Don't Forget the Past | Forums

**PennySillin** · 12-19-2007, 07:09 AM

As much as we complain about what Driver has done wrong, it has done a lot of stuff right, and if we don't acknowledge that, the good parts might not remain in the next game(s). So, without further ado..

What did they do right or wrong? The good stuff will be written in green, the bad will be written in red

Driver: You are the Wheelman
-------------------------------
* The cops were tough to loose, if you got too far ahead they would appear ahead of you
* Cops were also aggressive, necessary in a chase game
* Physics were great for their time, loved sending cars sky high on the PS1
* Good cheat codes, stilts, freight train, etc
* Great music
* I like the drop camera
* On PS1, the graphics were muddy, low screen resolution
* City graphics were a bit dull

Driver 2: The Wheelman is Back
------------------------------
* Players could exit their damaged vehicles and exchange for new ones
* Curved roads, much better graphics
* Cool places to drive, the canyon in Rio, underground base in Havana

* Couldn't exit a moving vehicle, or any vehicle while the cops were chasing
* Nothing to do on foot but steal other cars, unlock a small amount of hidden stuff
* Slow motion gameplay because of graphics
* Tanner used C4 explosives in a mission towards the end, but not in Take a Ride, inconsistent
* Cars are slow, not sure if this was an effect of slow motion
* Newfound freedom not supported with exploration


Driv3r
-------
* Inclusion of guns welcome
* Great graphics, damage modeling
* FPS controls for on foot are great
* Love the toggle sticks for steering & gas
* Thrill Cam
* Crash physics reached their peak, not too realistic, cars flew around twisting every which way
* Cars got considerably more air on jumps, a small ramp in Nice launched me above the four story buildings in the area
* I like the hidden Timmies, but they're a bit dumb, even if you are making fun of GTA
* Interiors are a nice addition, but are lacking
* More diverse vehicles, boats, semi's
* Cars and weapons sound powerful
* Slow cars all top out at the same speed
* Empty streets make driving boring
* On foot severly lacking, little action to be found past the grenade launcher
* Nothing to do inside buildings, or anywhere really
* Exploration and interaction are almost non-existent. There were a few ladders.. thats about it.
* You can't shoot your gun completely vertical, whats the point of roof-tops (theres nothing else up there either)
* Nothing to do in boats, empty seas, boats are slow, you can shoot your gun at the air


Driver: Parallel Lines
----------------------
* Lots of traffic to weave in and out of
* Reach high speeds
* Vehicle customization
* Can perform drive-by's with all weapons
* Jumps peppered throughout the city
* You can knock down light poles

* Can only do drive-bys looking forward. Backward is the most important direction
* Cops can't handle the traffic
* Survival mode is too easy
* Crashing cars isn't very fun without extensive damage or crazy physics
* NY is boring, overused city anyway, exploration and interaction onc again not supported
* Pedestrians slow you down when hit, and don't even scatter when you're coming
* Cars stop when you jump out. Maybe an option for this one


Anyway, if you guys have anything to add feel free

**PennySillin** · 12-19-2007, 07:09 AM

As much as we complain about what Driver has done wrong, it has done a lot of stuff right, and if we don't acknowledge that, the good parts might not remain in the next game(s). So, without further ado..

What did they do right or wrong? The good stuff will be written in green, the bad will be written in red

Driver: You are the Wheelman
-------------------------------
* The cops were tough to loose, if you got too far ahead they would appear ahead of you
* Cops were also aggressive, necessary in a chase game
* Physics were great for their time, loved sending cars sky high on the PS1
* Good cheat codes, stilts, freight train, etc
* Great music
* I like the drop camera
* On PS1, the graphics were muddy, low screen resolution
* City graphics were a bit dull

Driver 2: The Wheelman is Back
------------------------------
* Players could exit their damaged vehicles and exchange for new ones
* Curved roads, much better graphics
* Cool places to drive, the canyon in Rio, underground base in Havana

