Full Throttle

The Good
Full Throttle was created by Tim Schafer during an uneasy period in the history of adventure games. Comedy adventures were beginning to feel stale in the age of multimedia, and demands for more mature content eventually resulted in such works as Sierra's horror- and occult-themed Gabriel Knight and Phantasmagoria series. LucasArts never really responded to that tendency; indeed, until the very end of their creative output they haven't made a single adventure game without comedy elements. That said, Full Throttle at least attempts to shift the attention away from time-traveling hippies and mentally unstable rabbits to present a gritty - if somewhat cheesy and B-movie-like - tale of biker gangs, rough romance, and corporate injustice.

Full Throttle is very cinematic, more so that any previous LucasArts adventure. Cutscenes are more numerous than ever, and they are very well-done in the same cartoony, yet serious style that later also distinguished Outlaws. All the ingredients of teenage-oriented "coolness" typical of the 1980's are there: you have the impossibly cool, low-key unshaven protagonist with an attitude; the backdrop of constant cheerfully presented violence manifested in "manly" biker brawls; the caricature of a villain with an evil square face and sinister plans hinting at the general evil of capitalism; and so on. This stylish presentation is complemented by cartoony, edgy visual design and a metallic soundtrack.

I liked two things about the gameplay: the "Kick" command and the biker fights. Those are pretty much the only things in gameplay that adequately reflect the stylistic traits of the narrative (though the fights could have been better executed). The rest, sadly, is a row of singularly unimpressive "puzzles" devoid of wit and challenge. The part where you cross a minefield with the help of pink electric bunnies was certainly funny and quite original, but it was an isolated spark of brilliance rather than an indicator of the game's puzzle design. It also revealed a deeper weakness of Full Throttle: it tried to deal with more mature content in its story, but utterly forgot to do anything with the familiar light-hearted inventory puzzle system besides toning it down.

The Bad
Sometimes it's enough to play a game for a couple of hours, without even finishing it, in order to know it's going to stay with you for life. And sometimes one full playthrough can be deceptive: you return to the game after several years and suddenly discover it isn't as great as you thought it was.

The problem is that, with all its coolness, its cinematic flair, and its dramatic narrative, Full Throttle is a stunningly ordinary adventure game. I don't want to sound like a pompous ass, but I do prefer games that focus on gameplay above everything else - and, sadly, Full Throttle is not such a game. It gives you a cool protagonist, it gives you stylish visuals, it gives you cutscenes - but it doesn't give you what has always been the foundation of LucasArts' design philosophy: lively dialogues and challenging inventory-based puzzles. It's like a meal consisting only of a great sauce and spices, but without the actual main course.

Most reviewers state that Full Throttle is too easy and too short. I fully agree with this evaluation - it's just that I probably feel more bothered by that than the others. It's true that Loom was also too easy and too short - but it had such unique gameplay that it almost didn't matter. Full Throttle, however, is just a vanilla adventure game. It mainly consists of harmless object-manipulating activities that feel like pale shadows of the brain-twisting, wacky and witty schemes of Day of the Tentacle. With the exception of the bunny-hopping puzzle, I don't recall a single task in Full Throttle that was truly interesting. Simplified interface, reduced interaction, and narrow, confined spaces complement the bleak picture.

Ever since Monkey Island, abundant branching dialogue has become a trademark of LucasArts' adventures. Those humorous, well-written interchanges are almost completely absent from Full Throttle. There are only a few instances where you can talk to people and actually choose your answers - most of the conversation in the game is handled by cutscenes. The game has about as much player-controlled dialogue as Zak McKracken, if not less. But that game had a vast world, non-linear progression, multiple puzzle solutions, optional content, four different protagonists, and what not. Full Throttle has you completing linear tasks in small areas, without an actual world you can explore. That structure would be much more appropriate in a Sierra adventure, where gameplay was tight and dramatic, ripe with hazards and sudden deaths. It doesn't fit a game that follows a certain "hands off" philosophy, where rough edges have been removed and where the player begins to feel too safe, artificially guided to the happy end.

