FlatOut 2
| FlatOut 2 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio |
 Bugbear Entertainment
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| Publisher |
 Empire Interactive
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| Senior Developer |
Reko Ukko Juho Kontio Danny Rawles |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
All platforms June 30, 2006 August 1, 2006 August 24, 2006 January 25, 2007    |
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| platform | Xbox , PlayStation 2 , Microsoft Windows , macOS , Linux , PlayStation Portable | ||
| genre | Racing game | ||
| Game mode | Multiplayer , single player | ||
| system advantages preconditions |
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| medium | optical disc, digital distribution , download | ||
| language | English , German , Russian , Japanese | ||
| Current version | 1.2 | ||
| copy protection | StarForce Frontline | ||
| Age rating |
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| information | The uncut version of the game is available in Germany in FlatOut - The Complete Collection . The collection has an age rating from 16 years. | ||
FlatOut 2 is a racing game from the Finnish development studio Bugbear Entertainment . The computer game was published in the summer of 2006 by the British publisher Empire Interactive for the Windows operating system and the PlayStation 2 and Xbox game consoles . It is the successor to FlatOut , which was released in 2004 for Windows, Xbox and PlayStation 2 . In autumn 2008, Virtual Programming released a port for the Mac OS X operating system .
The game principle of FlatOut 2 is similar to that of its predecessor: In addition to driving on given routes as quickly as possible, as is common in racing games, the degree of destruction of the environment or the enemy vehicles is often decisive for victory. The game uses a powerful physics engine and exceptionally detailed damage models for a visually appealing representation of the destruction .
The game was received positively overall. The online database Metacritic , which collects and evaluates test reports, calculated averages between 73 and 78 out of 100 points for the individual platform implementations. Above all, critics praised the numerous destruction possibilities as well as the exceptionally detailed damage model. Occasionally, the lack of variety in the gameplay was criticized. According to the publisher Empire Interactive, the game has sold more than a million copies.
In July 2007, FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage was a new edition of the title, in which some technical improvements were made and individual elements, such as additional vehicles, were added.
Gameplay
General
In FlatOut 2 , the player takes control of a vehicle and competes against seven opponents in different racing modes. In contrast to FlatOut , the races are no longer predominantly held on unpaved country and gravel roads, but also on paved city roads.
Like its predecessor, FlatOut 2 is an arcade racing game. This means that elements like track design and vehicle driving physics focus on action rather than realism. So z. For example, the use of nitro , which the player receives during a race for causing damage to opponents and the environment, plays a central role. There are also numerous ramps, oil spills and potholes as obstacles along the route.
The game includes a single player mode and a multiplayer mode. The core element of the single player mode is the career. This consists of a large number of championships, which in turn consist of several individual races. There is no background story. In the multiplayer mode of the Windows version, the player can compete in all game modes with other players via the Internet or LAN . It is also possible to play a game for two on one screen, this is called party mode in the game . However, not all race types can be played this way. Party mode is also available in the Xbox and Playstation 2 versions.
A special feature of the races in FlatOut 2 is that the driver can be thrown out of the vehicle in all race modes. This usually happens through a strong impact and costs the player a few seconds in the race. At stunt events, the player even intentionally throws his character out of the car, since the stunt goals can only be achieved with the flying character.
A realistic damage model of the cars has been built in since the first part of the series . The developers expanded this feature further in the second part and made FlatOut 2 much more action-heavy thanks to the possibility that damage can affect the driving behavior and vehicles can even be completely destroyed. Normal races can also be won by destroying all enemy vehicles before the end of the race.
The head-up display , which is visible during the races, shows the position of the player in the field, contains a lap display, the route map, a speedometer as well as a damage display and a portrait of the opponent who is currently closest to the player.
Racing modes
In FlatOut 2 there are a total of three different types of competitions, which are very different from each other.
The racing events are all about driving a circuit and achieving the best possible finish. There is great diversity in the type of routes traveled. For example, there are oval routes in arenas, road courses, rural routes and routes through dry water channels. At the end of each circuit race, additional awards are given to the drivers who caused the greatest damage to vehicles and the environment.
Derbies are events that are held in parking lots, in arenas, or on small circuits. These events are all about damaging and destroying enemy vehicles. The derby is won by the driver who has scored the most points in the end. Points are awarded for damaging vehicles and bonus points are given for causing a rollover or for destroying a vehicle. There is also a so-called contact timer ; a stopwatch that runs continuously in the background and is reset whenever the player collides with another vehicle. If a player has not had contact with an opposing vehicle for more than 45 seconds, he is eliminated. (The timer also applies to computer-controlled drivers). A derby is over when only one vehicle is still functional.