* Couldn't exit a moving vehicle, or any vehicle while the cops were chasing
* Nothing to do on foot but steal other cars, unlock a small amount of hidden stuff
* Slow motion gameplay because of graphics
* Tanner used C4 explosives in a mission towards the end, but not in Take a Ride, inconsistent
* Cars are slow, not sure if this was an effect of slow motion
* Newfound freedom not supported with exploration


Driv3r
-------
* Inclusion of guns welcome
* Great graphics, damage modeling
* FPS controls for on foot are great
* Love the toggle sticks for steering & gas
* Thrill Cam
* Crash physics reached their peak, not too realistic, cars flew around twisting every which way
* Cars got considerably more air on jumps, a small ramp in Nice launched me above the four story buildings in the area
* I like the hidden Timmies, but they're a bit dumb, even if you are making fun of GTA
* Interiors are a nice addition, but are lacking
* More diverse vehicles, boats, semi's
* Cars and weapons sound powerful
* Slow cars all top out at the same speed
* Empty streets make driving boring
* On foot severly lacking, little action to be found past the grenade launcher
* Nothing to do inside buildings, or anywhere really
* Exploration and interaction are almost non-existent. There were a few ladders.. thats about it.
* You can't shoot your gun completely vertical, whats the point of roof-tops (theres nothing else up there either)
* Nothing to do in boats, empty seas, boats are slow, you can shoot your gun at the air


Driver: Parallel Lines
----------------------
* Lots of traffic to weave in and out of
* Reach high speeds
* Vehicle customization
* Can perform drive-by's with all weapons
* Jumps peppered throughout the city
* You can knock down light poles

* Can only do drive-bys looking forward. Backward is the most important direction
* Cops can't handle the traffic
* Survival mode is too easy
* Crashing cars isn't very fun without extensive damage or crazy physics
* NY is boring, overused city anyway, exploration and interaction onc again not supported
* Pedestrians slow you down when hit, and don't even scatter when you're coming
* Cars stop when you jump out. Maybe an option for this one


Anyway, if you guys have anything to add feel free

**Assault_machine** · 12-19-2007, 10:44 AM

You did forget to mention the fact that D1 was great for its Film Director, which didn't play as much of a good role in the other Driver games and wasn't as good either.

Other than that, I really do think that it was a wise decision to make a topic like this since it could Reflections see their own mistakes. However, there is a problem. I think that we already have a topic like this, which is about what things went wrong in the Driver games. At least you decided to include both the benefits & drawbacks of the Driver franchise, so I guess that it isn't a bad thing if we post here instead.

**InsaneDriver06** · 12-20-2007, 09:35 AM

Nice summary of green (good), red (needs improvement) for all the games in the Driver series.

Some of the positives mentioned that I really liked in the series:
Positives:
* The cops were tough to lose, if you got too far ahead they would appear ahead of you
* Cars got considerably more air on jumps, a small ramp in Nice launched me above the four story buildings in the area
* I like the hidden Timmies, but they're a bit dumb, even if you are making fun of GTA
* Lots of traffic to weave in and out of
* Reach high speeds
* Vehicle customization

*Motorcycles, Tractor Trailers included!

And of course Driver 1 had a superior film director mode compared to the rest, especially Driv3r which was REALLY lacking in camera flexibility.

Here's some more negatives:
-Not enough camera views in vehicle/on foot in the series (we need more FPS, close and overtheshoulder views. Bring the player close to the action.)
-Almost no interaction with most of the buildings, they're really just fancy looking walls to walk/drive around (excluding the mall, interiors, ladders on a mere few of them). I'd like to see every building at least climbable or able to use the steps, ledges, gates, ladders.
-Not enough jumps/ramps to send the car flying, especially in Driv3r. The landing is half the fun too. Bring back more D1 bridges. I spent hours hitting those ramps, major highlight of the game.
-Cops shot out tires. Bulletproof eased that problem thankfully, but find less ways to stop the chase, and more ways to make it last longer thanks to relentless, smart pursuits that don't end the second you lose a bit of distance.
-The missions were more frustrating at times than fun. Challenging, creative and fun is the key. Plenty of stunts, but not impossibly tough, like the final Driver1, or carcliff chase mission near the end of Driver2.
-Unless on foot is spectacular, keep the focus 95% on car/vehicle chases.
-There weren't any Fully attached 18 Wheelers filling the freeways. Please add for atmosphere and fun.
-DPL scrapped some important options. Bring back more options to "change weather, pedestrians on/off, cops on/off, onfoot on/off(classic driver mode), traffic count(low, med, high, off), controller mapping(allow every button customized)...

