''FlatOut 2'' is an

action Action may refer to: * Action (philosophy), something which is done by a person * Action principles the heart of fundamental physics * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video gam ...

racing video game Racing games are a video game genre in which the player participates in a racing competition. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to fantastical settings. They are distributed along a spectrum between more realistic raci ...

developed by

Bugbear Entertainment Bugbear Entertainment Oy is a Finnish video game developer based in Helsinki, founded by Janne Alanenpää in 2000. The company is best known for the '' FlatOut'' series and '' Wreckfest''. In November 2018, a majority stake of the company was ...

and published by

Empire Interactive Empire Interactive was a British video game developer and Video game publisher, publisher based in London. Founded in 1987 by Ian Higgins and Simon Jeffrey, it was acquired by Silverstar Holdings in 2006 and collapsed in 2009. History Empire ...

for

Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October, in Europe on 24 Novembe ...

and

Xbox Xbox is a video gaming brand that consists of four main home video game console lines, as well as application software, applications (games), the streaming media, streaming service Xbox Cloud Gaming, and online services such as the Xbox networ ...

. It was released in Russia on June 29, 2006, in Europe on June 30, and in North America on August 1. The game received positive reviews. The sequel to 2004's ''

FlatOut ''FlatOut'' is a series of action demolition derby/racing video games created by Finnish independent video game developer Bugbear Entertainment. The ''FlatOut'' series has sold a total of almost 3 million units worldwide. After Bugbear develop ...

'', ''FlatOut 2'' is themed more on the street racing/ import tuner scene than its predecessor. A notable change is the tire grip; players can take more control of their car, worrying less about skidding in tight turns. The game has three car classes: derby, race, and street. An enhanced port was released in 2007 for the

Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...

and Windows as ''FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage''. A

PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PA ...

port of ''Ultimate Carnage'' was released as ''FlatOut: Head On'' in 2008. The same year, an

OS X macOS, previously OS X and originally Mac OS X, is a Unix, Unix-based operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple since 2001. It is the current operating system for Apple's Mac (computer), Mac computers. With ...

version of the game was released by Virtual Programming. An update for the PC version was released in July 2024, that implemented

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support, improved support for the

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and added various quality-of-life improvements.

Gameplay

Ragdoll physics

The ragdoll physics have been greatly improved from the previous game. During the race, the driver may be thrown out of the car if slammed into a wall at a high speed. In the numerous

stunt A stunt is an unusual, difficult, dramatic physical feat that may require a special skill, performed for artistic purposes usually for a public audience, as on television or in theaters or cinema. Stunts are a feature of many action films. Befo ...

minigame A minigame (also spelled mini game and mini-game, sometimes called a subgame or microgame) is a short game often contained within another video game. A minigame contains different gameplay elements and is often smaller or more simplistic than th ...

s, players can shoot the driver out of the car in order to complete objectives like knocking down a set of

bowling Bowling is a Throwing sports#Target sports, target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a bowling ball, ball toward Bowling pin, pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). Most references to ''bowling'' are ...

pins, hitting the designated spots on a

dartboard Darts is a competitive sport in which two or more players bare-handedly throw small sharp-pointed projectiles known as darts at a round target known as a dartboard. Points can be scored by hitting specific marked areas of the board, thoug ...

, scoring a

field goal A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. Consequently, ...

or flying through flaming hoops. Players must use '

aerobatics Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aeroplane" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and gl ...

' to control the driver in-flight, but overusing it will increase drag, which will slow the driver down and possibly prevent them from reaching the designated target. If the driver falls short of the target, players can use the "nudge". This gives the driver a small upward boost and slightly reduces drag. In the Stone Skipping Stunt minigame, the players must use nudge just as the driver hits the surface of the water to skip the most efficiently and reach the furthest.

Reception

Critical reception

The PC version of ''FlatOut 2'' received "generally favorable reviews", while the PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions received "average" reviews, according to the

review aggregation A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...

website

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

. In Japan, ''

Famitsu , formerly , is a line of Japanese Video game journalism, video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly f ...

'' gave the PS2 version a score of all four sevens for a total of 28 out of 40.

Awards

''FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage''

''FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage'' is an

enhanced port In software engineering, porting is the process of adapting software for the purpose of achieving some form of execution in a computing environment that is different from the one that a given program (meant for such execution) was originally desig ...

of ''FlatOut 2'' featuring new gameplay modes, soundtrack and graphics as well as at least two new cars. It was known earlier as ''FlatOut: Total Carnage''. ''FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage'' was released on July 22, 2007, in Europe, on August 1 in Australia, and on October 2 in North America for the

. The

Microsoft Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

version was released through the

Steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...

network on August 26, 2008, and in stores on September 2. There is also a handheld version of the game for the

called ''FlatOut: Head On'', which was released in Australia on March 12, 2008, in Europe two days later, and in North America on April 4.

Gameplay

''Ultimate Carnage'' introduces a Carnage mode, a challenge series type of mode, which includes 36 challenges among stunts, demolition derby deathmatches, carnage races, and beat the bombs. The cars are more detailed than previous games in the series, employing the latest in dynamic lighting and shadow technology, and a greatly enhanced damage and physics engine where each car is made of up to 40 separate destructible parts. The single player game supports up to 11 other AI-controlled cars in each race. A new multiplayer format is also included; this runs on the

Games for Windows – Live Games for Windows – Live or GFWL is a deprecated Online game, online gaming service used by ''Games for Windows''–branded Personal computer, PC titles that originally enabled Microsoft Windows, Windows PCs to connect to Microsoft's Live Any ...

system which requires the user to either sign into own Xbox LIVE or Games for Windows LIVE Gamertag, or sign up for one for free. The LAN function is not available in ''FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage'', unlike the previous two ''FlatOut'' games for Windows.

Reception

The Xbox 360 and PC versions received "favorable" reviews, while the ''Head On'' version received "average" reviews, according to the

website

. ''

Hyper Hyper may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Hyper'' (2016 film), 2016 Indian Telugu film * ''Hyper'' (2018 film), 2018 Indian Kannada film * ''Hyper'' (magazine), an Australian video game magazine * Hyper (TV channel), a Filipino sports c ...

s Maurice Branscombe commended the Xbox 360 version for "looking and playing better than ever before", but did not like the soundtracks and stated that "the game's load times are too long". In Japan, ''

'' gave the same console version a score of three sevens and one six for a total of 27 out of 40.

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{Authority control 2006 video games Bugbear Entertainment games *02 Games for Windows Lua (programming language)-scripted video games MacOS games Multiplayer and single-player video games PlayStation 2 games PlayStation Portable games Vehicular combat games Video game sequels Video games developed in Finland Video games with gender-selectable protagonists Windows games Xbox games Xbox 360 games Empire Interactive games Virtual Programming (company) games