After a lengthy hiatus, Ubisoft’s original car-chasing epic known as Driver is poised to make a grand return later this fall. Billed as a franchise reboot, Driver: San Francisco is the true in-name successor to 1999’s PSOne hit. Disregard the numbered sequels: this installment takes the best bits from the original and builds upon them across 208 square miles of asphalt and terrain.

For starters, Driver: San Francisco draws few comparisons to Grand Theft Auto, apart from the fact that both take place in a sprawling urban environment. Players traverse the city entirely from within the confines of their vehicle. Despite nixing on-foot play, the title still provides a way of jacking new rides through its shift mechanic. Want to hitch a ride in the flashy sports car ahead? Just press X and the game screen will fade to gray, giving players the opportunity to pick their target of choice. Once a target is selected, you essentially warp over to the chosen vehicle and assume control of it.

In a surreal twist, Tanner, the main protagonist, has been left in a coma, granting him the ability to subconsciously control cars. Suffice to say, it’s a bit bewildering at first but who’s to complain: it works and more importantly adds to the experience. In particular, the shift mechanic makes multiplayer sessions quite interesting. One mode was available in the E3 demo, called Trail Blazer. Players are tasked with following a yellow-shaded vehicle target as close as possible. Maintaining a steady pace equals more points, and whoever earns the most wins. Details on other modes are forthcoming.

Structurally, the title resembles San Francisco in virtual form block-to-block in the areas it covers. There’s a few off-road sections as well, though our time was limited to within the heart of the city.

Ubisoft is adding an extensive layer of polish to the title. Take the subtle action of turning the steering wheel for instance: it actually rotates in accordance to the intensity of player input, which you can see while driving in the in-car camera style.

Beyond Tanner’s freak accident, Ubisoft is keeping mum as far as story details are concerned for now. In the E3. As far as performance is concerned, the title appeared to be hovering at around 40-50 frames per second. However, the Ubisoft rep on location told us that the development team at Ubisoft Reflections is aiming for 60. That’s rather impressive for a sandbox-style effort. Or unheard of, rather. Additionally, Ubisoft is promising 120 licensed vehicles in the finished product.

Driver: San Francisco is slated for a fall debut on PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, PC, OnLive, and Mac.

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