Staff writer After test-driving a simulation game and ramming right into a curb, Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara announced Wednesday, "I guess I wasn't meant to be a bus driver." "Tokyo Bus Guide," created for Sega Enterprises Ltd.'s Dreamcast game console, focuses on an ungainly, slow-plodding mode of public transportation. But city officials hope the game will promote the image of city buses as well as bring in some much-needed extra revenue. Created by the computer graphics company Fortyfive Co., with the cooperation of the city's Bureau of Transportation, the game features visual and sound effects recorded from city buses, such as announcements, engine sounds and views from the driver's seat. Royalties consisting of a percentage of sales in the initial year, projected to be about 10 million yen in total, will be injected into the bureau's coffers. Another game the bureau helped design -- "Toden de Iko," ("Let's Go by City Rail") -- was made for Sony's PlayStation and sold a modest 3,000 copies after it was put on the market in summer last year. "Tokyo Bus Guide" was given high marks last week by critics in the computer game magazine "Famitsu" and is expected to do better, officials say. Like the popular PlayStation game "Densha de Go" ("Let's Take a Train,") the game calls for the player to obey traffic rules and pay attention to time schedules. The game features nighttime and daytime maneuvering in such areas as Odaiba, Aomi and downtown Tokyo, with views of Tokyo Tower and the Rainbow Bridge. "Driving a sluggish bus feels more real than flying any F-1 fighter (in a game)," said Ishihara. "The game makes doing 60 km feel dangerous."The game goes on sale today and is priced at 5,800 yen.
