‘FFracer’ Review – Full Steam Ahead
“You’re waiting for a train, a train that will take you far away. You know where you hope this train will take you, but you don’t know for sure.” Unlike that famous scene from Inception, players of FFracer know exactly where they are going; players make the journey by train from Bergen to Oslo, with 17 checkpoints along the way.
FFracer is a scenic and picturesque game, but the driving factor behind this is the usage of real world footage. Players are put in control of a video of Norway’s landscape and the speed of the train determines the speed of the video. The name is derived from Fast Forward, which is the backbone of the concept of the game. Using real world footage is a novel concept that is put to excellent use here. Players are able to experience the beautiful and diverse landscapes of Norwaywith scenes of snow-clad mountain tops, lakeside tracks and fields as far as the eye can see in superb quality. Considering many game developers strive to recreate real-world graphics in video game format, the usage of real world footage is an inspired decision that puts literally puts players in a location.
While FFracer focuses on the journey, there is still a gameplay element at its core. Players must reach the next station in the journey within a certain time or they will not be able to progress. The quickest way to get to the next station is to keep the accelerator rooted to the floor and make your turns without crashing. This is easier than it sounds considering players will often be whipping along at over 200 km/h. At this speed, any corner rapidly appears, but when given clear view of the path ahead, it is actually quite manageable. Tunnels, however, cause issues as there is no overhead or warning which direction the next turn will take. Thankfully, it is not possible to derail the train, but players are punished by the screech of metal and are instantly slowed. At times, crashes seem inconsistent; the path detection kicks in more when oversteering, rather than understeering. There are moments that you would think would result in a crash, but nothing happens, while other less evident mistakes get punished.
It seems like a missed opportunity that a scenic option was not implemented into the game. While it is possible to crawl along at 100 km/h and enjoy the view, players will fail and will be forced to restart. It is not possible to skip stages, so you will have to pass each one in turn to unlock the next. FFracer isn’t an overly difficult game, but it would have been nice to be able to sit back and take in the scenery, which is naturally a challenge at the normal rapid pace of the game. After a couple of attempts at a stage, you will find yourself able to enjoy the landscape some more as turns become more ingrained into muscle memory. So, if you do want to take in everything that this route has to offer, simply play each stage until you know it like the back of your hand or complete the game and then take it easy.
The whirlwind tour of Norway’s countryside is backed by a techno-styled soundtrack. Considering the game’s setting it is surprising that the soundtrack matches the game well. The soundtrack is played on a continuous loop and through the menus rather than on a track-by-track basis. This works perfectly except some tracks slow down towards the end; this can be quite jarring when you are still travelling at a rapid speed. Aside from moments like this the music is a fitting backdrop for the journey once you play the game as it’s designed to be played.
The incentive to replay the game and stages is provided by the wonderful journey. As players become more accustomed to the tracks and the game as a whole, it becomes more possible to take in more of the surroundings. Players can also attempt to beat their best time on each individual stage if they are looking for more of a challenge. Or, of course, players can relax and enjoy the ride safe in the knowledge that they will be able to see the next stage at a more sedate pace.
FFracer is a wonderful journey through the pleasant and picturesque countryside of Norway that tourist boards should consider using as a promotion tool for the country. If Google’s Street View adopted the same technology, we may never leave the comfort of our armchairs to experience a holiday again because let’s face it; the airport experience can be such a hassle.
A trial version of FFracer is available containing the first three stages. The full version, containing all 17 stages, is available from the official website for $10.
