FlatOut 4: Total Insanity
Flatout 4: Total Insanity elevates the level of hard hitting, fast paced action in the demolition derby style racing genre. Fans will rejoice as the celebrated series offers bigger, louder, better and more outrageous stunts and collisions. FlatOut 4: Total Insanity offers something for FlatOut fans both new and familiar. Key Features: •27 customizable cars, including tributes to fan favorites and new additions to the garage. •20 Tracks including traditional derby racing, time trials, arenas, assault levels, Carnage levels and much more. •High speed collision in fully destructible environments. •The legendary Stunt Mode: a mix of six new stunts and six re-imagined classic stunt mini- games where the driver is flung through the windshield. •Arena Mode: featuring 3 different game play styles – Death Match, Capture the Flag, Survivor. •Up to 8 players Online Mode and play locally with friends in a series of stunts.
Steam User 6
5.5/10
A bit mediocre, but still somehow enjoyable game, despite it's serious flaws. Without these flaws, I would probably rate it 7/10. But devs never fixed these flaws.
Worse than FlatOut 1, 2, Ultimate Carnage as well as it's clones; Wreckfest and Trail Out, but better than terrible FlatOut 3.
Additional info: this game was NOT made by original creators of FlatOut 1/2/UC/Wreckfest.
Pros:
+ Core features of the previous FlatOut titles are still there (racing, stunts, deatmatch, multiplayer; servers are still there but very few people play this game).
+ It's a FlatOut game (unlike FlatOut 3), just a bit unfinished and partially broken
+ Game can be enjoyable at least for a few hours. After that, you will probably get annoyed at physics related bugs and repetetive tracks
+ Nice graphics (except for character models)
+ Good soundtrack
+ Steam achievements
+ Good for it's price on sale (dont' spend more than ~5$-10$ on it; it's not worth it).
+ no mictotransactions of any kind
Mixed:
- Mediocre driving system. Worse than in the classics.
- Relatively small amount of cars. Less than in 2/UC, more than 1.
Cons
- Partially broken physics. Physics was a core of every FlatOut game and main reason to play. Small stone on the ground can sometimes makes you fly. Small wooden fence? Enjoy the skies. Most stunts are RNG due to wonky physics and input delay. Ridiculous and annoying. Why they never fixed it? Game flopped financially and was quickly abandoned.
- Car damage system is worse than in FlatOut 1/2/UC. Let's remember that these old games were made in PS2 era between 2004-2008 and FlatOut 4 in 2017...
- Repetetive and small amount of tracks. Feels like we have maybe 5 and they get constantly repeated, just with small changes. In late game, 2 more will be unlocked. Why not earlier? Bad game design. Most people will get tired of it in Derby stage (early game).
- Lot's of grind to unlock all cars. Not joking. I spend ~30hrs in the game and unlocked less than half of them.
- Unlike F1/F2/UC or even 3, you are unable to change your driver in career mode. Why? Other drivers are already there and you can use them in custom games. Story reasons? Makes no sense since there is no story or background behind protagonist at all and in fact, one of the rival drivers looks exactly the same. Evil twin?
- Bad optimization. Good luck trying to get stable 60 FPS even on modern hardware and especially on a 2017 hardware (when this game was released). Locking it to 30 FPS helps, but who wants to play dynamic racing game in 30 FPS?
So yes, I recommend this game, but barely. And only on a huge sale. This game can give you some hours of fun, but also frustration. If you don't have patience for mediocre racing games, just play FlatOut Ultimate Carnage (remaster of already good FlatOut 2). I'm a fan of the FlatOut series and really wanted to try this game. Had some fun and had some frustration, so I think that 5.5/10 score makes some sense. A shame that we can't write "Mixed" (yellow) reviews on Steam.
Steam User 6
Mixed review for this game. Much better sequel than the abortion that came before it. But for every positive is a little negative.
Graphics are good but pop in is noticeable and anti aliasing is either poor or doesn't work.
Physics are a bit janky they work fine when in heavier vehicles but in anything else a small piece of debris can send you barrel rolling 50 foot in the air. Which is also annoying because to fill the nitro meter you need to destroy parts of the scenery so you are going to be hitting things.
AI is a bit all over the shop I can't tell if it's rubber banding or adaptive difficulty. They will either constantly fly up behind you and pit you or you can be miles ahead with no one in site,
Music is decent but I prefer the Flatout 2 OST to this but some decent bands.
Long and short not as good as Flatout 1/2 but is a decent game.
Steam User 6
A fun racing game with good graphics. Physics can be a bit silly sometimes though.
Does it deserve the flatout name? I'd say no, it feels too different from the original games developed by Bugbear.
It's still a fun racing game nonetheless.
Steam User 10
Believe 60 mins of your gameplay can give you more fun than completion of all recently relased Need for Speeds combined with all their season passes.
No pinky-winky music, only rock-n-roll and metal what is awesome!
No weetsy-meetsy skins and colours, only a pure harsh metalic paints for cars.
Nothing seems to be undestructible
Tires flying everywhere, road is buring pale
Destruction like with frostbite's games
Join the derby in the pit mate
Only costs few bucks on a fucking Christmas sale!
Hell yea!
Steam User 2
Well its a racing game alright, its just not FlatOut. Instead of dynamic crash physics, somewhat realistic driving and competative ai we got cars that emulate what it feels like driving bumber carts on ice and butter with ai sharing a combined 0,2 braincells.
I am only giving it a possitive review because of how funny the physics are.
Steam User 0
I had played flatout 2 so wanted to try this one out. It didn't disappoint. The flatout mode is just challenging as I remembered. The soundtracks are great, some of them made it to my playlist.
I wish they had more racetracks though.
Steam User 0
É uma passo na direção certa para resgatar o Flatout das origens, depois do decepcionante Flatout 3, trilha sonora de ótima qualidade, daquelas que você vai procurar as músicas pra ouvir depois, gráficos legais e bonitos para época, sensação de velocidade absurda, nitros e destruição, opções variadas de veículos, modos de jogo divertidos e tudo mais. dos melhores games no estilo arcade.
Não supera o Flat Out 2 na física e jogabilidade, mas ta no caminho