November 29, 2004 - The Thanksgiving holiday may have been somewhat quiet on the domestic front in the world of videogames, but our friends in Europe had a bit more going on. During our five-day hiatus, Data Design Interactive announced an all-new videogame based on the official FX4 London Black Cab Company. Known simply as London Taxi, the brand new IP will allow players to drive to such famous British landmarks as Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, and Hyde Park.

"This is a great arcade title that you can just pick up and play," commented Data Design Interactive's Marketing Director Stewart Green. "It's smashing fun weaving between the traffic, racing against the clock, chase, smash, and crash, the emphasis is on great fun. As developers we have come up with a great playable game, and then chosen the classic Black cab as the ideal vehicle and London as the best environment to race in. It is great to have the chance to write games for gamers, rather than just another film license."

As for how the game plays, the exact details are still unknown, but on the surface it certainly sounds a lot like SEGA's popular Crazy Taxi franchise. In it, players will have to collect customers and take them all over London within a given time limit in order to earn their money. Along the way there will be several different routes to take, obstacles to avoid, and traffic to overcome. It will also feature a realistic map of Central London that can be pulled up at any time and accurately rendered Black Cabs automobiles.

A publisher for London Taxi has yet to be announced, but Data Design Interactive still anticipates that the game's release will fall near the end of next year. Of course, PlayStation 2, PSP, Windows PC, and Xbox versions are all being developed simultaneously but a North American is likely impossible.

For the first batch of screenshots taken just click on our media page below. We'll be back with more as it becomes available.