Flintstones Bedrock Bowling Preview

Like many modern inventions found in the Flintstones cartoon series, bowling was done a little differently in the caveman days. In Flintstones Bedrock Bowling, instead of tossing a ball down a lane, you'll actually ride inside a man-sized shell and slide down a giant lane, hitting strategically placed pins on your way to the finish line.

Your goal will be to navigate the twists and turns of the life-sized lane, avoiding traps and obstacles, all the while gathering pins and hitting dodo birds. If you hit enough dodos, your course will be extended, giving you the opportunity to hit the last few pins and therefore earn a strike. Unlike in traditional bowling, you'll only get one chance to hit all the pins, as Flintstones Bedrock Bowling eliminates the spare frame. You can play as Fred, Barney, Pebbles, Bamm Bamm, or Dino, although changes between characters are purely cosmetic. Additionally, Flintstones Bedrock Bowling will support a two-player mode, but as in real-life bowling, the inactive player will have to wait for his turn on the lane.

The different lanes are located at the quarry where Fred works, the tar pit, Barney's backyard, the Bedrock expressway, Slate's crystal mine, the Bedrock drive-in, the volcano, the quarry gravel factory, and Gazoo's space lanes. Each lane has its own look and feel, with different prehistoric objects to interact with. Some objects will change different aspects of the lane, such as opening alternate routes that will let you gather more pins.

While Flintstones Bedrock Bowling is a far stretch from conventional bowling games, Flintstone fanatics or younger players might get a kick out of the simplistic gameplay. Flintstones Bedrock Bowling should be available this fall.