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The Flatout series has always been the ugly step-cousin to EA’s racing juggernaut, Burnout. At first look, it’s not hard to see why. Both games have obvious similarities and are competing for the same arcade-racing audience. The latest in the Flatout line, Ultimate Carnage, has plenty in common with Burnout: Revenge on the Xbox 360, and is basically a combination and upgrade of the first two games in the Flatout series.

Hit Me!

Ultimate Carnage tries to add more personality than its competition by giving us AI racers with names and driving styles, although in the end it doesn’t make much difference in the gameplay. The racing in Ultimate Carnage is definitely focused on aggressive driving, and overall, contains more opportunities to run things over than Burnout. Destruction is imperative, since crashing through signs, fences, and the myriad of other pieces of track scenery earn you precious, speed giving nitro.

Hitting cars, causing them to crash, and, best of all, bashing one so hard the driver flies out also rewards the driver with nitro, although the focus of most of the game modes isn’t actually on causing rampant destruction to your opponents. This is still track-based racing, so hitting obstacles is used as a means to an end. Often, you’ll want to avoid bashing into opponents, as it can slow you down, or even cause you to careen off into a field or river.

Burnout in the Dirt

Unlike Burnout, which really did offer vehicular destruction at a wholesale rate, Ultimate Carnage incapacitating crashes is much harder and far rarer. On the same token, the AI aggression levels are jacked up a notch beyond any other recent racer, and hitting them just makes them want to hit you even more. While initially amusing, this overly offensive driving style gets tiresome quickly—it takes away from the actual racing.

The tracks tend to shy away from the urban centers of other arcade racers, instead focusing on farmlands, dirt roads, and abandoned highways. There are a few trips through the ‘burbs and urban drainways, but most of the game has a distinct down and dirty feel. This is especially true of the overall demolition derby nature of the racing. The starting cars are all junk heaps, and even the later models tend to have a distinctly trashy appeal to them.

You can upgrade your car from top to bottom, or just buy new ones with the credits earned from placing high in competitions. Unfortunately, the cars don’t feel very distinctive, and the handling differences between the various models feel a bit too fuzzy.

The racing mechanics are solid, yet also rather bland. The game is fun to play from a purely superficial arcade perspective, but there is definitely something missing in the overall feel of the racing. The physics aren’t quite right, and there’s a noticeable lack of satisfying arcade stand-bys like power sliding. On the plus side, steering wheel support is excellent. Ultimate Carnage is one of the few arcade racers on the system to really make good use of the Microsoft wheel.

When the Dust Settles…

Another boost for Flatout is the visuals. The game looks gorgeous, with superbly detailed tracks, scenery, and cars. Admittedly, even though it might look better than Burnout: Revenge, the entire style—right down to the menus and loading screens—seems to have been blatantly ripped from EA’s series. It makes you wonder if the developers had any original thoughts for the game presentation.

Lacking EA’s money for big name bands, Ultimate Carnage instead offers an impressive array of hard-rocking smaller bands. Although this nu rock flavor is becoming a cliché for games, the soundtrack is still very solid. Plus, the sound effects are excellent, with plenty of strong engine and crashing noises to power the action.

Multiplayer offers the usual laundry list of online play, and Ultimate Carnage also includes party games for a group. The Party mode is basically a series of stunt mini-games that, much like that other game, allows multiple drivers to test their ability to crash, cause damage, and, in a particularly inspired bit of sadism, flip the driver out of a speeding car to get the greatest tossing distance.

Ultimately Amusing

Flatout: Ultimate Carnage is undeniably fun. It’s also incredibly derivative and still, after three tries, flawed. The game looks great and plays well enough to keep you involved, but the racing mechanics lack punch and the focus on aggressive driving ends up hurting the otherwise straightforward racing.

Review by: Jason D'Aprile
Video Produced by: Jonathan Solin