SSX Review

After five years, the SSX series has finally returned to consoles, boasting incredibly realistic mountain range, 'deadly descents' and a pulsating soundtrack. Worth the wait? You bet.

Can anyone else recall the ‘EA Sports BIG’ brand? Launching in 2000 at the height of extreme sports’ success within video games, releases included the likes of Freekstyle, Shox, Sled Storm and no fewer than six SSX titles.

Without doubt the darling of the brand, the aforementioned snowboarding title was a huge success and though EA Sports BIG is no longer, SSX has made a comeback having been buried in the snow for the past five years.

This time around SSX emerges into a world in which extreme sports and snowboarding are on the wane, in terms of video game titles, TV ratings and pop culture relevance. To combat this, early previews of the new releases featured a ‘Deadly Descents’ subtitle and a deathly serious art style which appeared to recall military shooters rather than the Day-Glo fun of the SSX of old.

Thankfully, EA have met us in the middle, by keeping the aforementioned descents (death-defying, survival-based events tailored around each of the game’s numerous mountain ranges) but reminding us that if anything, SSX is just as much about snowboarding as it by wearing ludicrous outfits, performing ‘Super Tricky’ breakdancing moves in mid-air and motion comic character intros. In other words, the game doesn’t take itself too seriously, which is an all too rare things these days.

As – believe it or not – the first SSX title of the current console generation (with all due respect, the 2007 Wii title SSX Blur doesn’t really count, due to its Xbox and PS2-quality visuals), fans can expect a huge technological shift from what’s come before.

For one thing, rather than just one mountain peak, there are 28 mountains spread (created from NASA geotagging data) across nine mountain peaks, each scattered around the world, from the Himalayas to Siberia and even Africa. Trust us, this is the first time the series has truly gone global.

The second shock for series stalwarts is EA’s continuous reluctance that nearly every sports game should be primarily controlled via thumb sticks. Sure, the original button-based control method is still there but quickly found holding the right stick to charge up jumps or liberal waggling of the stick for tricks became second nature.

Another controversial decision is that players can ‘rewind’ play, Prince of Persia-style, should they find themselves having smacked into a tree and lost all momentum. In races, however, this decision doesn’t rewind your opponents, so it’s largely unusable, though it can literally save your life in the tough but thrilling aforementioned deadly descents.

Dazzling array of modes

Once you’ve grown accustomed to the shock of the game’s visuals and control method, you’ll be floored by the sheer diversity of features on offer. Overall it’s been estimated that the game has over 150 drops, while new gameplay addition include pulse goggles, armour, ice axes (which you’ll need during frozen sections) and most fun of all, retractable wingsuits. Considering that a single wingsuit mission was our highlight of last year’s Pilotwings Resort on the Nintendo 3DS, we shouldn’t have to emphasise just how much of a blast we had here.

Another highlight of SSX is the intelligent visual design. For example, as the deadly descents require little more than surviving a trip to the bottom of the mountain, the game begins to display in bright colours alongside the mission just how many metres are left. It’s a very smart move that keeps in touch with the game’s art style and ensures that players are never distracted from the task at hand.

Sadly, amidst a sea of revisions and new features, one of our favourite SSX pastimes has somehow missed the cut – split screen multiplayer. Granted, the game’s Need for Speed Autolog-aping system of online competition is compulsive and fun, but for us the SSX experience has always included gloating at our opponents from across the room too.

Despite that disappointment, there can be no doubt that this is one of the most feature-packed, diverse and just plain fun sports titles imaginable. It’s been a long five years awaiting the return of our favourite snowboard series but as newcomers and alike are sure discover this weekend, the only way is SSX.

Format: Playstation 3, Xbox 360

Developer: EA Canada; Publisher: EA Sports