The Bottom Line
I know this is not a popular opinion, but I'll have to state it, and I'm doing it as a big admirer of LucasArts' work: Full Throttle is a nice game, but it's a far cry from the company's acknowledged masterpieces. It's refreshing to play through once, but lack of any gameplay depth essentially makes it a typical "rental". To me, Full Throttle is a symptom of crisis in adventure game design in general and in LucasArts' oeuvre in particular - one they would hardly recover from, despite the magnificence of Grim Fandango.

The Good
The production values on this tale of futuristic bikers are high. In fact you may be forgiven for thinking you're watching a cartoon rather than playing a game at points, the cut-scenes are long but very well written and expertly animated, no minutes spent watching the same screen of two sprites having a conversation.

The story is original and great, cast as a Hell's Angels type biker Ben, you have to clear up the framing of you and your gang for killing the boss of the last motorcycle manufacturer in America. The setting is expansive, the wide open spaces and roads, enhanced by an excellent sound track. the animation is perfectly done to really give a sense of speed to a point and click adventure, no mean feat. Pace is added by blending the game engines as well, most of the game uses the classic SCUMM engine, but it also throws in the engine from Star Wars: Rebel Assault for an arcade sequence, and then another custom built one for a Destruction Derby sequence. This blend works pretty well, aside from some control problems in the derby, and it's difficult to see the joins.

Something people often complain about it something that I like, the short length. It never overstays it's welcome, which is nice as the plot doesn't really twist and turn that much.

The Bad
It seems to counter the short length the designers made the puzzles quite convoluted. Often there's several steps to them which are entirely obvious, so whilst you know what you want to achieve and the method for doing it, sometimes you don't know exactly where to click to do it. This happens especially when you fail to notice the vital pixel on screen. I've always found that Lucasarts games have obscure puzzles, so I suppose I should have expected it.

The Bottom Line
Full Throttle is a fun short game which feels like you're watching a tv show whilst you're playing. As a staple of Lucasart's output it deserves to be played.

The Good
Gamers come in many varieties, and every gamer who has ever said "I want a game that will puzzle my brain" has likely played and enjoyed a good ol' point and click adventure game, and there was no better era for point and click adventure titles than the golden era of Lucas Arts. Everything their brilliant team came out with was a golden, seemingly flawless gem. From Maniac Mansion to Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (Arguably the best and only good Indiana Jones game) this truly was the greatest era for adventure games. Although I pretty much love 'em all, there are two that standout and rank on my top 5 games of all time list: Sam & Max Hit The Road (Review coming soon, along with reviews of the new 1s) and Full Throttle. If you haven't already guessed, we are talking about the latter game today.

Full Throttle comes from the mind of Tim Schafer, one of the most brilliant game designers ever. It tells the story of Ben, the leader of a motorcycle gang known as The Polecats, in a time when motorbikes are being outdated due to the revolution of the hover car and the fact that wheels are no longer needed. Only one corporation still makes motorbikes: Corley motors, owned by the old and dying Malcolm Corley, who loves the thrills and danger of the wild life, and wants to pass the torch to someone young and exciting and it just so happens that Ben catches his eye. However, Malcolm's partner, Adrian Ripburger isn't too pleased with Malcolm's decision as he desperately wants the throne.

The story is very well written, a trademark of adventure games and especially Lucas Arts adventure games. The cast in the game is top notch, every voice actor gives a convincing performance and brings their characters to life. Mark Hamill appears in the game, and provides a standout performance as the villain, Adrian Ripburger, really making him a creepy and genuinely intimidating villain. The only fault I have with the voice acting is that sometimes Roy Conrad (Ben) is a little deadpan at times, but he still does a good job overall. The music is also great, coming from a kickass metal band known as The Gone Jackals; specifically their album "Bone to Pick." Its sad they didn't really go anywhere, they were quite good.

The graphics are great, while they do suffer from pixelization at times, the animation is top notch and stylish, and the CG used also looks very good for the time and looks great. I would love to see this digitally enhanced, with no more pixelation. The animation is great, almost movie quality.

