The game was released for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows, and Mac OS X; additionally a distinct version for the Wii features a separate storyline.

The game's main story sees players controlling John Tanner, a police detective, who falls into a coma pursuing his nemesis Charles Jericho following a prison breakout after the events of Driver 3 and finds himself piecing together his plan in a dream world while it is happening in real life.

Players can also push L1 on the PlayStation 3 or the left shoulder button on the Xbox 360 version of the game to perform a special 'ram' attack on cars.

The film director mode, which was absent from Parallel Lines, also returns, and players can share their videos on the Driver Club website.

The automobile marques featured in the game include Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Audi, Bentley, Cadillac, Chevrolet, DeLorean, Dodge, Ford, GMC, Hummer, Lamborghini, Lincoln, McLaren, Pagani, Ruf, Shelby, and Volkswagen.

[4] Split screen and online multiplayer are also available for the first time in the series with 19 different game modes including trailblazer, tag, sprint GT, cops and robbers, among others.

A new feature for the Wii is the localized multi-player, where a second player may take control of the gun or, if they desire, can connect a DS, DSi or 3DS system through download play.

After he and FBI agent John Tanner (Demetri Goritsas) undergo successful surgery, criminal Charles Jericho (Michael Dobson) escapes from a Turkish hospital and flees back to the United States.

Following this, Tanner and his partner Tobias Jones (Peter Benson) manage to locate and arrest him in San Francisco.

On the day of his trial, Jericho stages a breakout from his prison convoy, overpowering his guards and eliminating the police escort.

As Jericho ambushes them and attempts to run them down with the van, Tanner escapes into a street with heavy traffic that results in a devastating crash, putting him in a coma.

When the pair track down the prison van, Tanner finds himself suddenly disappearing from his car and reappearing in the driver's seat of an ambulance carrying a critically injured patient.

Tanner soon discovers he has an ability that lets him "Shift" into another person's body, taking on their appearance but retaining his own memories and skills.

Tanner then inhabits the body of a small-time crook to infiltrate the organization, but is immediately discovered by Jericho, who also possesses the ability to Shift.

As things around him begin to grow more bizarre, Tanner eventually discovers that he has been in a dream world since the crash, with the events influenced by his subconscious hearing the TV broadcast.

Upon finally awakening from his coma, Tanner informs Jones that Jericho is hoaxing a bomb threat to conceal a major crime.

Tanner's deduction proves correct when an explosion that seems chemical is in reality a large-scale smokescreen; Jericho's actual plan was to conceal the breakout of another inmate from the prison he was held in.

On 30 August, the soundtrack was confirmed with 76 songs with genres like funk, hip hop, electronic, alternative rock and hard rock from artists such as Aretha Franklin, Dr. John, DJ Shadow, The Black Keys, The Cure, Beastie Boys, Queens of the Stone Age, The Heavy, Unkle, and Elbow.

The storyline takes place after the events of Driver and before San Francisco, and focuses on Tanner's personal vengeance against Jericho: the mini-series was written by David Lapham and illustrated by Greg Scott.

[64] The Daily Telegraph gave the Xbox 360 version a score of four stars out of five, saying: "Delivered with wit and panache, Driver San Francisco works because it's daft, rather than in spite of it.

[59] However, The Digital Fix gave the same console version seven out of ten, saying that it "isn't always executed perfectly but it is a whole heap of fun and deserves some credit for being genuinely different".

[68][69][70] Ubisoft announced in its fall 2011 quarterly financial report that sales of Driver: San Francisco had exceeded their targets.