Freekstyle Preview

In a short period of time, EA Sports Big has built a solid reputation as the extreme sports video game developer to beat. It all began with SSX, arguably the lone must-have game at the launch of the PlayStation 2, and continued on with NBA Street and Sled Storm. Now that versions of said games have been completed for all the intended platforms, EA Sports' crazy little brother has moved on to create what it hopes will become the definitive motocross game, Freekstyle. We had the chance to sit down with the game's developers to get the lowdown on this anticipated racer, and we found that Freekstyle will likely do the same thing for motocross games that the company's other efforts have done for their respective sports.

Scratch that back!

Unlike SSX and Sled Storm, Freekstyle includes a roster of eight real riders. Each character has four different bikes that can be unlocked, and their attribute ratings at any given time are the result of their abilities averaged with the selected bike's specifications. As you win races, you build up your rider's attribute points, and it's interesting to try different rider-bike combinations to see just how the overall performance ratings are affected. The announced riders include Brian Deegan from the famed Metal Mulisha, the young Clifford Adoptante, Italian women's motocross champion Stefy Bau, the veteran Mike Jones, one of the originators of freestyle motocross Mike Metzger, 2002 women's motocross champion Jessica Patterson, world and US champion Greg Albertyn, and the attractive former host of Bluetorch TV, Leeann Tweeden.

Developers are quickly discovering that in order to keep their games out of the dusty used-game bins, they need to include enough variety in the gameplay modes to keep players interested. Freekstyle looks as if it will fit the bill nicely. The circuit mode is the game's career mode, and in it, you'll compete against the rest of the riders in the game in attempts at unlocking new features and improving your rider's attributes. First you must race in three heats on all the tracks in the game with no regard for tricking. In order to move on, you must take third place in the first two heats and place first in the third and final heat to advance to the next track. In this initial circuit stage, you can pull off stunts to get points, but your priority is finish position. Once you complete all the tracks the first time through, you're jettisoned to a freestyle venue, where you must earn the high score by performing tricks. After taking first in the initial freestyle event, you must go back through all the tracks again, except you'll have to cross the finish line first and have the top trick score at the same time. When you complete the circuit for the second time, the ultimate freestyle course is unlocked.

Some of the tricks are impossible in the real world.

The circuit mode is certainly the key to the game, as it unlocks many of its hidden features, but there's plenty more to do once you've completed it with each of the game's riders. The single race option comes in handy when you're trying to cut valuable seconds off your lap times using any of the unlocked bikes and riders. The freestyle option allows you to practice your tricking ability on any of the unlocked courses without a timer. But what most players will enjoy most are the robust multiplayer options for up to two players. You can race head-to-head, play tag on any of the unlocked freestyle areas, or play an incredibly addictive game called countdown. In countdown, both players start with a pool of 2 million points. As each rider lands tricks, his or her opponent's point total is lowered. The player who runs out of points first is the loser. For added incentive, you'll even be able to import your enhanced riders from the circuit mode into the multiplayer modes to find out just who is the best Freekstyle player on your block.

EA Sports Big has managed to use a common control scheme in the PlayStation 2 versions of its games due to the many shoulder buttons of the Dual Shock 2. But on the GameCube, this isn't the case, because its controller has only two adequate shoulder buttons. Games like NBA Street and SSX had some moves omitted for their GameCube incarnations, but Freekstyle will include the complete roster of tricks across both platforms. Pulling this off with the GameCube controller hasn't been easy, though, and EA Sports Big has maintained a dialogue with Nintendo concerning the situation. As a result, there will be five to 10 controller schemes to choose from, though the option to configure your own will not be included. Like previous games from the developer, four buttons will be assigned to tricks, and you will be able to control tweaks, boost, and acceleration and breaking. Much like in the Excitebike franchise, you'll be able to hold back when you launch off jumps for added air and orient your bike to the ground before landing to maintain momentum.