Full Throttle

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
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
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.