UNITED STATES—From sports games and action-survival games to first-person shooters and racing games, our city of San Francisco has proudly appeared in dozens of video games over the years. Here is our pick of the best ones you will want to check out.
Vette!
This blocky-looking racing game from 1989 may not appear as stylish and slick as the Grand Theft Auto games, but Vette! was a very influential video game and one of the first to feature The Golden City. The video game is especially notable for its detailed 3D polygon rendering of the city, which was groundbreaking back in the late eighties. The object of Vette! is to race through the streets of San Fran in a Chevrolet Corvette. You will come across recognizable places like Lombard Street, Bay Bridge, and the iconic Golden Gate Bridge.
Golden Gate
The Golden Gate Bridge has become a famous global landmark, so it is no surprise that the magnificent piece of architecture has appeared in various games over the years. It has even starred in its very own slot game. The Golden Gate slot is inspired by the Golden Gate Bridge as well as other major San Francisco sights. The five-reel, three-row slot has ten fixed pay-lines and some great special features. You can find the Golden Gate slot game at fabulous online casinos like Casumo.
Driver: San Francisco
Driver: San Francisco is another racing game, but it is one of the best for exploring the streets and sights of San Francisco. You can drive around the city recklessly to see well-known landmarks such as Pier 39, Chinatown, the Transamerica Pyramid, and the Golden Gate Bridge. You can also speed around places like Lombard Street and the Central Freeway, while baddies pursue you and explosions go bang. You are sure to have loads of fun driving through San Fran sites in a way that you wouldn’t dare to do in real life.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater
Both the original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater video game and the Pro Skater 4 game pay tribute to San Francisco’s skating scene. Levels take place in the Embarcadero and on Alcatraz. The Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater games are undoubtedly the best series of skateboarding games out there. The aim of the game is to perform tricks and combinations to increase your score. If you are a skater from San Francisco, you’ll love Pro Skater.
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare
This 2014 first-person shooter is the eleventh title in the Call of Duty game series. Although much of the action takes place in North Korea, Detroit, and Nigeria, the centerpiece fight takes place on the Golden Gate Bridge. You even get to see the bridge being destroyed! With its outstanding visuals and enticing gameplay, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is one of the best shooter adventure games you will find.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Many consider the seventh title in the popular Grand Theft Auto series to be the greatest video game ever created. Not only does the 2004 action-adventure game have fantastic gameplay. It also has an excellent accompanying soundtrack and an engrossing story. Although San Andreas is a fictional US state, and therefore this game isn’t exactly set in San Francisco, it is heavily based on California and Nevada. And it does include the Bay Area of San Fran. As you drive through the game’s Bay Area, natives of the region will notice many references that others could miss. For example, the San Francisco 49ers become the San Fierro 69ers, Haight-Ashbury becomes Hashbury, and Castro is renamed Queens.
Watch Dogs 2
This 2016 action-adventure video game is also set in a fictionalized version of San Fran’s Bay Area, which consists of four areas: Oakland, Marin, Silicon Valley, and San Francisco. You can navigate those places on foot or use the game’s many vehicles to get around. You can travel via car, truck, bus, quad bike, boat, motorcycle, and even cable car. The plot of the game follows a hacker called Marcus Holloway, who is attempting to take down the city’s super-advanced surveillance system.
