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this issue: october 15, 1999

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Books / Digital Culture:
The Last Page
by Rachel Singer Gordon
Books, reading, and and modern technology.

Novel:
vCity 1.0
by Dr. Adam L. Gruen
20 days in the life of a 21st century virtual city simulation.

Selected Past Articles:

Culture:
I Want a New Drug
by Dan Richards
Dextromethorphan, more than just a cough suppressant.
07/27/1999

Exclusive:
Coercion
by Douglas Rushkoff
An excerpt from Douglas' new book
10/01/99

People:
Howard Rheingold
An exclusive, in-depth interview.
09/01/1999

Books:
The Pity of War
by by Niall Ferguson
reviewed by Jwnnifer Mediano

Software:
Photoshop 5.5
reviewed by Donald Melanson

Driver for Sony PlayStation reviewed by Donald Melanson

There is one word that springs to mind when trying to describe Driver, cool. Not cool like the latest high-tech gadget or trend, but cool like Miles Davis' jazz, or a John Woo action sequence. Or like the premise on which it's based, 70s cop shows and movies like The Streets of San Francisco.

While Driver achieves brilliance in some respects, it is a somewhat flawed game. It's important to point out, however, that none of these flaws affect gameplay, which is why this review is as favorable as it is.

The flaws are primarily in the presentation and, in general, give one the feeling of a rushed job. It's not made entirely clear, for instance, that there are different game modes available from the main menu. Also, the opening cut-scene is in no way representative of the frantic pace of the actual game, and the in game cut-scenes aren't so hot either.

The game itself, on the other hand, is an amazing experience to say the least. The aspect everyone seems to be talking about is how huge each of the cities are (Miami, San Francisco, New York and L.A.). Unlike driving games like Ridge Racer Type 4, in Driver you are free to drive anywhere you wish. The title of the game is about as appropriate as it could be; you'll quite literally just want to drive around each city.

A PC version of Driver is now available, but I haven't had a chance to play it yet so I can't tell you if these problems get resolved there. But even with these flaws Driver is still one of the best driving games on any platform.

mindjack rating:
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The writer of this article welcomes your comments: donald@mindjack.com

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