Stunt events are a special feature of the FlatOut series . The aim here is to throw his character out of the car and use it to achieve a specific goal. B. to push particularly high or far, or to hit certain objects with it. Essential factors for achieving the best possible end result are the starting speed that is achieved with the car and the angle at which the figure is fired. Of the total of twelve different stunt events, some are based on well-known games such as darts , football , basketball or bowling .
Career mode
In contrast to the first part, FlatOut 2 has a coherent career mode. However, this does not include a background story. Rather, it consists of numerous championships, each consisting of two to six individual events. The aim of the career mode is to win the Flat-Out Championship Cup . This can be won by successfully completing all championships and winning the Grand Final , another six-part championship. The championships always consist of circuit races. The only exception is the final, which is unlocked as soon as the player has won the three championship cups. The final consists of derbies and circuit races on special routes. A special event is unlocked by winning a championship. Special events are stunts, derbies or circuits on special routes. In addition, the player receives money, so-called credits . With these, he can buy new vehicles or upgrade his own vehicles.
vehicles
FlatOut 2 simulates 38 different vehicles. The vehicles do not have any licenses, so they are fictional models from the developers, but they are mainly based on real models. The vehicles are divided into four classes:
Derby cars are vehicles that originally came from junkyards and were equipped with the equipment required for stock car races, such as a roll cage and reinforced body. They are comparatively slow and sluggish, but they can take a lot of damage and are well suited for rough roads. Examples are vehicles that are modeled on the Ford Bronco or the Ford Granada .
Vehicles of the racing class are road vehicles, mostly muscle cars or light sports coupes . They can be seen as a mix of derby and street class vehicles. They are faster than Derby cars and can take more damage than street-class vehicles. Models in this class are well suited for all types of routes. Examples are vehicles that are based on the Chevrolet El Camino or the Lancia Coupe .
Street- class cars are tuned sports cars, some of them also racing cars. They are the fastest but also the most sensitive vehicles in the game. You drive most effectively on level, solid ground. They include derivatives of the Dodge Viper or the De Tomaso Pantera .
The fourth class includes special vehicles. On the one hand, these are vehicles with turbine drives, which are mainly used at stunt events, but also vehicles that are not classified in any other category, such as a school bus, hot rods or a model that is similar to the Batmobile .
The vehicles of the opponents depend on the class selected by the player. For example, if the player chooses a Derby class vehicle, he drives against vehicles of this class.
The tuning plays a subordinate role in FlatOut 2 . In the single player mode, improvements to the engine , brakes and transmission are possible to increase the performance of the vehicle, as well as the installation of a roll bar or a reinforced chassis for greater stability and robustness against collisions. On the other hand, there are hardly any possibilities to modify the look of the vehicles; the only option is to change the vehicle color.
Soundtrack
FlatOut 2's soundtrack includes 26 pieces of music. As with the predecessor, these are located in rock , metal and indie . In contrast to its predecessor, tracks by some internationally known bands were also used for this track, including Nickelback , Megadeth , Papa Roach and Mötley Crüe . The tracks are played in random order during the races and in the menus. The title song is called Demon Speeding and comes from Rob Zombie .
| Overview of the pieces of music contained in the game | |||
| # | Artist | title | length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alkaline trio | Fall Victim | 3:17 |
| 2 | Alkaline trio | Mercy Me | 2:50 |
| 3 | Audio slave | Man or Animal | 3:48 |
| 4th | Audio slave | Your time has come | 4:19 |
| 5 | fall out Boy | 7 minutes in Heaven | 3:03 |
| 6th | fall out Boy | Snitches and Talkers Get Stitches and Walkers | 2:51 |
| 7th | Megadeth | Symphony of Destruction | 4:07 |
| 8th | Mötley Crüe | Dr. Feel good | 4:47 |
| 9 | Nickelback | Believe it or not | 4:07 |
| 10 | Nickelback | Flat on the floor | 2:13 |
| 11 | Nine Black Alps | Cosmopolitan | 2:38 |
| 12 | Papa Roach | Blood Brothers | 3:34 |
| 13 | Papa Roach | Not listening | 3:11 |
| 14th | Rise Against | Give it all | 2:56 |
| 15th | Rob zombie | Feel so numb | 3:52 |
| 16 | Rob zombie | Demon speeding | 3:14 |
| 17th | Super grass | Richard III | 3:13 |
| 18th | Super grass | Road to Rouen | 2:44 |
| 19th | The Chelsea Smiles | Nowhere Ride | 3:26 |
| 20th | The Vines | Don't listen to the radio | 2:18 |
| 21st | Underoath | Reinventing your exit | 4:24 |
| 22nd | Wolfmother | Pyramid | 4:29 |
| 23 | Wolfmother | dimension | 4:23 |
| 24 | Yellowcard | Breathing | 3:42 |
| 25th | Yellowcard | Rough Landing Holly | 3:48 |
| 26th | Zebrahead | Lobotomy for Dummies | 2:48 |
Development history
development
After the success of FlatOut , of which a little more than 800,000 units were sold, the responsible studio, Bugbear Entertainment, planned a successor relatively quickly. The publishers Empire Interactive and Vivendi announced in July 2005, nine months after the publication of FlatOut , the development of a successor. The developers, often the graphic artist Tomi Linja-aho, reported regularly on a blog about the progress in development and gave an insight into the work involved in developing a racing game.
