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While Freaky Flyers has its share of flaws, you can't help but not care with the outrageously funny characters. Each with their own unique storyline a
November 14, 2003 | 10:00 PM PSTby: Ken Cauley
I think it is safe to say that Midway has really taken a step forward as far as improving the quality of their games. In the past few years, Midway has suffered from an abundance of lackluster games, except for the occasional success. But their efforts are finally starting to show through and clear up their name with current and future games like The Suffering, NBA Ballers, and even their restructured lineup of sports titles. Their latest multiplatform release, a airplane kart racing game called Freaky Flyers, continues on the recent trend of quality Midway games while reminding us that Midway's roots are obviously in the arcade.
While Freaky Flyers has its share of flaws, you can't help but not care with the outrageously funny characters. Each with their own unique storyline and personality, I guarantee you will crack several smiles through out your gameplay experience. For example, the very funny Myrna Bookbottom / Margaret Basher. Yes, that is one person, each being the alter ego of the other. Every time Myrna gets angry or excited, the book closes and the glasses come off, because here comes the sexy and very crazy Margaret Basher. There are 15 main characters, but a grand total of over 30 playable characters that can be unlocked through out the progress of the game.
The variety of all the main characters is truly remarkable. I haven't seen such extreme differences in character personalities in a long time, especially when stacked up to recent titles of the same genre. On top of that, each personality translates well into the actual gameplay. While the basic controls are nothing new with a control scheme as follows: acceleration, brake, fire weapon, stunt, and a rear view, each character feels and maneuvers a little different than the last. The small Sammy Wasabi is a lot more agile than the sluggish Baron Von Slaughter. But still, without question, you will feel right at home with the arcade style controls that we come to expect from kart racers.
Another satisfaction you get out of Freaky Flyers is the wide-open levels that you don't typically see in kart racers. Each being filled with several obstacles, occasional congested air space and short cuts, you are free to fly your way through each level as you please. Unlike most kart racers, you are given the choice of sticking to the usual path or finding your own way to the finish line. Sometimes it will worsen your position in the race but more times than not, the shortcuts are for your benefit. This truly adds a great deal onto the replay value.
While high replayability is just what the doctor ordered, it is also one of Freaky Flyers biggest downfalls. In order to unlock every playable character, you'll need to play through the game several times, going to each level to complete all the sub-missions. On top of that, you'll need to beat each individual stage with each main character if you want to race them in standard or story mode. While it is great that you are given so much to do to make your hard earned cash last longer, sometimes you feel more obligated than willing to complete the tasks.
All in all, Freaky Flyers is actually a pretty difficult game if you're trying to complete all the goals in each level. Focus on the race and your guaranteed at least third place, but go for all the goals and you'll struggle to stay competitive in the race. This can actually be very frustrating to the gamer since in order to unlock everything you'll need to complete all the goals while still finishing in at least third place. Basically, if this drawback doesn't bother you much, and you love kart racers, you'll fall in love with Freaky Flyers and the crazy, humorous entertainment that comes with the name.
Graphically, Freaky Flyers is on a unique level of artistic appeal that pleases the eye. While it is nothing ground breaking, Midway has added a unique appeal that reminds you of the old school Wacky Races. Each character is wonderfully designed so that you instantly can recognize all the personalities at first glance. The game as a whole is very colorful and full of animation from beginning to end. Each level has several interactive environments that may affect the race, and the backgrounds, while just for looks, always have something going on. While this is just dandy, it also poses at a problem. Often times your line of fire gets lost in the chaotic backgrounds, which is very frustrating because your focusing more on these gameplay elements than you should be required too. Another small complaint that is far more meaningless than the rest is the fact that your character, when in action, looks a little dull compared to the highly detailed levels. On another good note though, the framerate stays at just about a constant 60 FPS.
Freaky Flyers audio is king of the hill. Midway hired their all-star voice over cast from the Ready 2: Ruble series for the job, and the result is none other than spectacular. The comedy that is brought forward through each and every personality is priceless. Characters of all origins and racial backgrounds are poked fun of in such a harmless and yet hilarious way that you can't help but give Midway a big pat on the back with one hand and hold your side with the other. The music in the game is another plus. If you are not laughing from the dialogue, the songs are sure to tickle at least one funny bone in your body. They are not masterpieces in a literal sense, but for Freaky Flyers the music hits the bell perfectly.
When looking at Freaky Flyers from an overall perspective, the game is fantastic if you're willing to sit down and complete all the required tasks, which can become very repetitive. A casual gamer might be turned way from Freaky Flyers due to this reason, but I still suggest to play through it all, at least to just until you watch all the hilarious cut scenes. Any kart-racing fan should no doubt purchase Freaky Flyers, and anybody else just looking for a good fun game should at least give Freaky Flyers a rental. It is a shame that Midway only included four player support in the Xbox version. Luckily, Freaky Flyers is often more fun to play by yourself than multiplayer, but in any case, the GameCube and PS2 version support up to two players, and we all know two heads are better than one.