The puzzles are all well thought out, but at the same time they aren't too complex and they can make the game easy to play for newcomers to the genre, while still providing a challenge.

The game also has a good sense of humour, the game isn't meant to be a comedy, but there's a fair amount of humour and charm put into the game coming straight from Tim Schafer's twisted brilliance. One can't help but laugh when sending an army of robotic pink bunnies to their doom in a minefield, as "Ride of the Valkyries" plays in the background.

The Bad
As good as the sound design is when regarding the music and voice acting, the sample quality is low, and it can sound tinny and sometimes muffled playing on modern speakers. This is another part that I would love to see remastered, as the sample quality just hasn't aged well, although the overall effort and quality of the actual sounds themselves are great.

There's also a section later in the game that relies on combat, and the combat isn't really that good. It plays out something like Road Rash, but the controls seem delayed and its often frustrating how if you tilt the mouse just one inch towards the end of the screen, Ben burns out and crashes, even if he didn't touch the wall. It also seems that you can hit someone forever and they won't die, yet you can be downed in one or two hits, unless you have the chainsaw.

Sadly, the game is also somewhat short, but that doesn't really end up being too big a problem since either way, the game is very satisfying.

The Bottom Line
When it comes to adventure games, "Full Throttle" is as good as they come. It's accessible to newbies and features a great interface, but it will still provide a challenge for veterans of the genre. Full Throttle is full of wit and charm, while telling a great story in every respect. You don't even have to like motorbikes or heavy metal to enjoy the story because of its overall quality, although if you do have a fondness for motorbikes, the open road, and metal as I do, then it will only make it more entertaining.

Full Throttle may not be a game that is immediately replayable, but it does have a great replay value, its much like your favourite movie, every so often you get the urge to watch it again and you will always cherish it.

If you have not played Full Throttle and enjoy point and click games, then what are you waiting for? Go out and find a copy of this wonderful, timeless classic. You will thank me for it. Rock on, Tim.

The Good
In the genre of point n' click, graphic adventure games, LucasArts has demonstrated its cool, creative and mastery time and time again. In 'Full Throttle', these masters of adventure gaming weave a sci-fi biker tale that is amazingly touching, without losing any of the mystery, suspense, humor, in-jokes and social satire that have become trademarks of other LucasArts adventure games.

The Bad
My complaints are few and, largely, minor. However, each one is worth noting.

The game is a bit too short for die hard LucasArts adventure fans with the prospect of sequels seeming more and more unlikely in an era where adventure gaming has become something of a lost art within the industry.

The arcade battle sequences with the various bikers is a bit of a challenge, for what is mostly a thinking and exploring adventure game. As a kindness, you have unlimited lives and the ability to save your progress. However, their are a couple times during these arcade sequences where my level of frustration rose more then I would have liked.

Last, but not least, their were a few problems with the storyline that are never fully explained. For example, a photo may imply that Mo's Uncle was a transvestite, not that their is anything wrong with that. But, its never developed any further beyond a vague hint. Another example would be the central storyline that Malcolm Corley would have shunned his daugher because she was bed out of wedlock. Are we to really believe that in the future, their would be a significant prejudice against illegitimate children, within the biker community? I doubt it.

Most of these story problems could have been fixed with a longer game or, better yet, a proper sequel.

The Bottom Line
'Full Throttle' was released in 1995, when point and click CD-ROM graphic adventure games were still considered popular enough to warrent the high degree of creative development, talent and wit seen in this game.

The 1980s - late 1990s was a great era for these types of games, with LucasArts leading the way. Sadly, Full Throttel was not given a proper sequel or the chance to develop into a franchise as the overall trend has been away from making these type of adventure games.

The Good
Few adventure games have as well crafted a story line as this. Despite its short length, which I don't see as a flaw as others do, you quickly get sucked up in the story and find yourself connecting with the characters. With the exception of Grim Fandango I can't remember the last adventure I played where you really come to care for the characters the way you do for Ben and Morean. Overall the character design from Ben and Morean to the wondrously evil Adrian Ripburger and the very likeable Malcolm Corley is stellar. The excellent voice acting throughout also helps to breathe life into these characters. There is a real feeling of style to this game, everything from the great music to the slick movie like feel of the cut scenes and the game itself all come together to deliver a great gaming experience. Part of the rough and tumble atmosphere in the game is the ability of Ben to kick and punch his way through a number of situations. It's kind of refreshing in an adventure game to be able to kick down a guys front door or rough up a bar tender. There aren’t a lot of these situations but it adds a nice twist to the genre.

