Driver '76 is the fifth game in the Driver series and the first since Ubisoft acquired the license from Atari. The game is a prequel to Driver: Parallel Lines, set two years before the events, and features two side characters from Parallel Lines: Ray (controlled by the player) and Slink. Ray has set his eyes on the daughter of a Triad boss and tries to impress him by taking on tough jobs. This gets him in a lot of trouble with the other gangs, and the story, divided over 6 chapters, is presented in comic-book style.

There are 27 missions, set in New York, from New Jersey to Coney Island, with several distinguishable districts, and over 40 customizable vehicles, from dirt bikes to sports cars and big rigs, and some surprises such as the Ghostbusters' Ecto-1 - all with different handling. Players have complete freedom to move about, but the mission structure is linear. Tasks include time-limited runs, escorting and evading missions. Ray can also move on foot, and wreak havoc with a number of guns, along with locked targetting.

During the main game the characters can accept side jobs to earn additional cash, such as closed-course or open-road racing, driving a tow-truck, a taxi or an ambulance, and money can be spend in the garage to upgrade the vehicles.

Multiplayer is supported for up to 2 players over WiFi with Street Racing, Carnage, Circuit Racing, Pink Slip Racing and Swap Meet. Players can also swap items over W-Lan or download new paint jobs. Next to the main game, there are also a few minigames.