Review: SSX 3 (PS2)

Snow sports are, to put it as succinctly as possible, rubbish; the only clothes your size are an eye-watering combination of puce, turquoise and mustard, the bindings are too tight, the snow is either slush or rigid ice, the slope's covered in ruts from previous runners, you're constantly being overtaken by small children who are embarrassingly far better at it than you, you have to force yourself to assume all manner of unnatural and counter-intuitive poses, and it's the most expensive hobby this side of Fabergé egg-eating contests. Gamestyle knows - we've done it. So why in the name of Joytech would anyone want to make a game based on this activity?

The answer, dear gamer, is partly that EA would make a videogame of watching paint peel if they thought anyone would buy it, but mostly because almost anything becomes fun when it has fireworks, explosions and a soundtrack by Aphrodite and the Chemical Brothers. SSX3 is an amazing addition to an already justifiably-acclaimed series, and is as superior to and different from SSX Tricky as the latter was to the original. The sun-frosted graphics are gorgeous and the sound is THX-certified, giving players an immersive experience that is not just fun but an utter joy to play. The same floaty and smooth controls are present - making this title as easy to pick up but as hard to master as ever.

SSX3 radically differs from the first two titles in that you never actually leave the game world: instead of a roster of tracks from around the world insulated from each other by menu screens, the entire game is set on one huge mountain divided into three main areas. Yes, the entire game - even the menus where you can customise your boarder and game settings are set in mountain lodges that you must physically enter. Players board down the mountain in Free Ride mode - practising tricks, picking up tokens to earn extra money, or just enjoying the scenery - looking for BIG Challenges and new race and tricking venues. Instead of a track being used for both race and show-off mode, SSX3's tracks are uniquely designed for their purpose; meaning that the developers are free from the imposition of having to make a track work for both purposes, so they've really gone to town with each design.

The aforementioned BIG Challenges are quick tasks - activated by hitting holographic markers - that you can carry out in Free Ride mode to earn extra money (with which you can buy more music and uber tricks, as well as sartorial nonsense for your boarder - give him neon pink trousers and replace his head with a skull or give him a Spartan warrior helmet; you know you want to). BIG Challenges can be anything from slalom, smacking targets, popping balloons, to performing a certain set of tricks in sequence. These make an entertaining and addictive diversion from the main events.

Show-off is now divided into three modes: Slope Style, Big Air and Super Pipe. Slope Style is the old Show-off with a more funky-dope (to use one of SSX Tricky's DJ Rahzel's phrases) name and ramped to the nth degree. Big Air tracks are short in length but sweet in height, giving you opportunity for enormous in-air combos. Super Pipe is a huge half-pipe on which one can string together a huge combo once up to speed, and is insanely fun. All three modes feature hard-to-reach pick-ups that grant point bonuses and even score-multipliers to the really skilled players.

The mountain is a triumph of game design and intimidatingly big: it takes around half an hour to travel from the highest peak to the bottom. Thankfully, you have the option to go straight to any location you've already visited via helicopter. Unfortunately, the go-anywhere feel of the game is sometimes spoiled by the boarder hitting an invisible wall, presented with an 'out of bounds' message and teleported back to the main path. This is especially annoying in Super Pipe mode, when going really high while pulling off a huge trick suddenly lands us back on the floor and not going fast enough to climb back up the sides. This destroys the immersive feel of ANY game; if we're not allowed to go somewhere, Gamestyle humbly suggests putting a cliff or an impenetrable forest of trees in our way. (Or at least make it a proper force field that goes wubbledy-wubbledy-woo, and not just an invisible one.)

As well as the environment getting a complete makeover, the gameplay has been tweaked too. Grind rails can now be handplanted and tricked on instead of simply being a faster way from point A-B. SSX3 is also very combo-oriented: a little meter in the corner starts to fill up with red every time you successfully pull off a trick. You have until it fills to start another trick and keep your combo. This is helped by the new board press move, which makes your boarder do a 'wheelie' and is used for linking moves together. In theory, then, you could travel all the way from the top to the bottom of the mountain with one combo.

Add to this beautiful, involving and glee-inducing world a collection of new characters to play with (and the return of Gamestyle's favourite, the insane Psymon), the best SSX soundtrack to date, and 11 (yes!) different types of snow, and SSX3 is a gameplay extravaganza that will wow newcomers and satiate established fans. It's hard to imagine how EA can possibly top this one.

Rating: 8 / 10

Words by Anna Ghislaine