The Bad
There really aren’t any showstoppers in this game and maybe because of its otherwise overall excellence the few flaws that it does have stand out all the more.

For the most part the puzzle design is what you would expect from a Lucas Arts adventure, not to hard not to easy with a few leaps of login thrown in for good measure, nothing the average adventure player can't handle. However there are places where objects that play a role in solving a puzzle or getting you out of a situation you are stuck in aren’t highlighted at all. It's very annoying to find out that the solution to a problem is too hid behind a piece of scenery that you thought was just part of the background art work. There are also one or two examples of hidden or camouflaged objects. Another thing that some adventure gamers might find annoying is the arcade sequences in the game. There are two parts in the game where you are placed in an arcade like mini games where you have to either fight other characters or drive a car. These are well integrated into the game and fun to play however some may feel them to have a "dumbed down for the adventure gamer" quality or they may just feel them tedious. The solution to the destruction derby comes to mind.

The Bottom Line
Overall this is still a must play adventure game. It ranks right up there among the best for its immersive atmosphere and wonderful characters.

The Good
This is a real good adventure game. The graphics are dark and, together with the twisted music it creates a very nice atmosphere. There's some good humor in this game too. The tough main character Ben rules, and the other characters in this game are nice too.

The puzzles in this game are nice, some will really get you thinking and some won't require too much of it :). In this game, the obvious answer is almost never the right one.

There's some action in this game, (beat up rival bikers on abandoned mining roads) in this game, it fits, other then arcade/action scenes in some other adventures.

The Bad
Well... The destruction derby was a little annoying, altough not impossible, it didn't really hold me up long. The game is a little too easy sometimes.

The Bottom Line
This game rocks! A must for adventure fans.

The Good
Like many LucasArts adventure games, there's a lot to like about Full Throttle. LucasArts has had a tendency to produce adventure games that are friendly, fun, and contain an interesting storyline. This rocking road trip of a game is no different.

The graphics are perfect for this type of game. The cartoon like style of Day of the Tentacle and Sam&Max Hit the Road is revisted here, only with a somewhat more serious tone. The style and animation easily beats out most Saturday morning cartoons, even at its pixelated low resolution. The characters are brought to life with expressive faces and little nuances (like reflections in chrome) make this a game worth watching, if not playing.

The voice-acting is top notch. Headed up by voice-acting veterans Jack Angel and Mark Hamill, the main speaking characters are defined as much by the voice and verbal mannerisms as they are their physical appearance, and the minor characters are all lively and enjoyable to listen to. There's really not one bad bit of acting among the batch, from Ben's gravelly voice to Ripburger's (excellently done by Hamill) menacing tone to the Ross Perot wannabe souvenir vendor.

The little semi-action games break up the adventure game and provide for a change of pace without disrupting the flow of the game. Much like the rest of the game (except for the end-game scenario), the arcade games are designed to be light on the difficulty and not force deaths or reloads over and over.

The soundtrack, mostly music from a genre I didn't expect to like, was very appropriate for the game, was coupled perfectly with scenes, and is actually quite good. I have found myself playing the opening sequence just for that theme and still get a kick out of music playing at the trailer guy's house.

The Bad
The game is relatively easy and doesn't last long. While the whole adventure is an enjoyable romp, it does run through quickly and seems over long before you want it to end. Usually that's a good sign for any media, but in this case, it's partially due to the story's brevity. This is made worse by the 'small world' sense the game gives, as you'll find yourself revisiting a number of the same places a number of time in order to complete some puzzles.

