FlatOut (2004) review - ColourShed

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FlatOut review
Platform: PC, PlayStation 2, Xbox
Release Year: 2004
Developer: Bugbear Entertainment
Publisher: Empire Interactive, Strategy First
Genre: Arcade/Combat Racer
► Music (in order):
"Central Supply Chain (Menu Music Instrumental)"
"Transmission" by John Deley and the 41 Players
"Micro Fire" by Silent Partner
"Grey Flannel" by Vans in Japan
"Cut It" by Silent Partner
► Gameplay, audio, and images from:
Bandi Namco Entertainment Inc.
BBC
Bugbear Entertainment
Codemasters
Empire Interactive
Reflections Interactive
Remedy Entertainment
Rockstar Games
Sega
Sony Interactive Entertainment
Strategy First
THQ Nordic
Xbox Game Studios
► KZbin videos used:
"FlatOut - behind the scenes" by AssemblyTV (RECOMMENDED WATCH!)
• FlatOut - behind the s...
"FlatOut Trailer" by Cardano
• FlatOut Trailer
"Rally Trophy - The first stage with the slowest and fastest car" by wirti94
• Rally Trophy - The fir...
"Ridge Racer Unbounded PC - EPIC DESTRUCTION HD Gameplay max settings 1080p" by IKYG786
• Ridge Racer Unbounded ...
"Sega Rally Revo (PSP)" by dezm101
• Sega Rally Revo (PSP)
"Tough Trucks Modified Monsters - Final Round-16 (Gameplay 2003)" by MyRacing
• Tough Trucks Modified ...
"Wreckfest Full Playthrough 2021 Longplay" by G E N E R A IL
• Wreckfest Full Playthr...

[@JorgeAraujo97]

This game aged fantastically well.

[@er-tanso-ner8024]

Nope no way kid

[@CrewDrastically]

Later On,Trail Out Game Continue To Age

[@upwaveflash8429]

Age like fine wine 4 sure

[@KingLich451]

@@er-tanso-ner8024 yes, yes way kid

[@er-tanso-ner8024]

@@KingLich451 No, no way KID.

[@seanwibert3926]

You have no idea the face I made when I saw this in my feed. I used to play this game ALL the time growing up and for years it's felt like very few people have ever even heard of Flatout, let alone played it. Thank you for putting such an underrated game in the spotlight and making me feel nostalgic for something I had almost forgotten all these years later.

[@BleedForTheWorld]

I totally remember playing it. This is a must have for any PS2 collection, in my opinion.4

[@GameljneGames]

I was also pleasantly suprised. :) Flatout needs more love. We used to play with up to 6 people on LAN fairly regularly. Never got 8 people together though. Flatout 2 was more popular for multiplayer, since it was easier to play and rope new people in :D

[@scifiordie]

I remember going at a friend after school to play it when I was 7 in 2008, as my parents didn’t let me play on the pc even if my older brother was allowed to. They thought I was playing with toy cars haha.

[@kenay360k7]

i still play XD

[@vinniecorleone62]

"Flatout Ultimate Carnage" is basically a 7th gen remastered version of "Flatout 2" on the original Xbox, a fantastic racing game!

[@CrewDrastically]

What about Trail Out?

[@warracer03]

The piss yellow filter on the game is classic 7th gen aswell , a little sad but still a great game

[@warracer03]

@@CrewDrastically Trail out has no relation to bugbear/flatout , its a indie dev fan project trying to recapture some of the original game likeness. Its fun , driving physics are pretty good but sound design needs work still

[@dustojnikhummer]

@@CrewDrastically Fan spiritual successor. Not affiliated with Bugbear or EmpireInteractive.

[@dustojnikhummer]

Not basically, it is actually that. 7th gen port/remaster of Flatout 2 with extra content.

[@eurosonly]

The early 2000s offered the most amount of different and original video games ever seen. We've gotten nothing but remasters and cod sequels since then. What an amazing time to be a teen it was for me. I remember this game as being challenging and how it looked amazing. I definitely need to pick this up.

[@emaheiwa8174]

Wreckfest is a great game

[@mirfalltnixein.1]

So happy to see you take a look at this. This is one of my all time favorite racing games. My brother and I spent SO much time doing those bonus modes trying to one-up each others high scores.

[@bbraunovic007]

FlatOut 2 was basically THE game of my childhood man, love to hear you talking about this franchise

[@chillhour6155]

Bugbear is my favourite racing games developer, they're physics engines make the games infinitely replayable, satisfying controlled carnage is how I like to describe they're games, no two races ever goes the same way, surprise and unpredictability is always on the cards

[@Zerofightervi]

Bugbear are a great development team, the choice of vehicles that appear in Wreckfest are very carefully chosen. The fact the know the Rover P35 was a favourite for banger racing shows the level of research the team must of went into. Flatout was one of my favourite racing games, the fact the debris would stick around for the entire race was like magic back then.

