Review: Wave Race with snow, a board, and a hell of a lot more cold weather!
The developers of Wave Race 64 have come back to make a brand new title with the same engine, but this time, the game wouldn’t be all about riding the waves and Jet Skis. Instead, the team decided to try out their luck with the very popular winter sport, snowboarding. Considering the fact that most people enjoyed playing through Wave Race 64, the chances are good that they will feel the same about 1080° Snowboarding, but there is still the possibility that we won’t. Will Wave Race splash water into 1080°’s face or will this game leave Wave Race swimming? Lets take a little ride down the slope to find out.
When you take a look at the visuals for 1080°, you will be quite impressed with the amount of detail and speed in the game. The course designs are done just as well as the ones found in Wave Race, and maybe even better. They are filled with jumps and cluttered with obstacles, which you can usually use as a short cut or do a trick. While you ride down the snowy track, you will be able to notice a trail being left behind, a little nuance in the graphics, which makes the game seem even more satisfying. The game offers a number of camera views, including first person view, but default, as always, is the best to use if you want to win. 1080° contains one nice replay view, making sure you see every move you make. While you ride down the slopes, you’ll notice that the frame rate isn’t choppy, not even when you are playing another opponent in a two-player match.
When it comes to the audio, 1080° uses some songs you’ll love and some you won’t be able to stand for a mere 60 seconds. Some of the music tracks are annoying, but others fit the game well, especially considering it’s a snowboarding game. While you ride down the slopes, you can hear the snow beneath your board while you're gliding about or roughing up the board when running off onto a rocky patch of the course. When a player trips, falls, or just finds themselves riding straight into obstacle, you will hear a yelp or comment...a natural reaction to pain. Other then that, you won’t hear too much out of the characters during the game. My only gripe here besides the half music being irritating, is that it isn’t possible to choose the track you want to hear. No biggie.
