FlatOut

Its really disappointing seeing how the fancy graphics, the really cool physics engine and the deformation and impact system got wasted with a cheating AI. After the first few races (and the first few crashes) you can start to wonder why your car can't throw any of the AI pilots out of the race but, in exchange, the slightest touch of any of those pilots will throw you out (Specially in the last laps) the course. Why your car is so fragile in the last laps crashing with the most spectacular stunts after crashing with just a barrel, or why it uses to end facing the opposite direction when you are the first on the race in the last lap after a bad taken turn (And why turning again to face the right direction its so difficult). It seems the game plots against the player: if he don't make a completely perfect race (Random element included due physics elements), then he will crash or end up the eight. If he does, maybe he has luck and don't get hit by any of the A.I. cars. It all ends in a frustrating driving experience where going the first for three laps doesn't assure you that a jump, or a light scratch in the side of your car will make you end crashing against something. And it's a shame, because if you can get through the unfair A.I. and the random collision system, there's a really fun and quick driving game. Sadly, I don't like to play with cheaters.

Be aware that you will not get a Linux version of this game by downloading the "Linux" version. You'll get the Windows version and over 300 megabyte of WINE.

There are many great things about this game, which makes me wish I got hold of it back when it was released. Maybe I would have the same nostalgic love for it that I have for NFSU2 which was released the same year. But it also has its share of problems. The Good: - The physics is on the whole are pretty well done. The cars are very slippy slidey but I don't mind it. - It looks amazing for a game from 2005. - The car destruction is delightful. - The npc AI is remarkably good compared to even some modern racing games. - Good variety of biomes to race in. The Bad: - Inconsistent obstacle physics. The idea of having obstacles is nice, but the final result is far too unpredictable. Sometimes running over a concrete slab does nothing, other times running over a traffic cone sends your car tumbling into the underbrush. - Difficulty. Bizarrely, the rubber banding seems to be somehow inversed. Cars ahead are quicker, and cars behind are slower. - Inconsistent ragdoll. When and where the game decides you should ragdoll seems totally arbitrary. - The camera is horrifically bad; in tight corners you can't see where you're going. - The sluggish steering. Oh god the steering, why is it like this? In a game where fast reactions and small margins can make all the difference, I cannot fathom why they would devise a steering system where the car responds about half a second after you press the keys. You have to be a psychic to play this game at the limit, because you have to predict what angle and velocity your car is going to have half a second into the future, and also whether there are any obstacles there. - Track design. Tragically for a racing game, the track design is this game's biggest weakness. About half the braking zones have (sometimes invisible) jumps in them, which makes driving unbelievably difficult. The number of times you will brake too late because of an imperceptible jump and overshoot the corner by a mile makes for an incredibly frustrating experience.

Flatout was so close to being the definite casual arcade racing game. First of all, the menu system is perhaps the worst of all times. One has to scroll left and right in the menu just to see the options even if there is ony five of them available. There is also a home/root menu in which you can still go 'back'. Uh oh. Driving in Flatout just feels like pushing a bar of soap around on a wet bathroom floor. With the trottle pressed the car oversteeds and on the other hand it instantly understeers if you brake. Oh boy, the flying rag doll trick. It was supposed to be cool back 2004... It was funny exactly two times and got super annoying after that. The worst thing, however, in this game is the rubberband mechanic. If you drive poorly, so will the AI opponents. If you really excel, the AI cars are still sniffing your rear bumper. Because of this, there is never a feeling of pursuit or challenge. I supposed Bugbear did this because they wanted the players to concentrate on destruction derby instead of honest racing. Maybe it is better in the multiplayer mode - I have not tested that. The music and graphics are top notch and they have not aged a bit. With a bit of luck you will get the contols working better than me and actually enjoy the game. Like I said, it was so close to being the definite casual arcade racing game.

Fun little game with a very a limited number of tracks that are more or less copy pasted and sometimes just inverted. The good thing is it is quite satisfying to learn to handle the cars especially on professional difficulty. The cheapest car is the hardest to handle while the most expensive is way easier. You will want to improve your tires and thus traction as your first modification in the game. They only overdid it with the AI hostility. The other cars often prefer to ruin your day instead of trying to win the race themself. When they are behind you they will try to hit you from the back and spin you and they will often succeed in that. If they crash in front of you, they wil intentionally get right in your way while getting back on the track. Sometimes they just completely "forget" it is a race and go after you to slow you down even.