When I first picked up Freaky Flyers for a review, the first thing I noticed was its box art. I dont know what they were thinking, but this is some of the ugliest character art I have ever seen. Its like bad high school cartoonists were hired for minimum wage to create the games artwork. I decided not to read a book by its cover. Maybe that was a mistake.
Gameplay:
A cast of wacky characters takes to the air, sitting in aircraft smaller than their upper bodies, and race around a bunch of different looking levels. Each character has different flying capabilities and all the levels are very varied which keeps things fresh, for a while. Most of the characters seem stereotypical and their humour is pretty lame with annoying voices that just wont shut up. The gameplay itself can be entertaining for a short while, but after a few races, I was done with this game (although I kept playing for the sake of making a review). The stages themeselves are the games highest point. Each one has a different theme, like a world war one battlfield or a jungle or Japan (while under giant monster attack). These levels look pretty nice with plenty of details, obstacles and shortcuts, giving players more freedom during races. The weapons are pretty standard (with an areial twist) for a kart racer type game. Theres also a stunt button which helps to avoid some enemy attacks and obstacles which is pretty helpful. The game can be pretty difficult, but only for the reason that other flyers seem to always be faster than you are, forcing you to constantly seek short cuts through the levels which gets pretty annoying. Each race has six sub-missions with annoying objectives that usually will keep you from winning the race. There is also a 2 player mode, but there needed to be a 4 player mode for there to be any fun with multiplayer mode. Theres also a mission mode with a bunch of wacky objectives to complete which was a good diversion for a short while.
Aesthetics:
Graphically this is a mixed bag. While the stages are detailed with plenty of background action going on, the overall cartoon look of the levels just wasnt my style. The framerate was for the most part, stable with some slowdown but not too much. Pretty much a standard package.
Sound:
In a word, annoying. It might appeal to some, but for me, the music was seriously annoying along with the combined voices of the characters and the race announcer. A few songs have vocals with dopey lyrics that try way to hard to be funny. The sounds of the planes and weapons and some other sounds arent all the bad and were pretty good, but overall, the sounds just didnt do it for me.
Control:
Surprisingly, not bad. Piloting the plane is pretty simple and not a challenge. Each pilot has different piloting abilities, so if your having trouble controlling a certain plane, a pilot change can really make a big difference in controls and ease of flight. There are two problems though. One is that the game feels very slow, and it feels like the CPU racers always can double your current speed. Second is there is no "power slide" or any type of cornering method. Still not that bad.
Multiplayer:
Like I said before, the multiplayer is seriously lacking, due to its 2- player limit. Four player games might have been fun with some dog fighting, but going at it against just one friend is pretty much just as boring as the single player mode.
OVERALL:
Unless you are a hardcore Diddy Kong racing fan, rent it. The humour doesnt work well, the gameplay gets boring and annoying, and the music is evil. It will entertain for a shortwhile though, so if you have a freind unfortunate enough to have purchased this game, you can play thiers.
The Lowdown on  Freaky Flyers
| Aesthetics: Average |
Control: Average |
| Gameplay: Below Average |
Multiplayer: Below Average |
| Sound: Terrible |
Innovation: 2/6 |
| Lasting Appeal: 1/6 |
|
Overall: Below Average!
"Has Some Detrimental Problems"
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Freaky Flyers