**PennySillin** · 12-20-2007, 11:46 AM

I'm (actually Reflections) going to need others input on the film director, I thought it was boring and never used it unless something really cool happened. And it usually got botched up by glitches in the replay anyway.

**driver_madness** · 12-20-2007, 03:52 PM

I'm along term user of the Film Director, I use it for everything and I was pretty pissed off when I didn't see it in Driver: Parallel Lines.

The only thing I didn't like about it in Driver 3 as so many graphical glitches were present during the directing and production process.

After creating over 500 replays on my xbox and almost 400 on my PC. I'm starting to get a little bored with the Film Director. The main reason I'm getting so annoyed with it is you here a constant click everything you press a button. That constant click really gets into my mind and gives me a frustrating and annoying headache, especially when I'm wearing headphones.

Click, Click, Click Agh! I need to here either no clicking sound or a unique sound. Because I usually give up when I have a horrible headache.

Other than the horrible clicking sound and the graphical glitches the Film Director is perfect and is very, very easy to use.

However I have always wanted an advanced film director. I'm going to make a few topics with my ideas in them soon and people can discuss particular elements of them. Most of my ideas are for the Film Director to.

You cannot have a hollywoods car chasing game without the feature of filming your action, being your own director, filmer, editor and stuntman (driver)!

So here is what I think. (Film Director)

Positives

+ Easy to Use
+ Excellent Tool



Negatives
- Needs more features (tweening ect.)


and something no developer has attempted is having a higher resolution version of the games city on the disk with a lower resolution(quality) version playable. The higher resolution version will be used when the player decides to render the video.

Making really high quality directed videos.
And the time it takes to render would be a great time to be active, have a bit of a break and maybe a glass of water!

**Assault_machine** · 12-20-2007, 03:55 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by PennySillin:
I'm (actually Reflections) going to need others input on the film director, I thought it was boring and never used it unless something really cool happened. And it usually got botched up by glitches in the replay anyway. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Personally, I don't think that very many of us have ever been using film director, but that doesn't mean that we won't and that we can't get any better at it. Moreover, it would be an enjoyable experience for me (possibly) if I was to learn how to make some really good replays, especially for Driver: You Are The Wheelman. There is just no other Driver game out there, except maybe DPL and the original Driver, that I simply want to play. On the contrary, I hope to play the next Driver game, if it is a good game, at the very least.

This is certainly an excellent idea for a discussion/topic, PennySillin. It contains just many important aspects to discuss in particular. Many of the threads are out there for us to post on what we want the Driver franchise to be like while threads like these are helpful in ways that they let their games' developers see what it is that fans believe was wrong with their games. I will feel compelled enough to at least have this be one of the topics that I'll still continue to post in, but other than that, I don't plan to do too much as before. After all, one's life can't always be spent for posting on a forum.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by driver_madness:
I'm along term user of the Film Director, I use it for everything and I was pretty pissed off when I didn't see it in Driver: Parallel Lines.

The only thing I didn't like about it in Driver 3 as so many graphical glitches were present during the directing and production process.

After creating over 500 replays on my xbox and almost 400 on my PC. I'm starting to get a little bored with the Film Director. The main reason I'm getting so annoyed with it is you here a constant click everything you press a button. That constant click really gets into my mind and gives me a frustrating and annoying headache, especially when I'm wearing headphones.

Click, Click, Click Agh! I need to here either no clicking sound or a unique sound. Because I usually give up when I have a horrible headache.

Other than the horrible clicking sound and the graphical glitches the Film Director is perfect and is very, very easy to use.

