Written By Shaun McCracken
Freaky Flyers is one of those games that has some fairly high ambitions, but
really can't match them with it's gameplay and design. Touted as a "3-D Racing Game"
(of course, haven't all console racers been in 3-D since 1995?), Freaky Flyers
adds the dimention of going over and under objects, in additon to the side-to-side
action most common racers put you through. The end result is basically what was done
for the flying stages in Rare and Nintendo's Diddy Kong Racing, with dogfighting
action (of sorts), and some combat stages thrown in. Of course, that's not saying it's
good. I wasn't too fond of DKR, and I'm not very fond of this game.
The set-up for the main game is having a wacky (or freaky) assortment of racers
vying for the top spot of a championship that seems to be inspired by "The Great
Race". You would basically challenge two circuit races from different parts of the
world, and then move on to a challenge stage that would ask for you to defend something
or escape out of a certain place. This goes on for about 12 stages or so. While the challenge
stages can add diversity to this game, the normal racing stages seem a bit flat.
Sure, you have large courses with some multiple paths, but the speed you move at is rather
slow. Plus, it seems like the only way to succeed is to complete challeneges within
that course to open up extra weapon slots or boost highways. It's like the game tries
to be like Mario Kart or DKR, but then has to add all these complications into the
mix. Sure, you don't really have to do the secondary objectives, but unless
you want to pull yourself out of 9th place (there is no 10th place, oddly enough),
you'll need to do some extra work. Of course, in later stages, it seems like it doesn't even
matter that you do unlock the highways and extra weapon slots, because you'll still
place second to last.
There is a bright spot to the slow, irritating and sometimes difficult racing
design, and that's with the character development. Each of the main characters are
unique and have their own quirks, such as the librarian who has a split-personality
of a bad-girl. And within the odd characters, there is some humor to be found in this
game. While not on par with the You Don't Know Jack series, Flyers does have
some genuine, humourus moments. But don't expect each racer (flyer) to have different
attributes just because they are different in personallity. Each player seems to
have the same speed and handling characteristics, which really tells me "to hell
with skill".
The game's look is fairly decent, with some pretty good texturing (which is
quite a feat for Point Of View, seeing how SpyHunter for the GC had
pixelated textures), and even lighting. The scale of each stage is also pretty admirable
and ambitious. But don't expect the framerate to be smooth 100% of the time. Some
stages, the framerate will not show much lag, but then there are other stages
(notably the Thugsville stage) that will slow down in populated areas. As for the
sound, you have some funny character voices and dialouge, tied in with "just
there" music.
Final Thought
Freaky Flyers seemed like it would be a great game. You mix the concept of
flying with racing to create something a little different. Unfortunatlly, the racing
is slow and just not that interesting at times. The challenge stages do add some variety
to what could have become one big yawn of a game. Personally, I feel they would
have done better witht the combat elements, like in Crimson Skies, that
sticking with mostly racing. As it is, the humor alone cannot salvage this mundane
and often frustrating racing game.
|
Freaky Flyers
