The police are the law enforcement in the Driver saga. They will try to arrest the player for violations, chase him down by ramming his car and will open fire at the player. They mostly appear in the free roam modes, but they sometimes appear in certain missions. They appear in Survival and Quick chase as well. Driv3r is the only Driver game which Police will also respond to A.I actions.
Driver: You Are the Wheelman[]
An LAPD patrol car responding
In the Undercover mode, police will begin to appear and chase Tanner down just after the bank heist in the first mission of the game. They can also be seen patrolling around each city in the game. If Tanner causes any traffic violations (such as speeding, running a red light, colliding into vehicles, etc.), they will chase him down and attempt to ram his car.
They also appear in the Take a Ride mode as well as Mini games such Survival and Quick Chase. The higher the felony Tanner has, the more police units will be seen patrolling around whichever city he's in.
The maximum number of cop cars depends on the version Driver is being played on, which is 4 on PC version and 2 on the PlayStation version. It is also possible to have 6 police cars on your tail only if the player touches every police car on a roadblock, chasing all of them to you. However, this trick will cause framerates to drop on Playstation version.
To avoid police chases, always try to drive slower, don't swerve in-and-out of traffic and/or run a red light as often as there are cops near you if your felony meter is at empty. However, if you already have Felony, the only way to avoid the police is staying out of their white spheres/cones otherwise they will continue the chase.
While driving, do not let the felony raise high, or more police units will appear on patrol, making completing missions objectives very challenging and dangerous.
Felony[]
If the player has committed a crime, (e.g.: such as speeding, running red lights, traffic collision, property damage, etc) the police give chase, ram Tanner and attempt to total his car in order to put him under arrest.
When the Police wrecks Tanner's vehicle, the mission will fail, and you need to restart it.
As the Felony slowly increases, more police units will roam on street, searching for Tanner. Whenever Police spots him, they will immediately turn on their siren continue the chase. Nearby police cars will also join the pursuit.
If the felony meter is full, police will start placing roadblocks around town.
AI Behavior[]
The Police AI system follow a specific pattern, sharpen in accordance with Tanner's actions. When a transgression is seen, they will chase, ram and wreck Tanner's car. The Police will also make some roadblocks around the town but no officer will present there to shoot your car or something. Police will not consider the behavior of other AI cars, such they accidentally car crash or anything like that, they are programmed to only respond to the Player's actions.
However, the Police AI in survival mode is much more advanced and challenging. They will use rubberband and increase their damage rate at Tanner's car. Their cars are immune to damage, as their cars will never be totaled.
Radar[]
Police car will be marked on radar map as white dots. The dot is wider when they are looking for the player. When Police spots player, the radar will flash blue and red. If Police lost sight of player or their car is wrecked, the radar will be flashed and will return to normal.
On PC version, Police car will be marked on radar map as small cone. The cone will be bigger when they are looking for the player.
Cop cars (PS1 Version)[]
These 2 cop cars models, also appear on Los Angeles and New York City.
Driver 2: Back on the Streets[]
The Police in Driver 2 functions the same way as the previous installment. However, new abilities were introduced, such as the ability to chase Tanner when they are on roadblocks or when they can take some rest.
If Tanner breaks the law, the Police will respond by chasing Tanner's car.
Felony[]
The felony system in Driver 2 is same as the previous game. They will pursue Tanner's car. The higher felony you got, the more police units roam the streets (Max 2). If Felony bar is filled, Police will start placing roadblocks around the town. The felony bar will always be full if the player gets in one of the parked police cars left around the town, unless Immunity cheat is on. If Tanner blows the horn when pedestrians are nearby, felony also increases, and the police will pursue Tanner if he keeps blowing the horn.
A.I Behavior[]
The Police is now more aggressive and almost unforgiving to escape. They can stop their car on road lines and switch off their engine, but the officers will remain in their car and will become idle until the player breaks any crime. The A.I behavior on roadblocks is also expanded, if the player hits one of the cop car on the roadblock, the cop car that got touched on will join the pursuit. This also applies to any A.I hits their car.
