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Mix equal parts
of They Live and Total Recall, add in a healthy dose
of style, and you get this awesome action/adventure scroller. You
play as Conrad Hart, a man who has just evaded imprisonment and been
shot down over the jungles of Saturn's moon, Titan. You have no recolection
of your own identity or who your aggressors are, but a cryptic message
in your pocket is a holograph of you instructing yourself to recover
your lost memory and get your ass to Earth. And so begins your story,
involving alien infilteration, government conspiracies, a unique set
of state-of-the-art glasses, and some of the coolest gadgets you can
hope to find in a platform game.
Let's get this
out of the way first: Flashback is swank. Created by Delphine Studios,
makers of the game's precursor Out of this
World, Flashback represents their best attempt to create cinematic
gameplay. Though the NES had games that attempted to play out like
movies, this is one of the first that seamlessly blends solid plot
and solid gameplay action into one complete experience. With new animation
scanning techniques and some astounding cinematics for its time, this
was one of the most impressive games released in 1993.
The
graphics are less amazing by today's standards, of course, but
the gameplay is still excellent, and it holds up as one of the
better SNES games you can get your hands on. The backgrounds are
hand drawn and converted to digital, with the detail and care coming
through clearly in an artistic watercolor look. The much hyped animation
system makes for very natural and realistic character movement.
The characters are rotoscoped, essentially meaning that video of
actors moving was shot, printed, a transparency placed over each
frame, and the character drawn using the video for a tracing reference.
It's an impressive blending of realism and art, and the effect looks
great even on the SNES.
The cinematics which work so well to tie together the plot of
the game are very impressive for the SNES, both in graphics and in
cinematic direction. They're fun to watch
and do a perfect job of telling the game's complex story. Backgrounds
also set up an exciting comic book feel, and give a nice sci-fi
look throughout. Everything is also detailed well, and except
for pickups (which would appear as simple blobs if it weren't
for the helpful action messages), everything is clear and understandable. |
Conrad makes his short-lived getaway
in the opening cinematic.
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Just as important
as the graphics is the useful control system that let you pull off
an impressive number of moves. Conrad can automatically leap and catch
the edges of platforms, run and change direction quickly, roll away
from danger, and more. Moves can even be linked, so with a few quick
taps Conrad could easily leap off a ledge, tuck into a somersault
as he lands, tear his pistol from his coat as he's rolling, and come
up blazing lead. Admittedly most of his moves are some variation of
a jump (this IS a platformer after all), but his actions are varied
enough to carry you through the game - and you're guaranteed to use
every trick he's got way more than once. You also can't perform many
acrobatics with your weapon out, forcing you to keep it hidden under
your coat to be drawn before each encounter. Some people may be annoyed
with constantly having to fumble for your weapon, but it looks cool,
occasionally works as a disguise, and does allow for some interesting
action moments.
You'll
run into the cops often throughout the game. It doesn't help
that they're corrupt and you're a wanted man.
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The
only thing cooler than Conrad's moves is his creative inventory.
Along the way you'll face some pretty vicious traps and enemies,
and come across some truly original items to help you defeat both.
The mechanical and exploding "mice" make multiple appearances,
and are robotic devices that run the length of a platform when
dropped to trigger switches or kill bad guys. Most handy is a
wristwatch that creates a green force field in front of you for
just about a second, but if timed properly can absorb any bullets
fired at you. This watch acts as your ass-saver straight through
to the end. Late in the game you get access to a teleport reciever
that you can throw or drop anywhere in the level, and a teleport
remote to instantly take you to where the reciever is. Not only
is this effective to get past certain traps, but you can position
it at an energy generator if you need to escape in an emergency
and recharge your shields. Even a simple rock can be picked up
and thrown to distract an enemy. |
Flashback only
has seven acts, but each one is surprisingly long and involved. The
longest, New Washington, actually requires you to get a job within
the city to make enough money to continue. You'll then play through
about eight varied and exciting missions which take you all throughout
the city. Very clever, and and example of how the game definitely
makes the most out of the levels it has. Sounds are generally good,
but spare, with nice effects and limited music. Most of the game is
quiet except for footsteps or action noises, but some brief themes
play at proper times during the levels.
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The
faults of the game are few, but could be enough to turn some
people away. First is the extensive control system. You're really
going to need to find a manual for the game in order to figure
out what to do. There is definitely not a library of obscure
commands that you must remember, in fact most of the controls
are pretty logical, but there are situations where tapping
a button or holding it will be the difference between life and
death. You really will use every move more than once, so you'll
need to know them. Another issue is the difficulty. You carry
around a shield device that can take four hits before needing
to be recharged at one of the energy terminals scattered around
the levels. However, there are a number of situations, hazards,
and puzzles that will kill you instantly if you don't do something
exactly right. Unless you're following a walkthrough, you'll
have to do a lot of trial and error, with death forcing you
to start the level over.
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"Ohhh.. my timing was off with
that button tap! Owch! That smarts!"
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Still, this is
an excellent game, but no one can please everyone all the time. You're
going to have to like platformers, and it helps if you find its action
and sci-fi elements really cool, but anyone who wants a solid adventure
game with an awesome conspiratorial atmosphere will do well with this
one. It's one of the best you can find.
-reviewed 6/24/02 - game copyright 1993 U.S. Gold
Classic adventure
gaming at its best. Worth getting and completing.
Need a manual for
the controls, will be unforgivingly difficult for some.
Flashback on MobyGames
Intro and gameplay video on YouTube
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