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SSX3 Review |
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SSX3
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When you think about it there have only been two sets of snowboarding games ever made worth playing, the earliest being Cool Boarders, and the new school of the SSX variety. SSX3 is the newest and most revolutionary of all snowboarding console games out right now. SSX3 picks up right where SSX Tricky left off, you can expect to see bigger tricks, levels, combos, and scores.
The basic elements of the game haven't really changed, but expect to see a few new format changes, for example instead of just selecting a single run to do from a menu, the game has more of a flowing level structure. The transport feature will bring you to the top of a peak, from there you start to ride down the hill a little ways and signs will point you in different directions, towards a variety of events and sections of the hill. Once you've reached the bottom of the hill you've got the option to restart the run you just attempted, or transport back up to the top of the hill in order to start over and explore other parts of the hill or stop by the lodge.
By going into the lodge you can then purchase attributes and clothing for your character by using the money collected throughout the game. One way to earn money is by placing within the top three of any competition, this is the most efficient and common way but there are two other sources of income. Spread out across the levels are little snow flake icons that are worth a set amount of cash depending on which mountain they're on, also if you're not in a competitive run, but a free run, a small amount of money is awarded for doing tricks. The entire money system is built well, without completing nearly all of the competitions there's no way a character could be even nearly maxed out, it will take some time and effort to build the characters all the way up, and even when your character is maxed, there's plenty of other things to buy that will keep you playing this game for awhile.
Something that I found a different about this game that I hadn't seen done in any other game I've played was the simulated radio station used as the sound track. On this radio station called Radio Big A variety of songs are played in the classic bad radio DJ format with requests and what have you. The cool part is the radio commentary that changes as you progress through the game, the radio DJ actually talks about the progress of your character as you start to win events and move along through the game. After awhile you start to hear the same comments on the radio, and it gets pretty repetitive, but what radio station isn't. It's so shockingly close to an actual radio station it's scary, good music, awful repetitive DJs that wont quit talking.
The levels are absolutely beautiful, they all flow nicely and are farcically long. There's a few different types of levels, including the basic freestyle run, which is the classic run with all sorts of ramps and grind bars setup to do big tricks and long combos. Then there is the big air which is a series of giant jumps that produce the most hang time you'll find in the game, designed for huge single tricks. The super pipe is the third type of run, which is just a half pipe designed to do a long set of big tricks and attempt to link them all together for a nice score. The newest type of level in this game takes place in the backwoods of the peak's, these new runs don't contain any unnatural ramps, grind bars, or point multipliers. In these levels weather also plays a huge factor, as cross winds and avalanches hinder your ability to pull tricks, or even stay on the board.
This is another one of those games that has a great series running, a series that isn't going to stop until they fail to create a new element that dramatically improves the game on each new release, and they definitely didn't fail on SSX3. SSX is right on par to continue their reign over snowboarding console games, this is a great game with excellent replay value, it's fun to play and can be enjoyed on many levels. If you're into games including previous SSX titles, Tony Hawk games, or other snowboarding games, this is definitely one you're going to want to own.
Review By: Travis Parrott
Scores
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