Tanner cannot steal any police car that has officers in it, so he should search around the town to find any unoccupied police cars. It's the only way to steal a police car. If Tanner gets in the police car, he will get full Felony level which is very risky to drive due to more police on street, unless the "Immunity" from the secrets settings is on.
Police A.I in Survival mode, will act the same as they did in the predecessor.
Radar[]
Radar is same as in the predecessor, police cars will be marked as white sphere, but wider when looking for the player. When the police car A.I goes idle, they will not be marked on radar, but they will still respond if the player commits nearby crimes.
Cop cars[]
Driv3r[]
The Police behavior in Driv3r has been highly improved (in comparison to Driver 1 and 2). Police officers can now patrol on foot in the streets and they will respond to any crime committed like car crash or pedestrian hit. Another brand new ability is that they can now shoot to kill other criminals, such as Timmy Vermicelly, or any other criminal.
Felony[]
The Felony system has expanded. There is a line on the bar meaning if the player has committed a crime but the bar meter is behind the line as indicated in orange colour, the police will attempt to make an arrest on the player. Though, the arrest is never seen in-game, there will be a message that you got arrested. During that event, the player is unable to do anything but to restart as prompted by the game. The police will still try attempt to make an arrest on the player even though the bar may be flashing red and blue, long as the bar has not progressed ahead of the line.
If the player keeps colliding with other vehicles, particularly police car and speeding, the police will shoot Tanner on sight.
If the bar meter has passed the line and is flashing red and blue colors, Police will shoot Tanner on sight, chase, ram and wreck his car. If the Felony bar keeps increasing, more police officers will be on foot, shooting at Tanner. When the Felony bar reaches half the meter or more, police officers in their police cars will start use Shotguns, meaning no officer in their police car will use Pistols. However Officers on street will still use Pistols. Finally, when the Felony bar is filled, Police will start making roadblocks around the city (Applies only when 1 police car is chasing you at the time), at roadblocks, there will be 2-3 officers armed with shotguns, depending the size of the road.
There will be more police units if Felony is keeping increasing or is filled (Maximum 5 police cars at the same time).
A.I Behavior[]
Unlike the first two Driver series, the Police will now respond to any unseen crimes committed such as wielding a weapon in public, shootings, car crashes, killed pedestrian and so on.
When any of these crimes are occured, nearby police car will immediately turn their siren on and rush to the crime scene. Upon arrival, police officers will get off their car, one will stay near the cop car and one will patrol/investigate around the area. If a criminal is seen in any car, the Police will immediately shoot them, even if the criminal do nothing. They will also shoot Timmy Vermicelli on sight.
Each city has it's own Police A.I. In Miami, Police will ram and wreck Tanner's car, in Nice, Police will simple ram Tanner's car and there will be more foot officers on streets and in Instanbul, Police will often wreck Tanner's car and there can be a lot police cars in pursuit. However, all cities will have same Police A.I behavior on shootout and tactics.
Police A.I in Survival is also expanded. Their cars will now be destroyable, but they will still use their double-speed, more damage to players. When their car is wrecked, officers will get off the cop car and shoot Tanner's car.
However, despite of expanded about A.I Behavior, Police is criticized as "cheater". Meaning they will always stay near the player. They will always catch up with the player, always will be near the player meaning the player will never have a chance to escape from the Police but to shoot them. They will always use double-speed, no matter what, no cars will be faster than a double-speed cop car owned by A.I.
Police Car A.I also has a cheating pathfinding. When Tanner cannot see the cop car owned by A.I or is very far and Tanner commits a crime, police car owned by A.I will immediately drive through walls and will also drive on air unseen. When Tanner sees the cop car, the cop car will start get wrecked and hit to ground. They can also pass through buildings unseen but as soon as Tanner sees them, their cop car will fall under world.