The Old Mine Road combat sequence is fun, but gets repetitive quickly and each important opponent needs to be taken down in a certain order (as you need a previous opponent's weapon to be victorious). Whether due to luck or a mistake in choosing the wrong weapon, you will find yourself needing to drive down the road many miles looking to get run through all the opponents you need to move on.

The Bottom Line
A semi-serious, enjoyable cartoon-looking biker gang adventure game filled with a friendly interface, puzzles that won't interfere too much with the game, and a fitting soundtrack. Fans of LucasArts games (and adventure games in general) won't want to pass this gem up. While not as hilarious as Day of the Tentacle or Sam&Max, Full Throttle is still a worthy addition to genre.

The Good
When I read that Mark Hamill did some of the voice acting in 'Full Throttle', I waited to hear his snivelling, whiny little voice sometime during the game because I didn't think he had the talent to do Adrian Ripburger's refined-yet-sleazy tone, or the rabid-dog-choking-on-a-razor-blade voice of Emmett the truck driver. And I didn't even dream that he was versatile enough to do both.... but I was wrong. I was wrong about a lot of things -- most of all, that I would get completely immersed in a graphical adventure game. That sort of thing really isn't my bag, baby.

But.... the game looked cool, and after the game sat on my shelf collecting dust for two years or so, I figured I'd taker her for a little spin. I popped in the CD, ran through a little setup dealie, and hit the road.

The intro was kinda long, but it set the mood and gave a little background to let me know what was going on. Some credits were shown in the intro, which was weird. I would have started pounding keys to try to bypass the thing, but the music rocked (I caught myself checking out the Gone Jackals website afterward...).

When the intro was finally over, I found that I was stuck in a dumpster. It was all downhill from there.... ^_^

The graphics are awesome for their time (better play Pong or Space Invaders for a few hours before starting the game), and the audio is great. The voice acting is top-notch, done by some very talented people (yes, Mark Hamill included).

The interface is easy to use, including the way-cool popup menu, and the slightly-less-cool inventory screen. There were a few problems, but more on that later.

The story was good enough that I was geniunely immersed in the game from beginning to end, and just when I would get tired of all the pointing and clicking there would be a short action game to break things up a bit.

The puzzles were a little too easy (except for a few), but it kept the action moving instead of grinding to a halt when the pea-brained player (that would be me) couldn't solve a difficult puzzle.

I've read several reviews that say that this game is too short, but in my opinion it's about right. I tend to get bored of games very quickly, and this is one of the few that I've played all the way through.

The Bad
There isn't very much wrong with 'Full Throttle'. There were some problems with the pop-up menu, which appears after pressing and holding the left mouse button. It appears after about hald a second, which was a total pain in one of the final sequences where you have to grab a certain object that appears and disappears very quickly. I'm sure there's a hotkey, but I'm a mouse-clicking moron....

Another problem was the demolition derby sequence, where after messing around for 45 minutes I had to check out a walkthrough to figure out how to get through it. Even after reading how to win it and trying for another half-hour or so, I still couldn't do it. So I... uh... used a cheat code.

The Bottom Line
This is absolutely, unconditionally, undeniably a kickass game. You might think it's too short, since my opinion is in the minority, but you'll love every minute of it.

And here's a tip -- watch the end-game credits all the way through.... the haiku poems at the end had me laughing so hard I was in tears!

The Good
An interesting game world with amazing characters. Superb voice acting, music, sound and graphics that even today hold on

The Bad
Short. Annoying action sequences that you cannot skip. Some puzzles are disgracefully easy, while others are not intuitive and feel more like a desperate attempt to lengthen the game.

The Bottom Line
I actually played Full Throttle when it came out, almost 20 years ago, but never finished it. My friend was the one who had a copy of the game and we played it together on his PC till he had to return it, as he also did not own the game. Let me remind you that we're talking about 1995, a period where games required the installation CD to run, not as an authentication method but simply because the hard-drives were too small to contain an entire disc.

When I saw Tim Schafer play Full Throttle in the DoubleFine YouTube channel, I just had to play it from beginning to end, to finally fill that gap from 1995. So I stopped watching Tim so not to spoil the game for me, grabbed a copy and installed it on my PC.