According to those responsible from the development studio, the game will be based on the game principle of its predecessor. "As with FlatOut , the basic concept of destruction and running is our central vision in FlatOut 2, " said developer Jussi Laakkonen, commenting on the concept for the new game. First and foremost, the criticisms of the predecessor should be eliminated. The developers announced the addition of a multiplayer mode via the Internet as an important innovation. After the release of several trailers that gave an insight into various new elements of the game, the game was finally presented for the first time at the American game fair E3 2006 in Los Angeles.
In addition to the introduction of an online multiplayer mode, the developers of FlatOut 2 attached great importance to improving the graphics. In addition to adapting to the current state of the art, this also included designing a detailed lighting system, as races in the dark were also included for the first time in the FlatOut series. Another central point in the development was the improvement of artificial intelligence (AI). The computer-controlled opponents in FlatOut 2 have, in contrast to their predecessor, an individual appearance and character traits that have a significant effect on driving behavior. Each of the seven AI drivers has their own driving profile that influences their driving style.
To develop a sound design that was as realistic as possible , a team from SoundWave Concepts , which has already contributed sound effects to racing games such as rFactor or GT Legends , visited the site of a car scraper, where it demolished numerous objects in a variety of ways. The resulting noises were recorded and then passed on to the developer responsible for audio programming at Bugbear, Pauli Meriläinen.
publication
Finally, the game was released in Europe in late June 2006. In North America, the game was released on August 1 of the same year. It was released in Australia on August 24, 2006.
The version intended for the German market took a special position, as there were conflicts with the German protection of minors . Specifically, the focus of the criticism was on characters modeled on people, as they are often thrown out of the vehicle with corresponding noises during the course of the game. For this reason, the game was deemed too brutal and was not rated for young people . In order to obtain one, however, in the version intended for the German market, the human drivers were replaced by crash test dummies .
A few months after launching in Europe and North America, FlatOut 2 was released in Japan. Shortly before the release, the game was presented there at the Tokyo Game Show .
reception
Reviews
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Chris Roper praised the very entertaining and chaotic races in the online magazine IGN . The numerous mini-games are seen as a good change. The detailed physics engine , especially the behavior of the objects in collisions, and the good noises received a lot of praise. The only point of criticism was the presentation of the AI driver, which was a bit too superficial. The magazine named the game the best Playstation 2 racing game of 2006.
Alex Navarro from GameSpot magazine rated the game as positive overall. The large scope, the detailed, innumerable destruction possibilities and the varied stunt events were the core areas of the praise. The introduction of an online mode was also received positively. The driving behavior of the vehicles was criticized for being too similar. So there would be very similar driving behavior even across classes. Another aspect of the criticism was the vehicle selection, which goes too much into the field of sports cars. These do not match the game's stock car character.
The author Michael Krosta from the German game magazine 4Players , like the other magazines, praised the scope and the diverse opportunities to win. The efficient programming was also highlighted, which made it possible to play on older systems with a high level of detail. Another plus point was the sound, which scored with a suitable soundtrack and realistic noises. The career mode, which was too short and the controls, which were imprecise, were criticized. Platform-specific, the edge flicker on the Xbox version was criticized.
Heiko Klinge from the German magazine GameStar highlighted the game's artificial intelligence, which is one of the best there is. The physics and the technology of the game also made a good impression. The track design was also praised, with the numerous abbreviations and the many destructible objects being very varied and creative. The level of difficulty of the campaign was too high for beginners and the lack of optical tuning were criticized.
The editors of the German magazine PC Games were also particularly impressed by the particle effects and the diverse possibilities for destruction. Together with the good physics engine, this enabled an exceptionally good graphical presentation. The numerous mini-games were also praised, which together with the varied circuit races provided good entertainment. However, it was criticized that after a certain time monotony set in.
