Common Sense Media Review
By Marc Saltzman
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Good premise that ultimately fails in execution.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Play
Videos and Photos
The Crew
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 6 parent reviews
Based on 16 kid reviews
Kids say the game is popular among older children for its smooth gameplay and street racing elements, but it has been criticized for its excessive swearing, occasional violence, and lack of engaging content due to the discontinuation of online servers. While some players appreciate its vast open world and driving mechanics, many deem it poorly executed with unbalanced gameplay, outdated graphics, and a strong negative message regarding crime and illegal activities.
- smooth gameplay
- excessive swearing
- poor execution
- negative message
- outdated graphics
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's It About?
THE CREW is a story-driven open-world racing game that stars you as Alex, a driver out to avenge the murder of his brother. Over a number of missions across the U.S. -- through towns, cities, and the countryside -- you'll race with and against others, evade authorities, customize your ride (with an advanced tuning system), and expose those responsible for his brother's murder. The game features dozens of cars to unlock and tweak as well as a focus on online multiplayer missions.
Is It Any Good?
The Crew attempts to be a compelling open-world racing game. There are a lot of missions, customizable vehicles, and varied environments to take advantage of during play. But, although it tries to break new ground, the game barely hovers above mediocrity for a couple of reasons. For one, the game requires an Internet connection, even when playing solo missions. Unfortunately, its servers were frequently down upon review, making it unplayable. Other technical issues plagued the game, ranging from graphics problems and physics issues on the road to questionable artificial intelligence. Plus, although it's somewhat easy to control, the user interface between missions and the HUD (heads-up display) isn't as clean or informative as it could be.
The Crew isn't horrible -- there's a lot of ground to cover with a huge variety in locations and cars, along with some intense missions to tackle -- but the game's many issues plague the experience overall. Perhaps with a few more months of testing it could've been one of the more memorable titles of 2014. But, as it stands now, it's an average game at best.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the hazards of reckless driving. Do teens understand that this high-speed racing is fictional, or would some be tempted to drive like this in real life? Is the driving similar to that in a movie franchise such as The Fast and the Furious or is it worse because players actually control the vehicles?
Talk about the mature content within the game. Could the story exist without the profanity and sexual content, or would the characters engaging in this behavior seem less realistic?
Game Details
- Platforms : PlayStation 4 , Windows , Xbox 360 , Xbox One
- Pricing structure : Paid
- Available online? : Not available online
- Publisher : UbiSoft
- Release date : December 18, 2014
- Genre : Racing
- Topics : Transportation ( Cars & Trucks )
- ESRB rating :
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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