Aahhh, memories.
Along with Tekken Tag Tournament and TimeSplitters, the original SSX was one of the PS2 launch titles I got when it finally came out in the UK back in 2000 - I remember clearly opening SSX first, which lead me to leave Tekken and TimeSplitters in their boxes for a solid week.
How times change.
Not only I bought SSX Tricky a year later, which improves on the original in every way and is still one of my top 10 games this generation purely because it succeed in entertainment and fun at the same time, but I found myself getting (too) hyped up for SSX3 - this is where the series begin to decrease in quality in my opinion for my own various reasons.
Anyway, moving onto the fourth, latest addition to the SSX series.
The introduction cut-scene kicks off with the usual EA-Trax playing in the background (whatever it is called) leading to the menu to find everything in a drawing form - nice effort to the developers but it isn't as clean as the previous games.
You get 3 options from the menu from the main campaign called The Tour, a free ride/time attack mode and the options (to turn off the music!). I went straight into The Tour mode to find that you have to customise your own character before hitting the slopes - it is rather basic, quick and straight to the point.
The game revolves around riding down a grand mountain again like in SSX3, but each small section of the mountain contains a trial or a race/trick-attack/one-on-one scheme that are short and sweet but as the game develops and expands the option to race down 2 sections instead of 1 is available therefore making the races longer and intense.
Graphics are wonderful - very smooth but I dislike the awful washed out texture in the city-ish locations for cars and buildings, plus the occasional slowdown when you are doing a 'monster' trick in the air with so much movement going on in front of you or within your surroundings.
Controls are more slick and precise but I hate the fact that you cannot do a front-flip/backflip/spins on the analogue stick so it is the natural choice of having to move your thumb from the analogue stick on the ground works to using the d-pad whilst doing the tricks - a bit strange when the analogue sticks could be used to move and do tricks in both SSX and Tricky.
The tricks are kind of the same as the last outing but instead of doing the UBER tricks using the shoulder buttons and [ ] at the same time: this version drops that system and makes you do 'monster' tricks with the right analogue stick - all you have to do is move the stick in any direction and hold on for a few seconds - where the fun/challenge in that, plus you get a rather needless slow-motion moment.
The track design is fine but I feel that on one particular section has too many trees = annoyance. I must say to the developers: where are the bloody big air time that Tricky gave us? I have jumped off a few 'big' ones but nothing grand or epic in my opinion. Some ramps and grinds are positioned in strange and unresponsive places but there is so much to see and do, with many run offs and secrets to play around in. I see the replay value could be quite high.
Apart from a few quibbles, I think the game sets out to show you what the word 'fun' means and does it well, but I still personally think SSX Tricky is the high(est) point of the series by far.
From what I have played - 7/10 but it could possibly grow on me, just like the original did.
Along with Tekken Tag Tournament and TimeSplitters, the original SSX was one of the PS2 launch titles I got when it finally came out in the UK back in 2000 - I remember clearly opening SSX first, which lead me to leave Tekken and TimeSplitters in their boxes for a solid week.
How times change.
Not only I bought SSX Tricky a year later, which improves on the original in every way and is still one of my top 10 games this generation purely because it succeed in entertainment and fun at the same time, but I found myself getting (too) hyped up for SSX3 - this is where the series begin to decrease in quality in my opinion for my own various reasons.
Anyway, moving onto the fourth, latest addition to the SSX series.
The introduction cut-scene kicks off with the usual EA-Trax playing in the background (whatever it is called) leading to the menu to find everything in a drawing form - nice effort to the developers but it isn't as clean as the previous games.
You get 3 options from the menu from the main campaign called The Tour, a free ride/time attack mode and the options (to turn off the music!). I went straight into The Tour mode to find that you have to customise your own character before hitting the slopes - it is rather basic, quick and straight to the point.
The game revolves around riding down a grand mountain again like in SSX3, but each small section of the mountain contains a trial or a race/trick-attack/one-on-one scheme that are short and sweet but as the game develops and expands the option to race down 2 sections instead of 1 is available therefore making the races longer and intense.
Graphics are wonderful - very smooth but I dislike the awful washed out texture in the city-ish locations for cars and buildings, plus the occasional slowdown when you are doing a 'monster' trick in the air with so much movement going on in front of you or within your surroundings.
Controls are more slick and precise but I hate the fact that you cannot do a front-flip/backflip/spins on the analogue stick so it is the natural choice of having to move your thumb from the analogue stick on the ground works to using the d-pad whilst doing the tricks - a bit strange when the analogue sticks could be used to move and do tricks in both SSX and Tricky.
The tricks are kind of the same as the last outing but instead of doing the UBER tricks using the shoulder buttons and [ ] at the same time: this version drops that system and makes you do 'monster' tricks with the right analogue stick - all you have to do is move the stick in any direction and hold on for a few seconds - where the fun/challenge in that, plus you get a rather needless slow-motion moment.
The track design is fine but I feel that on one particular section has too many trees = annoyance. I must say to the developers: where are the bloody big air time that Tricky gave us? I have jumped off a few 'big' ones but nothing grand or epic in my opinion. Some ramps and grinds are positioned in strange and unresponsive places but there is so much to see and do, with many run offs and secrets to play around in. I see the replay value could be quite high.
Apart from a few quibbles, I think the game sets out to show you what the word 'fun' means and does it well, but I still personally think SSX Tricky is the high(est) point of the series by far.
From what I have played - 7/10 but it could possibly grow on me, just like the original did.
ft: 
Luckily I was able to exchange it for Pro Evo 5
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