GamePro's editor Bernd Fischer also wrote mostly positive things about the game. The good graphics, the impressive effects and the many game modes ensure a lot of variety and fun. The only point of criticism was the controls, which were felt to be too vague.
Arnd Rüger from the online magazine Gameswelt praised the simple and therefore easily accessible game concept. Another plus point he mentioned was the abundance of different race types. The graphic presentation, both the visual appearance of the surroundings and the level of detail of the vehicles, was also well done. He only criticized the censorship for the German market. When the test report was published, there was still no official USK classification, but Rüger assesses a possible censorship as unnecessary.
Sales figures
According to the publisher Empire Interactive, more than half a million copies of the game had already been sold by January 2007, i.e. within six months of its launch. This means that a total of 1.5 million units of the games in the FlatOut series have been sold. Just six months after this press release, FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage was a new title in the game series. At this point, about 1.2 million units of FlatOut 2 have been sold. The title surpassed its predecessor FlatOut with around 400,000 units.
successor
FlatOut Ultimate Carnage
FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage was released in 2007 for the Xbox 360 . The title was essentially developed as a port of FlatOut 2 . Therefore, the innovations are mainly limited to graphical improvements and minor playful changes. In 2008 Ultimate Carnage was also released for Windows.
The reception of the title was similar to that of the original. GameRankings calculated meta- scores of 79.95% for the console version. Windows execution scored 78.8%. Critics praised that the gameplay is varied and the scope of the game content is large. However, the game demands a lot of system resources to run smoothly on higher graphics settings. In addition, the selection of pieces of music is very limited.
Also in 2008, an implementation for the PlayStation Portable was released under the title FlatOut: Head On . This title is identical to Ultimate Carnage in terms of game content . The reviews of the trade press were similar. Testers praised that the successful concept is now also available for the PSP. However, Head On suffers from textures that are too low in resolution in some places.
Flatout 3: Chaos & Destruction
In 2011, FlatOut 3: Chaos & Destruction was the first independent successor for Windows. Unlike its predecessors, the game was developed by the Dutch developer Team6 Studios . FlatOut 3, however, did not build on the success of its predecessor. Rather, it was unanimously classified by the trade press as an exceptionally weak title. Metacritic calculated a meta rating of 23 points. Testers criticized every aspect of the game, for example excessive graphics effects that take away any view of the track, chaotic AI drivers and serious errors in the physics engine.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Justin Stolzenberg: In the distribution of Eidos; The date is fixed. In: PC Games . Computec Media Group , June 9, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ a b Micah Seff: FlatOut 2 Screeches Into Stores. In: IGN Entertainment . Ziff Davis , August 1, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ a b c d Benjamin Turner: FlatOut 2. In: GameSpy . Ziff Davis , August 8, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Peter Cohen: Review: FlatOut 2. In: Macwelt . Retrieved May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ a b c Bernd Fischer: FlatOut 2 in the test. In: GamePro . International Data Group , July 31, 2006, accessed July 29, 2020 .
- ↑ a b c d Alex Navarro: FlatOut 2 Review. (No longer available online.) In: GameSpot . CBS Corporation August 1, 2006, archived from the original October 1, 2013 ; accessed on June 30, 2016 (English).
- ↑ a b c d e Chris Roper: FlatOut 2 Review. In: IGN Entertainment . Ziff Davis , August 3, 2006, accessed October 4, 2014 .
- ↑ a b Shawn Snider: FlatOut 2 Review. In: GamingExcellence . August 26, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Denise Bergert: FlatOut 2 - Rock soundtrack. In: GamePro . Webedia , June 23, 2006, accessed December 8, 2015 .
- ↑ Tim Surette: New FlatOut lays out soundtrack. In: GameSpot . CBS Corporation , June 15, 2006, accessed December 8, 2015 .
- ↑ Nedzad Hurabasic: FlatOut 2 - release date & tons of game details. In: Looki . February 21, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Jeremy Dunham: Flat Out 2 to North America. In: IGN Entertainment . Ziff Davis , July 11, 2005, accessed October 4, 2014 .
- ↑ Nico Kerrinnes: FlatOut 2: What was a developer doing in a dusty junkyard? In: Speedmaniacs . Fusionsquare , May 8, 2006, accessed October 4, 2014 .
- ↑ Marcus Kollmann: FlatOut 2 with "more destruction, racing action and opponent knock-outs". In: Speedmaniacs . Fusionsquare , October 15, 2005, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ David Adams: FlatOut 2 Takes Destruction Online. In: IGN Entertainment . February 16, 2006, accessed October 4, 2014 .