If Tanner wrecks a cop car owned by A.I but does not kill the driver, and runs away from them, their cop car owned by A.I will get fully repaired and will chase Tanner, as even if he is very far from the cop car.
If you are not wanted by the Police, the second A.I cop car will never do anything until the first A.I cop car is eliminated. This also applies when a criminal or Timmy Vermicelly shoots at the second A.I cop car.
Radar[]
Radar has also expanded, but some features such White sphere is same. Cop car will be marked as white sphere(On some missions, they will be marked as Red sphere, meaning they are your enemy), wider white sphere when Police are looking for the player. Cop officers will be marked as transparent/grey sphere. Wider when they are looking for the player.
Cop cars[]
Cop Officers[]
Driver: Parallel Lines[]
Taking consideration of the huge criticized AI behavior of Driv3r and the cheating, the Police's AI in Parallel Lines have been overhauled and improved, as well as expanding the abilities of Police A.I.
Felony[]
Unlike in the previous installments, the Felony system has changed from Bar to Square boxes-looking like. If the Felony box color is yellow, Police will put the player under arrest, but if the colour is red, Police will shoot on him. If the felony boxes raise more, more cop cars will be on street, as well as there will be a Police Helicopter searching for the player on air. There may be some roadblocks around the city.
A.I Behavior[]
Police A.I behavior has been improved to less cheat like double speed on car. The Police will now shoot at the player through their window when the player is on high felony. Police may call a Police Helicopter on air to assist them in order to stop the player at all costs (even if they'll need to kill him). Police will respond same as they did in Driv3r, if an accident or someone hit, Police will respond, turn on its siren and go to the crime scene. Unlike in Driv3r, both officers will get off the car and investigate the area and a nearby police cruiser will also respond to the crime, resulting in 2 police cruisers investigating the area.
If the player has committed a crime by car, Police will take the description of the car but not the player. Police will chase player's car. But if Player has committed a crime on foot, Police will take his description. But Police will not chase him if Player has entered a car that is not wanted by Police.
However, unlike in Driv3r, the Police will not respond to any kind of violation committed by enemy AI, even if the enemy AI shoots at the Police, they will do nothing. They will only respond anything you will do.
Radar[]
The radar system follow the same principle as previous installments. The Police Helicopter will use the same white spot symbol as the cop cars do.
Cop Cars[]
Cop Officers[]
(Image required)
Driver: San Francisco[]
Unlike the previous two Driver installments, the police system has been completely overhauled, removing most of their previous abilities, such as leaving their vehicle, shooting the player, and any remaining off-foot actions. Felony has also been overhauled. This new system is similar to Driver 1 and 2.
Felony[]
There is not a bar anymore, a new system has replaced it: the amount of police chasing after you. This system, indicates how many cop cars are in your area and will attempt to arrest arrest you through any means necessary. When the player rams a police unit, a pursuit will start and any police units in the area will join in to stop and arrest the player. As the pursuit persists, the amount of police units will slowly decrease as police units will either fall behind or have their vehicles be totaled.
A.I Behavior[]
Police A.I Behavior has been improved and overhauled, behaving similarly like they did in Driver 1 and 2. If the player collides with a police cruiser, any police units in the area will turn on its siren and chase the player. Nearby cop cars will be notified of the situation and chase you in sight. When Police has wrecked your car or has you cornered for 10 seconds, they will arrest you. Arrest is not seen in-game, only a message will show as the police in the area immediately returns to patrol. Otherwise, if the player escapes, the police will enter search mode for 10 seconds. Have you not been discovered, police will immediately return to patrol and you will lose all the heat from the pursuit. Sometimes three police cruisers will spawn chasing down a runaway vehicle. The player can either shift into one of the active police cruisers to help take down the runaway, or shift into the runaway to help them escape from the police.
