FlatOut Preview

All you have to do is turn it over once to realize that this is not your momma’s track-racing title. No, no, not turn over the engine – the car.

The Grinder, a beat-up junkyard heap somehow with enough horsepower to take out on the track, was in second place on the first lap on the initial track in the circuit. Of course, these tracks are not as polished as one would see in a Formula 1 or NASCAR event. They have oil drums, hazard cones, some missing pieces of pavement, barricades and other obstacles. Swinging around a turn, the car drifted left, hit a mound of dirt and went airborne, to smash into a wire mesh wall. Pieces of car flew off on impact and the car, rather unceremoniously, smashed back down onto the track, with more pieces of car coming off.

Now the problem with being in second place in an eight-car race means that there are other cars behind you. And there were … some were able to avoid my car, most were not. It was a cringing, gasping chaotic bit of business in which cars flipped, pieces flew off, windshields shattered, doors popped open, bumpers headed for the hinterlands – all in spectacular visual fashion.  

Somehow, the engine still worked well enough, and the car handled well enough, to get back into the race and win the thing.

The name of the game is FlatOut, a PlayStation2 title from Vivendi Universal Games, Empire Interactive and BugBear Entertainment slated for release in early June. 

The game promises “36 challenging tracks and 12 bonus events in one of 16 fully upgradeable cars. Mini-games maximize the fun, and include three destruction derby arenas, three head-on collision dirt tracks and six outrageous “Rag Doll Olympics” bonus games that utilize driver ejection to the fullest.”

Not to mention that are fully destructible driving environments, 40 deformable pieces on the cars and more than 3,000 items to smash.

They tout it as car carnage to the max. Yep, that would be one way to describe it. A whole lot of fun would be another.

The game begins with selecting a profile, then you can quick race or hit up the career mode. You buy a car, which you can upgrade as you move through the game, and you can hit the tune-up shop, but you have to have cash to upgrade, and that means winning races. Some items are unlockable, and that also means racing. You get cash for winning and cash for smash damage. And while the AI is decent, it is easy to put them into walls. Now, as this game will feature multiplayer support (two-player splitscreen, or two-to-four-player hotseat game – one controller and you take turns).

But wait, that’s not all you can do. There are also the rag-doll events. These are hilarious … and extremely sick. Two events are initially available – the long jump and the high jump. Both operate on similar fundamentals, but because you can add insult to serious body injury, allow an explanation of the high jump. You motor your car down a ramp, gaining speed, avoiding some obstacles until you get to a vertical take-off ramp. Once your vehicle propels upward, you try to judge the angle, and the launch, or eject, the driver, who – in turn – sails through the air and through a barrier to register the highest score. Landing is and can be extremely ugly. Once the angle on the final ramp was misjudged, and the ejected driver hit one of the poles on the jump scale. He hit it, and landed in a heap at the bottom. A few moments later, the car landed on him.

The long jump has you ejecting the driver for distance before your car smashes into a barrier. Get the timing wrong and you will put the driver into the barrier first, followed by the car. Now that's gotta hurt! There are 12 rag-doll events, which also include darts, bowling and bullseye. What those events entail may be self-explanatory.

While the AI does not seem all that tough in the races, the difficulty does ramp up as you move along. The control scheme is also rather similar to other racing oriented games on the market (well, with the exception of the driver ejection).

The musical score is comprised of tunes that are decent but largely forgettable.  

The game’s graphics are very good. The damage on the tracks remains as you lap, but skid marks and the like were not consistent in the preview build received. Still, the damage was spectacular.

FlatOut is extremely entertaining, and a real treat for the eyes. This is a game that will have you cringing and laughing all at the same time.