by:	April 10, 2004

In SSX Tricky, you start by choosing a charismatic fictional character (many of which are voiced by the likes of Lucy Liu, Macy Gray, and David Arquette) to compete in a snowboarding cross. Each character comes equipped with their own unique style and "Tricky" moves. This is, of course, the game's main gimmick. Allow me to explain. When racing or in a trick round, your Tricky meter will build up depending on how good your tricks are and how you land them. Also, you must not crash, or your Tricky meter will plunge sharply or even completely empty. This can prove difficult, as there are many twists and turns within the game, and trying to figure out a way past competitors only complicates this further. Another, simpler way to fill your meter is to simply knock down another snowboarder by moving the right analog stick in their direction when they get close.

When the Tricky meter goes off, you will hear the chime "It's Tricky to rock around, to rock around" you know what I'm talking about - Run DMC. When pressing A with another button, you will then pull off a super psychedelic trick. The only problem is making sure that you have enough air, and that you actually land it. Another use for your Tricky meter is for a speed boost while you are in a race.

Another gripe about game play is just how hard it is to figure out. While the game encourages you to raise your Tricky meter during races, you will fall behind quickly when doing more elaborate tricks. These races are always fast, and they quickly became very difficult. Trick Attack is where you may show your true skills, because the levels are set up especially to make sure you get all the air you need, so that you may pull off the desired trick. If you are having trouble with the game, you can always go to practice mode. Practice mode works on "levels" - as you learn more tricks, you earn books from doing well in competitions so that you may learn more tricks in practice mode. However much they seem like old fighting games, the button combinations will become over-elaborate and precise timing will be needed. This can prove as a problem, because while the controls are normally responsive, they seem to have some sort of lag at times.

The level design is ingenious, but it can be a hassle to look at when two players are playing, as both might get confused and not know where the next huge, steep hill is. The level design is where the game stands out. You can tell how much work they put into the designs, as there are many twists, turns and multiple ways to win a race. While the design is great, the overall feel of the graphics are average. They are crisp and clean, but the backgrounds and even some of the players feel some what "blended". Actually, that's a bit of a good thing, because too much detail and you wouldn't be able to tell what is going on. The character models are well detailed, and their expressions and mouth movements when they talk are also fairly impressive.

The sound in the game is a kind of techno-rap groove. You will hear the announcer say some sly and cool comments, but at times they will get annoying. The music is good as well, if not just a little gimmicky. The voices are good, too, even if they are just your average celebs doing the voice work. It is of course a good change from all the heavy metal-driven soundtracks of most extreme sports games nowadays.

The replay value is average, for when you win a race or place in a certain place, you may win a number of items including snowboards and new characters. If you can get past the painfully annoying gimmicks, then you should try this game out for a rent.

-John Olin

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Overall, this game is pretty good, but you will probably have to have a big attention span to get past its flashy gimmicks. The game is more gimmicks than game and that is where it falls short.

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