[@vinesauceobscurities]

Wreckfest is pretty much Bugbear's tribute to folkracing, banger races, destruction derbies, and dirt racing. It's no coincidence that lots of these cars are based on models that have respectively been featured in these races.

[@ovidiusurubaru9281]

​@@vinesauceobscurities wreckfest is very fun

[@theweppe27]

As a Finn, FlatOut has a special place in my childhood cause me and my friends usually played it so much back in the day after school days. Great review pal! (And of course its a video game made in Finland BRUH*)

[@krystofkovacs4060]

FlatOut my beloved, great review. I'm bit sad that you didn't mentioned the awesome soundtrack though. Looking forward to the review of the second game(or UC)! (just a quick plug, LAB, the band behind Beat The Boys that is FlatOut 1 fans favourite, are releasing new single after 17 years at the end of this October!)

[@Mac_nus]

A game that never lied for the intro of the game Its all about carnage HELL YEAH

[@pianta4403]

This game aged so well i love it! I’m glad to see it getting some love, i don’t see many people talking about the first game. I haven’t seen a video from you in a while, hope ur doing well! your videos and reviews are some of my favorites since you always go into great detail and talk about the history of nostalgic titles like this one.

[@not_kjb]

Yeah

[@Himerosteam]

Gaming changed in the early 2010s idk why and what changed lol

[@pianta4403]

@@Himerosteam i think it’s because they discovered that they can just release a mediocre game nowadays and just update it to be better, also i think the introduction of micro transactions made it so that game companies only care for how much revenue they can get

[@Himerosteam]

@@pianta4403 I think also gaming became mainstream in early 2010s and anything that gets mainstream gets exploited

[@piyushtripathi7515]

This is one of my most enjoyed racing game. There is something magical about the driving physics. I also adore the soundtrack.

[@gigi-bl5yu]

Absolute childhood classic! I remember laughing my head off whenever a guy would fly off the car like a ragdoll. Ah.. Much simpler time when games used to be buckets of laughs without having game-breaking laughs Edit: Meant bugs. Damn autocorrect

[@thisemptyworm4677]

and hear the "wahhhhhh!"

[@The_Fat_Turtle]

Another great game for silly race drivers flying off in funny ways is Road Rash 64. It's a bit older, uglier and with more bugs, but it's a fun time and has a pretty good licensed soundtrack for an N64 game.

[@CrewDrastically]

@@The_Fat_Turtle Try Trail Out

[@uhobme2028]

Eh... Comment works either way

[@Tehstroyer]

My favorite FlatOut game. 2/UC felt more like a traditional arcade racer, while this one had a more "garage" atmosphere (for a lack of a better word) in both graphics, gameplay and the indie/unsigned soundtrack. Which obviously fit the kind of racing portrayed perfectly.

[@raffiavedissian7052]

I highly recommend you add Crash n Burn on your review list! An excellent and very underrated game. Definitely overshadowed by flatout. 16AI, amazing damage model, customization, tracks, and game modes. A hidden gem of a racing game in the PS2 era

[@scottthewaterwarrior]

I picked that one up recently because it looked really cool. I played it for a bit but I found it wasn't as fun as a lot of the other PS2 crash and bash racers out there.

[@exequielpomilio8558]

Crash n burn is literaly nfs and flatout have a son

[@Wafelwaffel]

This game was way ahead of its time. Graphics, gameplay, physics, everything was so incredibly good.

[@natethegreatreviews]

So Happy I still have flatout 1 and 2. Such great fun. The racing is amazing the mini games are amazing. Just pure joy.

[@johncarmen9963]

I Extremely HIGHLY recommend checking out Driven to destruction (name in Aus/Europe) / Test drive Eve of destruction (name in US) it is pure perfection in this destructive racing genre and is also from 2004

[@ThatDudeArvai]

I never had the original Flatout, just Flatout 2. I still remember getting it. I had just got honor roll in middle school and as a reward my dad took me to Walmart to pick out any $20 game I wanted. Flatout 2 happened to be on clearance so I snagged it. Still have that copy to this day for my PS2 and its one of my most memorable games in my collection. Great review and glad you enjoyed playing it!

[@Godfad]

So glad to see good old Flatout on this channel here! And another really nice review, keep it up!