However I have always wanted an advanced film director. I'm going to make a few topics with my ideas in them soon and people can discuss particular elements of them. Most of my ideas are for the Film Director to.

You cannot have a hollywoods car chasing game without the feature of filming your action, being your own director, filmer, editor and stuntman (driver)!

So here is what I think. (Film Director)

Positives

+ Easy to Use
+ Excellent Tool



Negatives
- Needs more features (tweening ect.)


and something no developer has attempted is having a higher resolution version of the games city on the disk with a lower resolution(quality) version playable. The higher resolution version will be used when the player decides to render the video.

Making really high quality directed videos.
And the time it takes to render would be a great time to be active, have a bit of a break and maybe a glass of water! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

**InsaneDriver06** · 12-20-2007, 07:27 PM

Film Director in Driver 1 was superior to Driv3r's, mostly thanks to the awesome exterior car chase camera, that let you zoom in or far out(helicopter style), then lock it into place. Driv3r's only let you have it behind the vehicle or go dizzy in circles Matrix style, with no option to stop it. Even Driver 2 didn't offer the range of D1's great chase cam.

Yes, Driv3r offered more camera effects, slow mo, blur that spiced up the replay. But Driver 1's replay could last almost 20 minutes long compared to Driv3r's measly five minute or so replay.

And I agree, streamline the buttons, less icons, more text so there's no confusion what does what.

**driver_madness** · 12-20-2007, 08:39 PM

I cannot even remember a replay limit on driver 1's film director. But it was great to be able to make a very, very long replay.

Driver 1's Film Director could do a lot more, other than the effects that you could do with any video editing application.

As you said you can place the camera anywhere around the car and lock it in that position giving you a lot more power. I believe reflections wanted to keep the Film Director as simple to use as possible so they cut out those time consuming parts.

It feels like it takes me an hour to set up the camera angles in driver 1 for a 3minute replay where it would only take 10minutes in driv3r.

DRIV3R was quick and easy to use.
But in the upcoming driver you should have a choice between a simple and advanced film director.

**Assault_machine** · 12-21-2007, 10:40 PM

I agree with you, driver_madness. There should definitely be a film director that is able to use both simplicity and advancement. Also, the length of time and amount of cameras need to be expanded upon, especially since this is already a second generation after the original Driver came out, and if Ubisoft Reflections can't have themselves improve in the film director any more than D1, it'll be such a shame because, with all of the power that the PS3 and Xbox 360 wield, it cannot mean such a big failure to Reflections.

As far as I can see, with big new changes, including those of moving to Ubisoft, and with the different suggestions already put out, how can we see another bad direction heading for the Driver franchise, such as that of D3, DPL, and D76, which many fans and critics were dissapointed by? Of course, the Driver franchise needs to improve a lot and by saying this, Ubisoft Reflections needs to first take many of the important considerations into their hands, making sure not to make the same mistakes. After all, history tends to repeat itself and in order to prevent this, you must work hard. Therefore, lets have Ubisoft Reflections not exactly work too hard on innovating because it's not that simple, and there is a risk that will need to be taken. My advice to Ubisoft Reflections is to get more used to working for Ubisoft (one more game should be enough) before trying really hard to bring a lot of new things into the Driver franchise.

Edit: The graphics in D1 I think were actually a bit better than those of D2, especially if you look at both of the game's framerates, in which D2 had more slowdowns than D1. Whether D1 for the Playstation had better graphics than D2 or not, I know for a fact that the PC version of D1 did the graphics much better than both PS versions of Driver 1 & 2. Just take a look at these screenshots below and you'll see for yourself.

Driver 1 for the Playstation actually had better lighting textures for its cars than in those of Driver 2.

Next, lets look at Driver for the PC. It happened to have better textures for the car models, buildings, and even the pedestrians. Also, the headlights, when turned on, look pretty realistic for a game around at its time.

Driver 2's graphics, as you can see, improved on the textures with buildings and maybe even add more colors to the whole game, but it still doesn't seem to look any better than the original Driver on the PC.

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