In my memories, Full Throttle is an amazing piece of work and if I had to write a review strictly based on what I remember it'll probably be filled with compliments and phrases such as "the greatest game I ever played".

But the truth is - Full Throttle is not that great. It is quite an experience, with memorable characters, plot and atmosphere, but it fails as an adventure game. It's puzzles are simply sub-par. Most are extremely easy, and a lot of them consist of kicking stuff (one of the action verbs is kick). Only a few are smart and shine out with Tim's greatness.

Some of the puzzles, while not hard, are simply not intuitive. For example, and without spoiling too much, at one point in the game you need to have a quantity of one of the items in your inventory. However, after you picked up that item and placed it in your inventory, you can only pick it again after you used the one you already have, and while it is possible to use a copy of the item each time - it is not the solution. All items need be used at the same time to resolve the puzzle.

So how do you overcome it? You use the item, so it'll be removed from your inventory, but once you've used it, you pick it up again. You will now have in your inventory what the item contained, which is actually what you needed in the first place, and the item itself will be generated again and be available for pick up. Yes, this is the puzzle solution and not a bug in the game.

Other then that, there are action sequences peppered throughout the game. Their biggest problem is that the controls are poor and unresponsive, they're not fun at all and if they do have some sort of strategy in them then I've missed it, as I managed to pass them all by mashing buttons. And the worst is that you cannot skip them!

Tim mentioned in his play through that in order to make the protagonist believable as a tough biker guy, he had to kick stuff, including people, and that's the reason for having them in the first place. I don't think that an adventure game should force on it's players, who would've purchased an action title if they wanted, action sequences that cannot be skipped.

Along with Sam and Max, Day of the Tentacle and Monkey Island, Full Throttle has that LucasArts charm which was so prominent in the mid 90's. It's story is compelling and the settings and characters are truly superb. Even today, it's cartoon like presentation looks great, not to mention it's rock soundtrack and excellent voice acting.

However, in the end, Full Throttle is an adventure game, and as one it should present challenging and interesting puzzles, and not rely on action sequences or odd puzzles to squeeze the (very) short gaming experience.

The Good
After they completed Sam & Max Hit the Road, LucasArts wondered what they do next. Their solution was to create a more serious, less humorous adventure game, with a bit of suspense added to the mix. Full Throttle tells the story of Ben Throttle, leader of a motorcycle gang known as The Polecats who are not the type of motorcycle gang to mess with.

Story: Malcolm Corley is the president of Corley Motors, the last motorcycle maker in the country. Unfortunately, Corley is about to retire from the motorcycle business, and his vice president, Adrian Ripburger, wants to take his place. He soon murders Corley and blames Ben and The Polecats for his murder, so Ben must prove his innocence. When he is about to die, Corley tells Ben that he wants his daughter, Maureen ("Mo") Corley, to take over as president, as Ripburger as president would bring disasterous consequences for the company. Ripburger plans to stop producing motorcycles to make way for minivans - something that Corley Motors isn't ready for.

Gameplay: Unlike previous adventure games from LucasArts, Full Throttle uses an advanced version of the SCUMM (Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) interface. The interface itself is easy to use. The game is split into two sections. You have your adventure section, where you can perform actions by holding down the left mouse button while the crosshair is highlighted in a red square. This will cause a bikie symbol to appear, and will have KICK, TOUCH, TASTE, and LOOK actions inside it. The gray area below each action tells you what object that you are interacting with. Also, holding down the right mouse button access the inventory in the form of a giant skull, with all items in the skull's mouth, plus red arrows in the eye sockets if the items don't fit the length of the mouth. Dragging the item outside the skull causes the skull to disappear, and allows you to use it on an object. This is a pretty good metaphor that LucasArts used in this game. You can't die in Full Throttle by performing unusual actions, so you are free to do whatever you like in the game, and even if that action leads you to Ben's death, you won't see one of those death screens or Sierra's death dialog boxes. Instead, you resume at the start of the scene that got you killed, and you must try a different set of actions so you can avoid this.