[@larsweeks9415]

I’m happy to see you review this game. This was the first game I purchased with earned money when I was in 5th grade. Still play it often and I play Wreckfest all the time. I always loved wrecking everything in sight, it was a blast to grow up with this game.

[@TheOutsideriscool]

I'm so glad you did this review. Loved this game growing up. Amazing job sir

[@RedMo46]

I didnt own this game when I was young… but man getting to play it. Getting to play it felt like an opportunity each time. Opportunities i still look back on fondly

[@DreamMixGames]

Dang! I'm so excited to see you try Flatout 2!

[@brandonjohnson3558]

I played this with my brother for HOURS when I was a kid. So much nostalgia

[@CookieRevenge]

I just wanted to tell you that i really like your work. The scale you cover and your approach to all the racing video games is really satisfying. Since you're an aussie, i also consider you as the gmanlives of the racing game genre lol. Your voice is also similar but it probably also comes with your aussie accent. :D

[@IrishCoffeee]

Oh boy so glad I'm still awake time to watch your new video!

[@utubecop11]

Absolutely fantastic video m8. Love the detail you get into in all your content. I think you should try to review the Juiced series of racing games, or at least Juiced 2 on the 360. I really didn't like it when I tried it before, but it had some unique idea. I think there would be a lot to talk about.

[@NoBoost1]

This game and Test Drive Eve of Destruction were my childhood

[@balazs7235]

I am so excited for this video!! I started off with playing Flatout 2 that I got from a friend, then found this game in the dollar bin. This was the game with my friends! I loved it, sunk so many hours into it. It was so much fun and a real thrill to play. I was ALWAYS on edge because anything at any moment could cause a crash and the other drivers were usually keeping up well enough that after a crash or two, they are with you again. And it was oh so sweet seeing other opponents crash too or cause them to crash!! It is impressive all around. Feels a bit budgety as you’ve mentioned, but it exceeds any expectations with its quality.

[@OT_Sauce]

Literally read my mind. Was wondering when you were gonna review this like 2 days ago

[@LuftmanPlay]

This review was very well-written and polished, nice job!

[@ruleset]

FlatOut was basically my childhood, it's so nice to recall the moments, no internet, just fire up the game and race and crash fully focused, oh the old days :)

[@glowstek]

That transition at 8:55 is CLEAN

[@Mystx24]

This is still a great game to this day. Definitely one of the best racing games. Awesome to see a video on it. I remember the first time playing this as a kid, i was hooked

[@BleedForTheWorld]

Remember seeing the future when I played this on console that many years ago. The physics simulation made this one so much fun. This was the game for young teens who grew up throughout the first PlayStation era playing racing games. If you had a PS2 and you liked racing games, this was a must play.

[@ronnope3988]

I still play the PSP game on my cellphone after all these years. Incredible port!

[@Petar321_GT]

Thank you so much for reviewing it, i cant wait to come home from work to watch it!! Also try 2, its great fun!

[@petresko1041]

Flatout 1 has the best physics engine out of all titles in the series and that engine is still as amazing as it was in 2004. Great minds think alike - what I've been doing since I beat the game is attempt 0-damage runs for all races, excluding the arena ones, and I've memorized the inputs for all tracks by heart as a result. The least destructive and largest boost comes from walls of tires - brushing against them counts as impact and they all stack for 50-100% boost.

[@IndiBrony]

Pretty interesting to see how much of this influenced later games like Wreckfest. Even the driver flying across the circuit is brought back for some of the special vehicles. Thankfully it's only for a handful of vehicles so the novelty doesn't wear off as quickly.

[@beatingstuff88]

It didnt only influence wreckfest, wreckfest is actually made by the same studio :D

[@RushStar93]

Bugbear lost the license to FlatOut, so they instead made Wreckfest, which is a spiritual sequel

[@CrewDrastically]

Ever Tried Trail Out Game?

[@R3AL-AIM]

To add one more thing without blowing up the comments, having the physics in this game compared to the likes of something like Driver and Stuntman who were known for their vehicle physics being top notch at the time is what made this franchise take off and why it is so well known and regarded today. It had the right feel, cars felt more real than they ever have on PS2, the right amount of destruction and dare I say more than we've ever seen on a console. It had way less bugs, you could actually enjoy the game and be amazed at the same time. The first game wasn't perfect, but 2 made me and many friends very happy at the time. It was a banger in it's age! EDIT: There are patches that add controller support to these games on PC. Just gotta look for em :)

[@GatorShins-CovenDev]

this was one of my favourites back in the day. I replayed it a month ago or so and it holds up so well.

[@Emperor_Banzai]

I am so happy you reviewed this gem!

[@banridor3917]

"This is a PC, I don't have a joystick" USB controller: "Am I a joke to you?"