- ↑ Jeff Haynes: E3 2006: Flatout 2 Has Flat Tire. In: IGN Entertainment . Ziff Davis , May 11, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Max Nurnus: FlatOut 2 - developers talk about crash orgies. In: Onlinewelten . International Data Group , October 28, 2005, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Marcus Kollmann: Greater fun factor thanks to new routes, better AI and mini-games. In: Speedmaniacs . Fusionsquare , January 20, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Marcus Kollmann: What was a developer doing in a dusty junkyard? Speedmaniacs.com, April 18, 2006, accessed November 30, 2013 .
- ↑ Alexander Weißgerber: USK sets the age rating. In: Speedmaniacs . Fusionsquare , June 14, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Nix & Meghan Sullivan: Official list of the games at TGS 2007. In: IGN Entertainment . Ziff Davis , September 14, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ a b John Davison: FlatOut 2. (No longer available online.) In: 1UP . Ziff Davis , July 8, 2006; archived from the original on June 17, 2016 ; accessed on June 30, 2016 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b c d Michael Krosta: Test: FlatOut 2. In: 4Players . 4Players GmbH , July 2, 2006, accessed on May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ a b c Excerpts from test reports. In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ a b c FlatOut 2. In: Eurogamer . Gamer Network , June 8, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ FlatOut 2 review. In: Gamesradar . Future Publishing , accessed on May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Alex Navarro: FlatOut 2 Review. In: GameSpot . CBS Corporation , August 1, 2006, accessed February 14, 2014 .
- ^ A b Arnd Rüger: FlatOut 2. In: Gameswelt . Web Media Publishing AG , February 16, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ a b Chris Roper: FlatOut 2 Review. In: IGN Entertainment . July 31, 2007, accessed February 14, 2014 .
- ↑ a b Heiko Klinge: Flatout 2 in the test - overtaking maneuver successful. In: GameStar . IDG Entertainment Media GmbH , July 10, 2006, accessed on May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ a b Flat Out 2. In: PC Games . Computec Media Group , July 24, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Andrew Macarthy: FlatOut 2. (No longer available online.) In: Play.tm. July 13, 2006, archived from the original on October 6, 2014 ; accessed on October 5, 2014 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Alex Navarro: FlatOut 2 Review. In: GameSpot . CBS Corporation , August 1, 2006, accessed February 14, 2014 .
- ^ Benjamin Turner: FlatOut 2. In: GameSpy . Ziff Davis , August 8, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Sebastian Weidner: Entertaining arcade racer with addictive potential. How Flatout started the attack on NfS. In: Gamona . Webguidez Entertainment GmbH , July 11, 2006, accessed on May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ "Rivaol": FlatOut 2. In: Jeuxvideo . Webedia , July 6, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 (French).
- ↑ Aleksandr Noskov: FlatOut 2. ag.ru, August 9, 2006, accessed October 5, 2014 (Russian).
- ↑ Meta-rating FlatOut 2 (PlayStation 2). In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Meta-evaluation "FlatOut 2" (Windows). In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed October 5, 2014 .
- ↑ Meta-evaluation "FlatOut 2" (Windows). In: GameRankings . CBS Corporation , accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Meta evaluation "FlatOut 2" (Xbox). In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Meta evaluation "FlatOut 2" (Xbox). In: GameRankings . CBS Corporation , accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Meta-rating "FlatOut 2" (PlayStation 2). In: GameRankings . CBS Corporation , accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ The Best of 2006 - Best Racing / Driving Game (PS2). (No longer available online.) In: IGN Entertainment . Ziff Davis , July 2, 2006; archived from the original on December 3, 2013 ; accessed on May 17, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Bernd Fischer: FlatOut 2 in the test. In: GamePro . International Data Group , July 31, 2006, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Bodo Naser: FlatOut 2: Racer sells well. In: 4Players . 4Players GmbH , January 3, 2007, accessed on May 11, 2015 .
- ↑ Dennis Hartmann: Flatout: Ultimate Carnage - Visiting Finland. In: Gameswelt . May 24, 2008, accessed July 29, 2020 .
- ↑ Meta evaluation "FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage" (Xbox 360). In: GameRankings . CBS Corporation , accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ^ Meta-evaluation "FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage" (Windows). In: GameRankings . CBS Corporation , accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ^ Jimmy Thang: FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage Review. In: IGN Entertainment . Ziff Davis , September 12, 2008, accessed May 17, 2015 .
- ↑ Chris Roper: FlatOut: Head On Review. In: IGN Entertainment . Ziff Davis , March 13, 2008, accessed October 4, 2014 .
- ↑ Thorsten Küchler: FlatOut 3: Chaos & Destruction. In: PC Games . Computec Media Group , accessed July 29, 2020 .