Most of the characters have got a bit of warmth to them, and from what I read in oleg's review, all the characters are portrayed in real life. Almost all the characters are kind to you, and will offer you help if you treat them with respect. Mo, for example, will fix your bike and be your friend for the rest of the adventure if you tell her the horrible truth about Corley's murder. Some characters, like Nestor, Bolus, and Ripburger himself, hate Ben and wants him dead.

You also have the action sequences. The first one kicks in after you leave the Kick Stand bar. These action sequences require you fighting rival gangs and trying to make them fall off their bikes, and require some skill in order to win, as using the right weapons against them will let you in, and these weapons will be obtained by knocking each gang member off their bikes. At the start, you have no weapons to start off with and must use your fists. However, by knocking gangs to the ground, you can get better weapons such as chain, board, and chainsaw. If you don't use the right weapons, you could be knocked off yourself. You also have the demolition derby that occurs much later in the game, where you must complete a task, not just ram cars to death. These sequences are controlled by INSANE, LucasArts's new scripting engine, apart from SCUMM and IMUSE.

The game consists of day and night sequences. You do most of your actions by day, but some can only be done at night. Full Throttle uses long FMV (Full Motion Video) cut-scenes, that was very popular in the 90's. I like how this is done. Pressing [F5] on the keyboard will bring up the game's control panel, which allows you to change the volume settings, save, restore, or quit a game - exactly the same sort of control panel that LucasArts used in their previous games. The only difference is when you attempt to save over the top of another game, you will be asked if you really want to save over an existing game. You have access to the control panel throughout the game, expect the action sequences.

Graphics: The graphics are in line with cartoon adventure games like Leisure Suit Larry, Day of the Tentacle, and Sam & Max. It is excellent that LucasArts stuck that way with their graphics since when they completed Maniac Mansion all the way up to Escape from Monkey Island.

Music & Sound: The sounds in the game are realistic to the sounds in real life. For example, when the night inside the game kicks in, you'll hear crickets, owls, and other living creatures exactly as they sound. This means they used a sound file of a real creature hooting and cooing. Most of the music inside the game is of heavy-metal like, and blends in with the situation that you are currently in. Some of the tunes that you hear were actually written by bikie band "The Gone Jackals", who obviously did the music for the start and end credits, and had their songs edited for use inside the game. No, you can't listen to CD-Audio tracks outside the game for the full song since there isn't any. You actually can hear three or four of their full songs at the end, but you are encourage to buy the CD from the company listed.

The Bad
Personally, I much prefer the interface to Sam & Max where you keep clicking the left mouse button to cycle through the available actions in the game, and then clicking the left mouse button to perform that action. The installation program that comes with the game wastes a bit of time, since it copies some files to your hard drive, instead of just placing a small configuration file inside a folder, like Day of the Tentacle and Sam & Max did.

The Bottom Line
Full Throttle is the first LucasArts game to be released only on CD-ROM. That means that if you don't have a CD-ROM/DVD drive, you won't be able to play the game. Overall, if you like games with a lot of action and suspense, as well as adventure, then you should find this game exciting.

Rating: ****

The Good
One has to ask oneself what's the key to the sheer success of the LucasArts adventure games, they are virtually identical gameplay-wise, they aren't extreme quantum leaps technology-wise, and heck! They are adventure games! A genre chastizised by many as games where the concept of gameplay is "guess what the designer wanted you to do"...! So what gives?? What could possibly turn those things into succesful games?? Let me tell you what: Creative content.

LucasArts crammed each and every one of their games with inventive plots, fantastic characters and some of the most original moments in pc gaming history... case in point?: Full Throttle, truly the most badassed adventure game ever made, a rock&roller adventure with a story that flows like a good action movie in which renegade biker Ben (total badass) gets framed for snuffing out the benevolent president of the country's leading motorcycle company and has to run from the law. Since he is such a baddass, Ben sets out to set the record straight, get the bad guy and kick some shit around. Doesn't sound like much on paper, but when you transport that to the stylistically crafted gameworld and twist it in the already familiar cartoony ways of LucasArts, you have a fantastic experience in your hands. All the elements are there: baddass anti-hero, baddass babe, baddass bikes, baddass soundtrack, biker gangs, corporate pigs, dumbass rednecks, barbrawls, you name it... Full Throttle has the "zing" and by zeroing on all the right "kickass" elements manages to stylistically blend them and turn a rather simple storyline in one of the most exciting experiences ever to grace a computer screen.