[@Qu4DSprayz]

No in-game store, no microtransactions, no "online-only", no early access, just a well rounded, good old fashioned gun game that you can tell had a lot of passion put into it! The best days of gaming!

[@konchatzi]

I’ve been hanging for a new colour shed video 🙌

[@nandoboiii5215]

I just love how KZbinrs like to hardly change anything with the reviews and manage to remain interesting to watch!

[@Soonjai]

I always loved the first 2.5 games of the Flatout Franchise (At the end of the day, Ultimate Carnage really is just a updated Flatout 2), but my biggest take from the video is, that the first Flatout is more or less a Simulation of a real life, low Budget Motorsport from Finnland.

[@SparksV]

Great vid. Have a good holiday !

[@bantuatha]

My childhood, I still own that game to this day.

[@Mirandelorean]

I've had fond memories of doing those stunt jumps

[@FuchsiaShocked]

Still one of my favourite racing games. And a great incentive to remember to use a seatbelt.

[@FreedSeed]

Hopefully you give Flatout 2 a look! as Flatout Ultimate Carnage is sort of like a remaster to Flatout 2 with different handling!

[@OFFtheCHIZANE]

I played the demo of this game for literal days. Two tracks and one car, and it was still enough content to keep coming back time and again.

[@Dorench]

My absolute favourite childhood racing game!

[@Verociity]

7:48 I love how literally everyone goes off road and crashes 😂

[@garretteverett2613]

Flat out is so fun and chaotic - I like it to Mario Kart for the sheer amount of unpredictable chaos. Props for trying to win with a keyboard. Analog stick will make avoiding the carnage much tighter and more doable.

[@vladimirpolitov7769]

Flatout is a masterpiece and a spiritual successor to Demolition Derby (1&2) from the 90's.

[@theguyinthere]

MAN 2004 was SOOOOOOOOOOOO many games that were good.

[@R3AL-AIM]

This takes me back... The PS2/Xbox days as a kid in elementary school. I got the Steam bundle a couple years ago for like $15 and even with the other games outside of Flatout and Flatout 2 being kind of bad, I'm happy the whole series is in my collection.

[@Test-hg2ts]

This game was so much fun in local multiplayer during lunch breaks back in the day

[@Zippy_Zolton]

I beat this game a few months ago, really nice and I'm definitely going to start UC someday. The nitro sound is just those slushie dispensers you'd hear at a corner store or movie theater

[@melazyhamd]

This game aged fine like wine, also would love to see u review manhunt 1 and 2 :D

[@melonuke3730]

OH MY GOD COLOURSHED IS COVERING FLATOUT THIS HAS MADE MY WEEK

[@HunterMagunter]

I still play this game every here and there, so much fun to this day

[@OmgItsLeaa]

This and burnout 3 are my favourite racing games, maybe FO:UC too. They’re just unmatched when it comes to arcade racing.

[@erictrauman2879]

Still play it to this day when i get that feeling.

[@jonnywalker3208]

The pictures we saw of this game in official PlayStation magazine made this look like THEE best graphical game of all time!

[@Enders1]

It would be great if you reviewed Full Auto 2. Very overlooked and actually underrated

[@dathorndike4908]

The crash damage and car driving physics have never been done better than on Flat Out

[@seancola]

Just started playing this for the first time. Love it so far

[@Hasc32]

Thanks for the upload!

[@sokoloft3]

I bought FlatOut back on my xbox, then later on PC. Was way ahead of its time. Great game. Glad you reviewed it and did it justice. 2 is just as good if not better iirc.

[@ZachlikesMetal]

Me and brother played hours upon hours of Flatout 1 and 2 when we were younger and we always had so much fun playing them and they where even better with a steering wheel and pedals.

[@CaolanSuibhne]

I remember playing the demo disc for this game as a kid for hours on end!

[@NeedForMadnessAuto]

*I recommend you reviewing Trail Out on pc since its a newest flatout successor in the market,even the devs are actively on their discord for feedback*

[@henrik1743]

I remember getting this on a demo disc in a pc mag when I was like 8 or 9... good times..

[@FluffyChops]

i really enjoyed Flatout games i haven't yet bought it / played it but looking forward to hopeful enjoying Trail Out when i get around to it.

[@LavosYT]

I enjoyed this review, I just wanted to say that: 1. the soundtrack is pretty neat and I hoped you listened to it while playing, though I understand why it's not in the video! 2. there's a widescreen mod out there that works perfectly and means you can play in resolutions like 1080p. Have a great day!

