SSX Tricky  

by Electronic Arts  Reviewed by: Alex Karls  

Overview

I’ve often wondered at what point realism and outrageous gameplay blend to create a perfect union of form and function. Something that resembles the original well, yet has enough fast paced arcade style action to keep any kid with Attention Deficit Disorder happy. Fortunately, I’ve found such a game in SSX, however, this isn’t the title that I’m reviewing. When it premiered on the PS2 at said console’s launch, SSX was the first game I picked up, and it was well worth it for it’s insane tracks and absurd tricks. My review is actually for SSX Tricky, and, after seeing the lows and highs of the original, EA has taken considerable time to update and improve this already amazing title.

For those unfamiliar with the SSX series, you’re a snowboarder. Given the tricks you can perform, you’re a pretty cool one to boot. Competing in a series of high-speed races and showoff competitions, you must prove your skills as a boarder, whether you’re only here for a single race, or racing on the world circuit. I must confess, I believe that I’ve got a fondness for this style of sports title, so this may be a fairly biased review. However, since part of a good review is my opinion, I’ll try not to disappoint.

I love games with extra material. SSX Tricky gives you two options at the main menu. Start Game, or DVD Content. There’s an entire section on the disc that isn’t gameplay at all, rather it covers the various interviews, behind the scenes featurettes, and little informative clips that EA put on this disc. Taking true advantage of the DVD format, the DVD features give you plenty of extra info, including a part that showcases the many celebrity voices of the digital snowboarders.

To put it correctly, Snowboarding in SSX Tricky involves one part snowboarding, one part wacked out tricks, and one part observation. This game requires a fine eye for detail, and the willingness to go off the track to find a quicker path to the objective. Given the next gen nature of the game, you’ll find plenty of shortcuts, and if you know how to exploit them all, you’ll have no trouble beating the other boarders at their game. SSX Tricky has many improvements over the original title, with new riders, tracks, and tricks; but most of all, you’ll find that the game itself is no longer as insanely difficult as the original. Some of the same difficulty is there, but with the advantage of Tricky mode, and Uber-tricks, the game has become a lot easier for someone who really knows what they’re doing.

With extra characters, two new tracks in the form of Alaska and Garibaldi, and a massive redesign of every level in the game, SSX Tricky is simply amazing for its additional features. Not only does this version push the envelope of the bizarre tricking that you could pull off in the first game, but they give you enough DVD content to outdo many special edition DVD’s with similar special features. Be sure to watch the behind the scenes material, as the creators are careful to comment on how they tried to push what they’d made before, getting a lot weirder with their material.

Gameplay, Controls, Interface

You’ve got twelve different characters, six from the original SSX, six new. Each one has strengths and weaknesses, along with a series of clothing styles and different boards to choose from. You unlock new outfits by earning tricks in your trick book and additional boards by achieving new ranks in the World Circuit mode by beating tracks with either a Bronze, Silver, or Gold medal. There are a wide variety of styles represented here, normal and goofy stances, and depending on the racer, a different choice of boards. Some racers are more freestyle and prefer freestyle boards instead of the alpine boards, which focus purely on speed. My favorite boarder, Mac, has an excellent trick skill, and prefers freestyle boards so much that he’s only got a single alpine board available on his advancement path.

A few different gameplay modes are available for your perusal, each of which you can try in either a single race, or on the World Circuit. The World Circuit is the mode I suggest relying on as it lets you pump up your characters with experience and unlock new features in the game. Race puts you in a race where only the top three competitors can advance. Showoff lets you race alone on a track but requires that you gain a certain amount of points (by performing tricks) before finishing in order to earn a medal.

Racing itself is easy to learn yet hard to master. Your analog sticks control your movement, and you can use the X button to crouch prior to a jump. Once in the air, you’ll use the different buttons to control your choice of grabs, flips, or tweaks. While airborne, perform a grab, tweak it, and then push the grab further to score more points. You’ll want to be mindful of the Black button, as you’ll need to use it to perform a real flip. Otherwise, your boarder will just rotate slightly, as if they were preparing for a landing. Once you’ve gotten used to it, learn to trick often as it leads into the entirety of SSX’s gameplay.

Each trick earns you points, which are necessary to score medals in the Showoff mode. Racing gives you medals for earning 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place. Along with points, tricks will start filling your adrenaline meter. The adrenaline meter is a reserve of boosting power that can temporarily increase your speed. If you manage to max it out, you enter Tricky mode, and can perform uber-tricks, as I’ve noted below. On top of that, there are only a couple other things to worry about, like knocking down other racers in your path. It’s a quick way to lots of extra boost, as a knockdown fills up your adrenaline meter and puts you in Tricky mode and earns you the enmity of that racer. As you advance, you’ll be able to see how you make enemies and allies of the other racers, depending on your actions in the course.

Multiplayer Support

SSX Tricky lets you play head to head if you’d like, but I doubt that you’ll want to let someone else hog your time on Tricky. You can play Race, Showoff, or Time Challenge mode with friends, so there’s plenty of material to go wild with, especially since you can go head to head on any of the insane tracks.

Graphics

SSX Tricky has amazing graphics, hands down. There aren’t any weather effects in the game, but that’ll hardly be noticed with the amazing level design and diverse textured backgrounds. Colors are crisp and vibrant, and the movement in each level is quick, yet slow enough to let you see the entirety of each level. In particular, I was impressed with the quality of the organic elements, like the trees and fallen debris, as they’re much more complex than the original game. The characters are likewise more detailed, and you’ll find that with each character and their specialty tricks, this version of SSX looks much more edgy than the first one.

Audio

You know, I never get tired of hearing, “one trick winterstick” while playing. The announcer in SSX Tricky is voiced by one Rahzel Brown. I’m not familiar with anything he may have done outside of Tricky, but his work in the game is a perfect counterbalance to the in-game music, performed by artists like Rasmus, Run DMC, and a couple for Rahzel himself, usually partnered with another artist. All of the audio in this game is well thought out and a treat for the ears, and as a slight oddity, they’ve also packed it full of celebrity voices. A host of characters are portrayed by celebrity voices from many different film and music backgrounds. Listen closely and you’ll hear Billy Zane playing Brodi, Bif Naked as Zoe, and even David Arquette playing Eddie.

Cool Features

In addition to the original trick system, SSX Tricky adds a new feature called Tricky. When you’ve maxed out your boost meter, you enter Tricky mode. It’ll last for a few seconds, in which time you can pull off an uber-trick. These tricks defy description, usually involving a move that literally defies the laws of physics. Mac, one of the younger riders, can kick his board like he’s on a lake riding a log. Another rider, Psymon, can spin the board around his neck as if he were using a hula-hoop. As you can imagine, these tricks require you to get really, really big air, as they are by far the most difficult and time-consuming tricks you can perform. The pay off, however, is that you get lots of points for performing them, and if you perform six in one course, each one earns you a single letter that eventually spells out TRICKY. If you get all six, you enter permanent Tricky mode, with Max boost for the rest of the race.

Bottom Line

The game rocks. Go buy it…now. If you’re still waiting to get an Xbox, I’ve only got one thing to say, ”Halo.” However, right after Halo, think about SSX Tricky, as this game is enjoyable no matter what your skill level is, although you may need to practice a bit to get the hang of it.

Review Posted On 9 January 2002.