SEGA perfected fare-based gameplay with its seminal Dreamcast hit Crazy Taxi, but Nacon’s attempt at the genre is a lot tamer in terms of action. However, there’s some impressive technology going into Taxi Life: A City Driving Simulator, as it features a “large area of Barcelona reproduced at 1:1 scale”. The French firm hired developer Simteract to realise the rendition, as we reported last year.

Now the title’s got a February release window on the PS5, and it looks pretty cool if you can switch off your love of The Offspring and Bad Religion. You’ll need more than a Class D license to succeed here, as you’ll need to observe the rules of the road as your ferry your passengers from A-to-B. As you earn money, you’ll be able to reinvest into your fledgling taxi firm, hiring employees and assigning them districts and time slots.

Obviously this is a sim, and its realistic visuals and gameplay reflect that, but we reckon there is a market for a more down-to-earth take on the taxi genre, and with the realistic Barcelona-based city map, it should be fun simply exploring the open world.

[source youtube.com]