[@michabarnas612]

About the resetting the car, you have to stop accelerating during that, and if I remember correctly, you have to be fully stopped. You cannot just press reset during the ride. It's probably done to stop you from resetting just before hitting some obstacles.

[@stevejobs3895]

This game was my favorite of the Racing Genre as a kid. The Splitscreen was where it was at.

[@magfal]

This game and Rallysport Challenge 2 had brilliant arcade-ish driving feel.

[@sleepracer5124]

I used to love this game, went back and played it recently and it's still fantastic, still up there with wreckfest in pure driving pleasure (although I agree with your criticism regarding the career mode structure). Fantastic game!

[@emaheiwa8174]

Did you play Wreckfest?

[@sleepracer5124]

@@emaheiwa8174 yeah, haven't laughed that much at a racing game ever, not sure I finished the story (almost tho) but I raced online a bunch. Such a good game

[@Sir-Prizse]

In the cut German version, the driver was a crash test dummy who didn't scream... and somehow I thought that was a really smart cut, because somehow I like that more than a real human in jeans and a leather jacket flying through the windscreen.

[@n3onf0x]

7:15 God i love that scream

[@xferth]

This game and the first stuntman where my childhood favorites for the ps2

[@nothinghere7391]

I can't wait for you to review the FO2 and Ultimate Carnage. It's an amazing game and, to be honest the Ultimate Carnage still looks amazing

[@dariengoheen747]

Was hoping you'd get to these

[@terrylyn]

Playing this game on keyboard won't do it justice. Try it on a decent force feedback wheel and pedals and it's an incredible experience, even by today's standards. My top-2 favorite racing game for sure, #1 being Dirt Rally.

[@saintgtx]

I actually just bought this game & FlatOut 2 a couple days ago! It's super cheap on the Epic Games store for PC

[@cauabezerra6328]

Please, be aware that Flatout 2 is the actual sequel, Ultimate Carnage is more of an remaster with extra content, but with an worse soundtrack compared to the original

[@CrewDrastically]

Trail Out is the new successor

[@dubstepZOMBIE64]

Just purchased this for the original Xbox, man I'm loving the memories

[@tomvill]

It looks like the physics/damage engine is similar to the one in Driv3r. I will defiantly have to give this a go!

[@Kushncorinthian]

oh yessss now you have to review ultimate carnage😩

[@otacon5648]

I remember playing this game with my friends until the early hours on the mode where you fire the guy through the windscreen and get him as high as you can 😆 That was in 2005 and I still have the copy of that game to this day. I play Wreckfest now which is by the same people. Awesome games, timeless.

[@user-ss6co6vj5f]

For English-based people, who first time hearing "Folkracing" - ColourShed basically was implying, "Flatout was based on Finnish Type of "Banger Racing" or "AutoGrass" " (Or "8-shaped/Figure Lap/Type Racing" or "Derby Races" for USA-based people). And Fun Facts - yes, the main guys behind the FlatOut Series, was been even racing in this types of Races. Absolute madlads. Eastern EU Gamedev was actually the most hardcore - in terms of Realism: 1)FlatOut - was came and made from, yes... like i said, fans and drivers from BANGER RACING. 2)Devs of OG Mafia 1 - was came from Normal Circuit Races, and later they got people from Army and from Paintball into Dev. - to make one of most realistic FPS shooter back then - "Vietcong" Series. (Mafia's Devs attempt on Vietnam War.) Also, about Eastern Gamedev - FlatOut games was so(!) much hyped in Russia, there was even several Russian made mods for FlatOut games. Not only that - "Trail Out" game - which released recently, was made as Russian Spiritual Successor of FlatOut 2. And many Racer's game bloggers - said same thing. So, yea - FlatOut as series - maybe died, but her legacy lived on - in "WreckFest" and "TrailOut". So, go - check them both out. P.S.: And, yes - TrailOut - is Russian made, bcs i know - devs are living in my city. So, for people who says "REEE it is not russian" - please STFU and stop spread Fake News.

[@Donnerwamp]

I really envy people that get into gaming nowadays. They can experience the classics "we veterans" take for granted for the very first time, even the cheap second hand entry level hardware can play those classics at max settings in framerates that were impossible even with high end stuff and then there's all this stuff that came out in the meantime that they can look forward to. Well, or look back at the old stuff and enjoy it later, there's no such thing as playing games in the right order, you know what I mean...

[@teacherfromthejungles6671]

I remember I was quite young and got around 10$ as a new year present (lol) so I went to a nearby kiosk and bought this game in a double CD jewel case. boy oh boy, that new year holiday was unforgettable xD

[@A_furry69]

Sliding on the dirt and snow feels quite realistic than the second one.