot of racing games. It breeds this partly because there are so many people after one target and partly because that one target has every reason to believe that every car in the city is out to get him or her.” - Shaun McInnis, GameSpot
“When I went in for some multiplayer, I expected the worst, but once again Driver: San Francisco proves that it can be a blast.” - Greg Miller, IGN
“Having to run from everyone and avoid possible places people could shift was my favorite part of the game.” - Greg Miller, IGN
“This racing, crazy turns, and shifting went on for a while, and while I'm sure it sounds simple, it was a blast. I'd play this at home.” - Greg Miller, IGN
“I played a lot of games during E3 preview week last month, but none had me so entertained as Driver: San Francisco.” - Chris Kohler, Wired
“I was glued to the multiplayer game that Ubisoft showed off at its E3 Expo booth last week in Los Angeles, a game of car tag that lets you shift between different cars on the fly.” - Chris Kohler, Wired
“The Shift mechanic will be used throughout Driver. It’s a thoroughly unrealistic but quite fun bit of business.” - Chris Kohler, Wired
“But that’s what makes Driver: San Francisco such a fresh, unique experience. Once you realize that you’re never stuck in your car and can jump to any other one instantly, the strategies begin to unfold.” - Chris Kohler, Wired
“What left me feeling good about Driver after my demo was that in this age of bloated, overly complex console games, it embraced pick-up-and-play instant fun. I was already interested in this game for the promise of driving illegally around the city I live in, but the multiplayer demo has me looking forward to it even more.” - Chris Kohler, Wired
“I'm not even all that crazy about driving games in general. But I really, really, really, really, reaaaaaally want to buy Driver: San Francisco.” - Tony Ponce, Destructoid
“I lost both rounds I played, but I lost gloriously! This game feels more like the Matrix than the goddamn Matrix games! I'm anxious to get back in the driver's seat and start dicking around with the laws of time and space once again!” - Tony Ponce, Destructoid
“You might not have machine guns or rocket launchers, but you're never safe, even for a moment.” - Chris DeAngelus, Worthplaying.com
“If the main game can maintain that amazing intensity, it might be exactly what the franchise needs to stand out among its competitors.” - Chris DeAngelus, Worthplaying.com
“After the last couple mediocre Driver entries, it's pretty reassuring that we're already enjoying these pre-release demos.” - Andrew Hayward, GamesRadar.com
“…but what we played this week was fast, fun, and consistently engaging – certainly not something that'll put prospective players in a coma come late August.” - Andrew Hayward, GamesRadar.com
4 comments:
Congratulations to Mike!!! The reviews are glowing. You must be so proud of him, Mir!!
Wow, what reviews! Nice work, Mike.
Oh, you KNOW I am so proud of him, yes! :-) He rocks. I always tell him that, but it IS nice to hear it from someone other than your wife every now and then. And of course, he'd be the first to point out that there is a whole team of people who've worked very hard for four years to get the game to this point. Never a glory hog, that one.... ;-)
More good news on the game...Driver: San Francisco has been nominated for the "Best of E3" Game Critic Awards in the Best Racing Game Category. Here are the nominees:
Best Racing Game
Driver: San Francisco (Ubisoft Reflections/Ubisoft for PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
Forza 4 (Turn 10 Studios/Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360)
Mario Kart (Nintendo/Nintendo for 3DS)
Need for Speed:The Run (EA Black Box/EA Games for PC, PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)
Wipeout 2048 (Studio Liverpool/SCEE for PSVita)
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