Radar[]
Radar map has been revamped. Police will be marked as Blue dots on map, while Criminal cars will be marked as red dot on map. Criminal cars are only visible if you have shifted into a police cruiser. When the San Francisco police are chasing you, there will be a circular area on your mini map flashing red and blue like the police sirens. If any police units are in the area, they will be marked as triangle with blue and red flashing, each with their own circular areas and begin to chase. If they lost sight of you, they will be marked as circle with blue and red flashing. If completely lost you, they will be return to being normal, blue dots, as their areas of sight are removed off the map.
Cop Cars[]
Escaping[]
Driver 1[]
- Once you committed a crime and Police responds to your action, immediately drive away, and fast. Once you are far away, police will lose you and will start a small search finding you for a while. At this state, the flashing zone will revert back to white, but active cop cars will search you, rushing to your last location. Stay away from their "search cones" or you will be detected and the chase will resume.
- Once Police completely lost your sight and stopped their search for you and entered patrol mode, remember to stay away from their "search cones" or white spheres(PS1).
- Remember to stay 5 meters away from Cop car "search cone" which is chasing you until it loses your sight, otherwise, it will respawn to a closer location, commonly front of you.
Driver 2[]
- Use the same tactics as Driver 1 but except "search cones" because there are no "search cones" anymore, only white spheres.
- When Police lost your sight, immediately exit your vehicle in order to prevent getting your car fully wrecked during chase and then you will be arrested.
- While on chase, try lure your chasing cop car to hit one of obstacles and drive fast to get lost sight by Police.
- Stay away from roadblocks, hitting one of their cop cars, will immediately give chase to you. Flashing zone will also re-started once you encounter a roadblock, even if there is no officer or wrecked cop cars.
Driv3r[]
- Escaping from Police is now much harder and nearly impossible. The only way to escape from Police is, lure your chasing cop car to hit one of the obstacles or get off the vehicle and shoot at them.
- Always stay away from their white sphere on the mini map, otherwise you will be spotted, even if you are in a house or behind a wall.
- Do not attempt to engage in gunfight where there are a lot officers armed with pistols and shotguns. In that situation, engaging in gunfight is suicidal.
- On higher felony levels, cop officers will spawn on road, patrolling while you drive. Making escape from Police even harder and impossible to "erase" flashing zone.
- If only 1 cop car is chasing you, always attempt to kill officers in it, then drive away.
- Enter any safehouses to lose the heat (Felony).
- If Police saw you doing vehicular crime (e.g.: hitting a pedestrian), dont leave the vehicle and try to escape. Once they lost sight of you, your car will be wanted by the police, so immediately abandon the vehicle to avoid getting spotted in the vehicle. However, if you commit a crime on foot and you shoot a police officer, any car you enter will automatically be wanted by Police, as even if no police officers were there to see you entering that vehicle.
Trivia[]
- The Police car in Driver 1 intro looks different than Police car in gameplay. The main differences are, you can see officer driving the police car, police car's design and different emergency lights.
- The design and colour of Miami Cop car in Driv3r Beta looked different than in Full Version.
- Police behavior depending on the city you are playing in Driv3r. Miami Police will often ram Tanner's car, while Nice Police will simple follow Tanner's car behind and in Instanbul, Police will ram and wreck Tanner's car.
- Driv3r is the first game to be criticized as "worst game" because of Police A.I.
- Never attempt to attack and wreck cop cars in Driver 1 and Driver 2 because they are always immune to damage.
- Police in Driv3r will always speak when they attempt to arrest you or shoot at you or NPC.
- Police in Driver 1, will often talk when they spot you or lost your sight. You can hear them saying "We found him!" when they spot you or "Report it" when they lose your sight. Also, you can hear them saying "Suspect is heading (i.e. North)" for example, when you're direction is heading north, or "Suspect has hit another vehicle!" when you crashed into another vehicle. They're also saying "Suspect has run a red" if you run a red light.
- Policemen in Driv3r speak with their native language, depending on your location.