Furthermore, the game has LucasArts already famous production values, which translate into stellar voice acting (which deserves special recognition as perhaps the best one ever for a computer game), killer graphics which merged cartoony (yet-realistically proportioned and animated) characters with pre-rendered bikes and lush scenery and backgrounds, as well as an absolutely bitching soundtrack by The Gone Jackals, a legitimate down-and-dirty rock&roll band from whom Lucas licensed their entire album Bone to Pick, and which only needed Steppenwolf's "Born To be Wild" and AC/DC's "Highway to Hell" in order to become the ultimate biker soundtrack

The interface moved a step up from Sam&Max, by re-working the old mechanics and introducing a floating menu from which you selected your action AFTER you selected the location, the result is even less clutter, and easier adventuring and puzzle management. And the whole thing is layed out as Ben's gang logo! How cool can this thing get??

The Bad
It's really easy, and it's really short. You can try dressing that one up all you want, but the reality of it all is that Full Throttle is REALLY short and is REALLY easy. Proof positive of what kickass content it has is that despite being an introductory-level adventure with the length of a demo it still rocked,...but...

The Bottom Line
It's the most kickass thing in the history of kickassed-ness!!(?). Full Throttle is like Walter Hill's "The Warriors", a simple straightforward story that due to it's sheer style in execution and understanding of source material becomes a stylistical masterpiece. Get it. Get it now, "Caaaaan Yoooooouuu Diiiiig Eeeeeet???".

Besides, the game has a "kick" command!!!.... WHAT THE HELL MORE DO YOU WANT????

The Good
I loved this game for it's characters and plot, it didn't follow the norm. and the storyline blew me away. Not only were the puzzles great, but the voice-overs and animations were superb considering it was made 8 years ago.

The Bad
There was one puzzle in the game that was very frustrating, where you have to kick a certain part of a wall to open a secret entrance, this is where patience has to kick in...(excuse the pun)

The Bottom Line
You become Ben, the leader of a very competitive biker gang. You meet old man Corley, the head boss of Corley Motors, who makes you an offer you can not refuse. But when you and your gang become involved, you realise it's curtains for everybody. If i ever did get the chance to recommend a LucasArts game to anybodybody, this would be it. What more can i say, LucasArts you've done it again.

The Good
It was almost a decade since I played the original DOS version of this game. And it took me a decade to finally add this piece of gem to my ever growing collection. I had no idea that LucasArts ever redid some of their classic adventures to perfectly work under Windows platform, equally under 98, ME, or XP. A pleasant surprise, no doubt. All you have to do is run the game, and that's that. No installation, no nothing. And an ever present F5 is still here to bring up the save/quit/etc. menu which is more than you'll need.

I don't recall this game having so many cinematics, which is a definite plus. They craftly mixed 3d bikes with 2d character models, it is a true splendour in art. Voice-acting is great, graphic art was a new comparing to the other classics (this game had a bit bigger characters and all that), and music is just on the level to boost up the turbo on your bike. Ben is not the type of Indy or Guybrush character, but he has a charisma and a personality of its own, matching the quality of LucasArts' creations in every aspect. Oh yeah, and women, as always, are truly beautiful in their games, Maureen close-up looks just astonishing.

The Bad
Well, certain puzzles are rather tricky, and make it really hard to uncover on your own. If I havent' finished this game already on DOS, I'd have a hard time finishing it within a same day, no matter the game is extremely short.

The Bottom Line
It's a classic that you should all be grateful it exists for Windows so you don't need to keep older computers or use emulators just to play this beauty. Whatever happened to that sequel we're awaiting, I do hope it will come out... 'cos I want it. It's about time LucasArts rises back in a style, there are still so many adventure game fans out there, should be enough to support and refund such releases.