ATV Offroad Fury: Blazin' Trails

Tread down the same muddy path, but this time using finger yoga to pull off the stunts.

What's the deal with the fascination of ATVs? Sure, in real life you can ride these awesome mini-monsters to pave the road on off-road terrain, but in the virtual world, do we really need more dirt-slinging racing? Apparently yes, according to Sony as its ATV series flings some more mud on the PSP--just don't expect a brand new ATV experience.

Instead, Sony's got the formula down for its venerable franchise. Pick from a garage of 24 different ATVs represented by real ATV manufacturers, customize your rider (including the gender and type of threads), and then you're off to the races. The usual game modes apply in this type of game, too. Pick from straight racing and freestyle where you're scored for the sickest tricks performed. And the career mode gives you the chance to build your rider up from lonely amateur to world class pro by competing in a mixture of racing and freestyle competitions that take place in over 30 environments.

First the good part about ATV Offroad. Like the rest of the PSP lineup, this game sizzles with a blazing frame rate. Whether you're on a road course or out in the woods sharing the screen with other riders, the game doesn't slow down one bit.

Now for the bad news. If you've played past ATV games, then you've played this ATV. But where as pulling off stunts were manageable using a PS2 controller, it's frustratingly difficult on the PSP. Because the PSP buttons (including the shoulder buttons) are in such close proximity to each other, your fingers are constantly tumbling over each other to pull off the right stunt. Adding the fact that the controls are really twitchy when you use both the analog stick and digital pad to turn, the end result is a driver who unintentionally swerves too many times.

The visual and sound package also runs off course. The noise of ATV engines at high RPMs isn't very appealing to the ears, yet it's the main noise throughout the game. There's a lot more variety in the graphics, but it seems there was more thought put into the level designs than in the riders and ATVs, which look generic and not very distinctive from one another.

All told, this ATV runs its course as another Offroad game. If you're into this type of genre, then you'll be slightly intrigued. For the rest of us, wait for another extreme sportster to reach the PSP.

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