ESPN Winter X Games Snowboarding 2002

Snow joke?Konami wants to get X-treme again. Should you care?

Konami is back to try its luck at the snowboarding slopes again in the latest ESPN-endorsed X Games title. Playing as one of 12 pros (including Barrett Christy and Travis Parker) or with a created rider, players tackle an impressive amount of gameplay modes?tons of trick competitions, two-player races against friends, and a character-building career mode.

On the surface, the game has some good elements?an aggressive soundtrack (Static-X, Vandals, Powerman 5000) and high-res player models offer the presentation that gamers would expect from an Xbox title. However, while the basic controls are fairly comfortable, the game is severely marred by a difficult and uncomfortable bonus multiplier system which requires you to press in on the right analog stick during tricks. Worse, the game features physics that wouldn?t be caught dead in a Bugs Bunny cartoon; after failing to land a jump, your rider careens down the mountain as if made of Styrofoam, repeatedly bumping through an invisible pinball machine.

Those two problems are big enough to overshadow the rest of ESPN Winter X Games Snowboarding 2002 and leave would-be snowboarders out in the cold. If you?re seeking smoother slopes, check out Amped or SSX Tricky.

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