To be clear, then, I havent completed Flashback 2.
In truth, I havent got very far at all.
The biggest reason for this is that the save function on my review copy stopped working.
Then suddenly, nothing.
Deleting save states to create room for more was fruitless, as was reinstalling the game.
Still, I felt it was my professional duty to forge on, even without saving.
But then I discovered something else my most recent saves had glitched.
In one, a lift on the critical path stopped functioning.
In the next, my gun no longer worked.
I hope youll forgive me for deciding that even duty has its limits.
Yes, I could have started the whole thing afresh, but honestly Id seen enough.
Greased by fittingly moody synth tunes, Conrad’s return is at least nicely staged.
Hes not so much Bond as Bubsy Bobcat, or an escapee from Saved by the Bell.
Now his presence is about as funny as waking up next to a horses head.
The plot embodies the same philosophy too.
Conrad awakens in a strange city and has to look for his kidnapped friend Ian.
With luck, Ian hasnt been murdered or sold into slavery or starved to death in the meantime.
Imagine Wipeout recreated as a Sunday drive around the M25.
Theres not much more substance in the rest of the games action either.
Its all very basic, then, yet also extremely clumsy.
Mainly thats a matter of perspective, by which I mean camera positioning rather than personal taste.
The first Flashback was very much a 2D game with clear spatial rules.
In many other ways, though, its a major headache.
Simply getting about can be a fiddly process, too.
And all for what?
Flashback 2 never really does anything with this extra depth.
As for the big mech battle against the unbeaten champ, I won first time by hammering a button.
Its another underwhelming moment that reinforces the sense that everything here is padding around a non-existent core game loop.
Certainly, the games shoddy, rushed technical condition backs that theory up.
I dont know when they started, but theyve never stopped since.
As a critic, Id always rather write reviews as pieces of critical analysis than consumer guides.
But with Flashback 2 theres really only one thing to say: dont buy it.
This review is based on a copy of the game provided by the publisher.
