Full Review: Do the extreme tricks without the extreme pain…
Riding the recent wave of BMX and Tony Hawk games, Dave Mirra pulls through with an extraordinarily fun game, but one not without its share of glitches, both graphical and “physical”.
If you’ve played any of the previous versions of the game, the first thing you’ll notice is the graphics. The majority of the visual problems found in the PS2 version have been dealt with, and small tweaks such as actual grass instead of just a texture on a flat plain have been added. The “courses” are absolutely huge, some look to be 4 or 5 levels from previous versions of the game combined into one. There is also a large variety of 2-player modes, 13 to be exact, and a few single-player modes to help quench your appetite when your friends aren’t around.
The career mode is the same as in the other Mirra games, having you bike around an area and completing various “challenges,” such as big-air tricks, grinds, stalls, etc. The variety of tricks is astounding, with more combinations than you’d think thanks to a “Trick Modifier” button, which lets you add no- or one-handers, no-footers, etc. to your regular tricks, such as back flips and supermans. Unfortunately, this adds a touch of error to the game – I managed to pull of no-hander superman 180’s and even 360’s numerous times. How that is physically possible is beyond me. You might also find your bike going through some particular grind-able items, such as railing, to make for a rather painful wipeout on your rider’s part.
There’s also a good variety of bikes and riders to choose from, including the infamous Slim Jim guy. Each rider has their own collection of stats and bikes, which you can upgrade as you progress throughout the career mode. The multiplayer also allows you access to these, so you can pick different riders to specialize in the different types of gameplay, such as the Wipeout mode or the Big Air competitions.
The physics of the game can be slightly sloppy at times, allowing you to do things far beyond impossible, and occasionally landing you somewhere or somehow that wasn’t intended, such as having parts of your body or bike go through things and occasionally into building you shouldn’t be able to access. Generally, however, this just adds to the fun, with absolutely mind-blowing trick combinations made possible.
The thing that stands out most in my mind, however, is quite simply the fun-factor. I played this game for hours on end without feeling bored or too frustrated, as though each level is harder than the previous, it widens your trick-arsenal and increases your skill as you go. The trick system is also slightly imprecise, but with enough practice you’ll be doing things you’ve only seen on TV (and some things you haven’t). After playing for a while and driving later that day, myself and a few friends were constantly spotting various things we could’ve grinded or gotten some major air off of. The park-editor lets you re-create some of these scenes, and it’s very impressive, especially compared to something like the Tony Hawk editor which leaves a bit to be desired. Also customizable is the soundtrack – while the in-game one is rather impressive, you’ll hear numerous repeats after a few hours of play, so it’s a nice feature to be able to throw in your own music.
