SSX: Tricky
Electronic Arts
ESRB rating: E
Players: 2
Ownership status at time of review: Rental
Reviewed: 3/9/02 by Brian

SSX: Tricky, the sequel to the earlier snowboarding game SSX, is an above average extreme sports game. While I didn't have very high hopes for the game when I got it, I must say I was pleasantly surprised. SSX: Tricky turned out to be a good, fun snowboarding game.

The primary modes of play include single and two player race and showoff. Race is just as it sounds, you race against opponants and try to get accross the finish line first. While tricks help your score and give you boost power, they do not play a major role in your objective. However, Showoff mode is precisely the time to strut your stuff. More ramps, point multipliers, and rails are added in this mode, making scoring more points possible. By pulling off tricks in either mode you get more "trick" points. These give you boost power. If you collect enough trick points without wiping out or using them up to boost, you can fill your trick meter to the "tricky" level, giving you the capability to pull off a "uber" trick that is different to each character. Naturally, these tricks give you lots of points. The trick system is not as intuitive as that of games like Tony Hawk, but it works. Riding on rails is easy and fun, as is trying to pull of combos while falling through the air.

Tricky has a good selection of unlockable characters. Most of them are pretty nutty. They'll yell at each other on the slopes if they're enemies, or encourage each other if they're friends. That is one of the unusual features of Tricky. You start off with opponants that have a friend/enemy/neutral status with you. An enemy might try to make you wipe out, while a friend will encourage you as you go. At the end of a race enemies might exchange insults, too. Each character has different stats and abilities, as well as different personalities. For example, Elise is very proud and sure of her capabilities and minds her own business, while Luther is a real jerk to just about anybody. The characters are well-animated and even have short FMV sequences when you complete a course with them.

The tracks in Tricky are very nice. All are very detailed and varied. They are also huge and long. You can go quite far off of the track and take shortcuts. As you proceed they get crazier and crazier. Tokyo Megaplex, one of the later tracks, is the best example of a crazy course. There are all kinds of weird vertical boosts, switch-activated doors, elevated platforms, etc. Some of the more normal tracks have some great vertical drops where you can fit in lots of cool tricks. Half-pipes and rails are also commonplace. The tracks are all bright and crisp-looking, with sparkling, soft snow and hard-looking ice. There are flares and lights in the snow that cast bright, dynamic lighting on the track. Very pretty.

Though SSX: Tricky does not feature 4 player (mostly because it's a port of the PS2 game), it does have a good 2 player mode. And even though the game doesn't look quite as good in 2 player and it does slow down a bit in places, it still is very enjoyable.

If you are a fan of extreme sports like snowboarding, I'd recommend that you rent SSX: Tricky. Just keep in mind that if you want a sim-type snowboarding game, you'll probably have to wait for Nintendo's 1080 Snowboarding 2. Tricky is not a sim, and does not pretend to be. It's a crazy, but fun, fast game that should not be ignored. While it might not warrant a purchase for the average gamer, I'd still recommend that most people rent it.

Fun Factor: Fast snowboarding action with lots of cool tricks. Amusing characters and 2-player mode help too. Trick controls aren't as good as they could be, though.	8.8
Replay Value: 10 tracks and 12 characters in which to play them with. Two different modes of play and multiplayer mode help. Too bad they couldn't have made it 4 player though.	8.4
Graphics: Beautiful, crisp tracks with amazing lighting effects. Character models and animation good as well. Some edges are a bit chunky, and some framerate slowdown appears in 2 player mode. Obstacles such as trees are actually bigger than they appear, so you might hit them even though it looks like you'll miss. Why are the fans in the audience still 2D sprites???	8.2
Sound: Decent music but it can get old after a while. Great character voice acting and reasonably good announcer.	8.8
Content Acceptability: Nothing much, but there are a couple sexy characters as well as a Buddhist guy. Also, racers may taunt and smack each other.	9.2
Final Critique (not an average): A fun, nutty snowboarding game that features a good selection of characters and levels, as well as some cool tricks and of course the "tricky" boost system. Trick controls can't quite compete with Neversoft's Tony Hawk series, though.	8.4

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