I found FlatOut 2 to be completely unplayable, although I quite enjoyed the original game on PC. The controls are such a mess that I simply could not drive the car. Since this is primarily a racing game and driving is what you do, that pretty much ruined the game for me.
The controls on this game are maddening. I tried using both a gamepad and the keyboard, yet the results were always the same. No matter how I adjusted the sensitivity, my vehicle would spend the entire race fishtailing back and forth across the track. I never once had any decent amount of control over the car, and if I did place any better than last on a race, it was out of sheer luck. Because of the controls, I really couldn’t play this game much at all. I tried and tried to make it work, but got nowhere.
This game has two main parts. First, it is a racing game with a destruction derby aspect to it, and you are encouraged to damage the other vehicles. Just know that yours will take a beating as well. None of it is very realistic, but it can still be pretty fun. The real selling point of this game is the stunt part. It has various macabre stunts involving you sending the body of the driver flying through the windshield as part of challenges like pole vaulting, darts, and more. Despite the control problems, I found the stunt parts a little easier to work with. For me, the racing was impossible.
Between the racing and the stunts, there’s a lot you can do in this game. You’ll earn money, or credits, after completing the races and stunts, and this money can be used to do vehicle upgrades or buy more cars. It’s basically the same kind of money/upgrade system you get in racing games like Gran Turismo, and it offers the player a wide variety of options. It also lets you pick which kind of car you prefer to drive.
The graphics looks pretty good for this game, especially considering it was released in 1996. The tracks look realistic, and part of the originality behind the game involves all the debris on the roads. You are expected to do a lot of damage to your car, so stunt driving around obstacles is a necessity. As the cars take damage, you’ll see a lot of debris falling off them, which is kind of cool. If you smash the front end too many times, your hood which actually lift up and fly off while you are driving.
The sound in this game is also nicely done. When other cars come running up from behind or try to pass, you’ll hear them coming. You can also tell right before one of them is going to rear-end you, so you have a split second to get out of the way. Since the roads are covered in debris, you’ll hear different sounds whenever you crash into them.
I’ve found quite a few rave reviews of this game for its Xbox and PS2 console versions, so I’m guessing those played a lot better than this PC one. Perhaps it is just some kind of weird compatibility issue with Windows Vista, which is what I have on my PC. Many other reviews of this PC game tout improved controls over the first one, but I strongly disagree. Either way, I ended up just deleting this game not letting it frustrate me any more.
My best recommendation is that if you have Windows Vista, don’t get this game. Everyone playing it on Windows XP seems to be having a lot of fun, though.
EXPERIENCE THE DRIVE OF YOUR LIFE AS YOU THROW YOURSELF AROUND ON AND OFF THE TRACK, CAUSING FENCES TO SHATTER, TIRE WALLS TO EXPLODE, AND WATER TANKS...More at HotMovieSale.com
Featuring an enhanced version of the original s physics engine with even faster driving track designs, FlatOut 2 also boasts numerous improvements, en...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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