SSX Tricky Preview

The PS2 version of SSX Tricky was released very recently to very positive reviews. Not a publisher to stop the flow of brilliant code into our offices, EA has recently sent us a previewable version of the Xbox's version of the game. Though it's essentially identical to the PS2 version, the upcoming Xbox incarnation does come with a handful of graphical frills that you will no doubt appreciate.

For those who haven't been following the franchise, SSX launched alongside the PS2 last year and was largely regarded as the premier launch app for the then anemic platform. Had the PS2 launched with a chunkier lineup, however, the game would have no doubt enjoyed just as much acclaim. The game's marriage of fierce, downhill-race gameplay with an engaging yet accessible trick system was a golden combination, and the consistently spooned rewards that you earned for mastering it kept you coming back. It was totally the snowboarding game for nonsnowboarding fans; it transcended the icy slopes on which it was born and quickly established an experience that appealed to anyone with a predilection for moving fast in very cool ways.

When SSX Tricky was originally announced, EA gave the impression that it would be something more along the lines of an add-on than an actual new installment. "Remixes" of tracks were mentioned, as was the game's inclusion of DVD-style bonus content. When the revamped trick system was revealed, though, it was clear that Tricky was a bit more than EA had originally let on. The new riders and courses, finally, established it as 100 percent new ground, if only in a figurative sense.

Without a doubt, the most notable addition in Tricky is the trick system's overhaul. The original game was more of a racer than anything else; you performed tricks simply because you could, though, aside from the spike in the boost-meter, there wasn't much reward for doing so. But Tricky shoves them deeper into the forefront: As you perform tricks, the onscreen meter will gradually charge. Once it's filled, you're given access to an "ubertrick." Perform it in the window provided, and you'll earn the letter "T." Repeat the process six times, thus spelling out "tricky," and you'll gain access to a supertrick, as well as an infinite turbo gauge. Conversely, knocking down another racer while on the slopes will instantly fill your gauge.

Of course, this is a bit of a daunting task. But as you slowly discover the intricacies of every course, the ways to maximize trickage and what have you will come to light. Performing ubertricks is also a reward in itself, however. The moves that the characters will bust, when they're executed, are wild, to say the least--one character will ride his board like a bucking bronco, while another will bust Capoeira-style windmills on his. The animations accompanying them are very satisfying and unquestionably fitting of the term "supermove."

Six new characters help to swell Tricky's ranks, and, in terms of design, they're right in tone with what's come before. Eddie, the smart-mouthed geek with an Afro, is perhaps the one who's become most closely associated with the game, though he isn't necessarily the most memorable. Also new are Luther, who is sleazy, mullet-bearing, and grossly outspoken; Brodi, the atypical vision-questing surfer; Marisol, the Latina party girl with the child-bearing hips; Psymon, the maniac with the facial piercings; and Seeiah, the bald-headed sister who rides a snowboard like she's on inline skates. As you've come to expect, each of the characters is distinctly voiced, sometimes by a famous person. In all, more than 800 lines of dialogue were used in the game, which is a testament to EA's desire to expand the franchise's narrative elements. While this does seem a bit superfluous, when fully considered, the game really does seem to reflect the effort put into this area--if nothing else, there's a whole lot of dialogue, and it seems to come in at just the right time. Whether or not you're sold, the game's crazy-cool pretensions are really irrelevant. Given the character-to-character rivalries that have been worked into the game, though, all this banter manifests itself pretty prominently on the slopes. Characters that like you will watch your back, during races, while your enemies will go out of their way to knock you down. Context is given during mini prerace cutscenes, though, for the skip-crazy, menus prior to heats' beginnings are provided that list the pertinent info.

The new courses, on the other hand, are all about function. The first is Garibaldi, and it's the course on which you'll start out. Relatively short and kind, Garibaldi nonetheless features a good share of the madness you've come to expect from your sources of snowboard supercross. The second is Alaska, which, on the other end of the spectrum, is pretty harsh. One minute on its cluster of hills--which seem arranged a split second from each other--and you'll come to respect the fury of the tundra very, very quickly. Both of these feature as many twists and turns as the old tracks; alternate paths abound, as do shortcuts, both grounded and airborne, all waiting for you to find them and subsequently exploit them. The "old" tracks will also likely seem new to you if you've played the previous game; they've been, in most cases, radically rearranged, with new paths, jumps, dives, and the like.

In regard to the graphical presentation, Tricky's Xbox incarnation is clearly the top dog. Textures are clearer, and they're bump-mapped to boot. This means that snow will look like snow--icy and with a granulated texture. While it certainly isn't the most impressive example of bump mapping around--at least at this point--looking at it alongside the PS2 version will make the difference quite evident. The frame rate also feels like it will be generally crisper, though there are clearly some optimizations yet to be made. We're certainly looking forward to seeing this one move at a hitchless 60fps. It's already there a lot of the time, though when you're in the vicinity of volumetric fog (or a pack of drone riders), it gets a bit chuggy. Still, we're relatively confident that a couple of months are all that it will take to remedy. All of the characters are also self-shadowed, though the effect seems a bit plastic, at this point. Hopefully, things will be done to make the effect look a bit more organic.

A pile of DVD-style extras round out the package, which mostly consist of dialogue with members of the development team, as well as famous and semifamous people. You get to hear Lucy Liu's voice, and you even get to see Billy Zane and Macy Gray during their voice-over sessions. Mixmaster Mike also does a good deal of talking and cutting, and you're given access to the game's soundtrack via a jukebox feature.

SSX Tricky for the Xbox is definitely looking to be the game's definitive version. If nothing else, it will likely be the system's best available snowboarding game. It's due out in the middle of next month.