Review: FlatOut 2

FlatOut 2
Bugbear/Vivendi

Reviewed On:Xbox
Street: 08.06

Last year Bugbear released FlatOut to some fairly dismal reviews. Not one to give up so easily, they climbed back up on the mighty horse of game development and released FlatOut 2 and this time around things are much improved. I started out with some derby racing, which involves about six cars, a dirt circuit and no rules. Smash, crash and plow your way to victory or (in my case) annihilation. The graphics look great and the feel of the cars is very well done. The environments are fun and allow you to plow through many of the things that would stop you dead in your tracks in other games. You are rewarded for hazardous driving with ‘Nitro’ points that allow increased acceleration. Placing well in the races earns you money to upgrade your vehicle and unlock other races. Another feature of FlatOut 2 is the mini-games that involves launching your driver out of the car in order to complete some kind of stunt with his comatose body. You can high jump, skip on water or go bowling with the poor little guy. Obviously, this is a novelty in the game but it is surprisingly addictive. Completing different races unlock different stunt events for you to compete in; these mini games also proved to be irresistible to spectators who just had to try it once. If you’re into arcade style racing games, then FlatOut 2 should find its way into your Xbox library, it’s worth the rental even just for the mini-game stunts! Although not as fancy as some of the next generation racers coming out on the new consoles this game is good for hours of good racing and with Xbox Live you can race on line on both the tracks and the mini games! When you pick up your copy, try to ignore the horribly cheesy cover art. 4 out of 5 smoking car wrecks. – Jesse Kennedy