Super Runabout marks the 128-bit transition for the series as it makes its way to the Dreamcast. This time around, you are offered two scenarios: one to play as a vigilante group, and the other as the cops. Either camp requires you to complete a series of missions that involve navigating your way through the city and performing various tasks like intercepting bombs, getting to certain locations within a time limit, crashing into vehicles and objects, and so on. Success in these missions is crucial to both earning money and progressing to the next stage.

The essence of Super Runabout is the potential for chaos. The roads are packed with traffic travelling in all directions, as well as pedestrians who saunter about with general disregard to road safety. That's also not to mention objects like signs, garbage bins, road blocks, and the like. If you don't take the proper care while racing towards your objective (which will happen frequently as you concentrate on your radar screen), you'll end up either screwing your vehicle over from all the damage or just run out of time.

With a concept like 'goal-oriented urban mayhem on wheels', the Crazy Taxi comparisons are inevitable. In that regard, Super Runabout doesn't rate very well. In fact, you don't even need Crazy Taxi to know that Super Runabout is a turkey. The cars all have a low poly count, and the wheels frequently and inexplicably protrude through the body of the car. The textures on the vehicles are also pretty low-res, and it's even lower for the CPU-controlled traffic. The backgrounds are all solidly constructed to look like a city, but they look terribly bland without much variation from one flat rectangular building after another. There's also a bit of pop-up in spite of the fog, and they could definitely have used some FSAA as the buildings exhibit some very distracting Moire Effect distortions. And worst of all, there's frequent slow-down. Considering how efficiently Crazy Taxi runs, there's little excuse for this.

The gameplay is even worse, where every vehicle features incredibly sluggish and unresponsive controls. Crashing into something at high speed is funny. Continuing to collide with the same object twelve times while trying to steer out of its way is bollocks. To its credit, you may find some variety through the numerous vehicles at your disposal. You can ride in anything from a turbo-charged roadster to a scooter or country-hick jalopy. Unfortunately, the horrendous physics engine spoils any enjoyment you'd get from this variation. The slightest nudge on a stationary vehicle will send it reeling back several meters with smoke and serious body damage. Moving vehicles will, however, continue on their journey after the initial collision, meaning that they'll just drive straight back into you. Over, and over, and over again. Conversely, the most unlikely of turns and manoeuvres will send you into an uncontrollable spin. Ultimately, gaining any sense of control out of this game is an intense and frustrating exercise.

The game's lack of basic production values is also a source of immense disappointment. Take the presentation screens and FMVs, for instance. They feature low-res pre-renders, no sampled speech, and too many ugly loading screens. This is sloppy execution, and it only worsens whatever impression is to be had of the game.

In all fairness, Super Runabout might have rated higher if Crazy Taxi didn't exist. The problem is, it does; and anyone who's hoping for a Crazy Taxi-esque experience will feel rightly ripped off. In a nutshell, Super Runabout could very well pass off as a PlayStation game running on Bleemcast. Don't make that an excuse to buy the game, though.