While Freaky Flyers has its share of flaws, you can't help but not care with the outrageously funny characters. Each with their own unique storyline and personality, I guarantee you will crack several smiles through out your gameplay experience. For example, the very funny Myrna Bookbottom / Margaret Basher. Yes, that is one person, each being the alter ego of the other. Every time Myrna gets angry or excited, the book closes and the glasses come off, because here comes the sexy and very crazy Margaret Basher. There are 15 main characters, but a grand total of over 30 playable characters that can be unlocked through out the progress of the game.
The variety of all the main characters is truly remarkable. I haven't seen such extreme differences in character personalities in a long time, especially when stacked up to recent titles of the same genre. On top of that, each personality translates well into the actual gameplay. While the basic controls are nothing new with a control scheme as follows: acceleration, brake, fire weapon, stunt, and a rear view, each character feels and maneuvers a little different than the last. The small Sammy Wasabi is a lot more agile than the sluggish Baron Von Slaughter. But still, without question, you will feel right at home with the arcade style controls that we come to expect from kart racers.
Another satisfaction you get out of Freaky Flyers is the wide-open levels that you don't typically see in kart racers. Each being filled with several obstacles, occasional congested air space and short cuts, you are free to fly your way through each level as you please. Unlike most kart racers, you are given the choice of sticking to the usual path or finding your own way to the finish line. Sometimes it will worsen your position in the race but more times than not, the shortcuts are for your benefit. This truly adds a great deal onto the replay value.
While high replayability is just what the doctor ordered, it is also one of Freaky Flyers biggest downfalls. In order to unlock every playable character, you'll need to play through the game several times, going to each level to complete all the sub-missions. On top of that, you'll need to beat each individual stage with each main character if you want to race them in standard or story mode. While it is great that you are given so much to do to make your hard earned cash last longer, sometimes you feel more obligated than willing to complete the tasks.
All in all, Freaky Flyers is actually a pretty difficult game if you're trying to complete all the goals in each level. Focus on the race and your guaranteed at least third place, but go for all the goals and you'll struggle to stay competitive in the race. This can actually be very frustrating to the gamer since in order to unlock everything you'll need to complete all the goals while still finishing in at least third place. Basically, if this drawback doesn't bother you much, and you love kart racers, you'll fall in love with Freaky Flyers and the crazy, humorous entertainment that comes with the name.
Graphically, Freaky Flyers is on a unique level of artistic appeal that pleases the eye. While it is nothing ground breaking, Midway has added a unique appeal that reminds you of the old school Wacky Races. Each character is wonderfully designed so that you instantly can recognize all the personalities at first glance. The game as a whole is very colorful and full of animation from beginning to end. Each level has several interactive environments that may affect the race, and the backgrounds, while just for looks, always have something going on. While this is just dandy, it also poses at a problem. Often times your line of fire gets lost in the chaotic backgrounds, which is very frustrating because your focusing more on these gameplay elements than you should be required too. Another small complaint that is far more meaningless than the rest is the fact that your character, when in action, looks a little dull compared to the highly detailed levels. On another good note though, the framerate stays at just about a constant 60 FPS.
Freaky Flyers audio is king of the hill. Midway hired their all-star voice over cast from the Ready 2: Ruble series for the job, and the result is none other than spectacular. The comedy that is brought forward through each and every personality is priceless. Characters of all origins and racial backgrounds are poked fun of in such a harmless and yet hilarious way that you can't help but give Midway a big pat on the back with one hand and hold your side with the other. The music in the game is another plus. If you are not laughing from the dialogue, the songs are sure to tickle at least one funny bone in your body. They are not masterpieces in a literal sense, but for Freaky Flyers the music hits the bell perfectly.
When looking at Freaky Flyers from an overall perspective, the game is fantastic if you're willing to sit down and complete all the required tasks, which can become very repetitive. A casual gamer might be turned way from Freaky Flyers due to this reason, but I still suggest to play through it all, at least to just until you watch all the hilarious cut scenes. Any kart-racing fan should no doubt purchase Freaky Flyers, and anybody else just looking for a good fun game should at least give Freaky Flyers a rental. It is a shame that Midway only included four player support in the Xbox version. Luckily, Freaky Flyers is often more fun to play by yourself than multiplayer, but in any case, the GameCube and PS2 version support up to two players, and we all know two heads are better than one.
November 20, 2009
