The much anticipated release of SSX is just a mere week away, and the demo has finally hit the online marketplaces. The OS staff shares their thoughts on the demo.

Chris Sanner: This is the best demo I've played in years. Seriously, you could package the two modes in the game right now as-is, and you could sell them for $5. I don't think anyone would complain.

I seriously cannot find a single flaw with SSX at this time. I'm reviewing the game. I can already tell you the review is going to give this game exceptionally high marks, perhaps on levels we haven't seen at OS in nearly six years. This game is a must buy, even after just playing the demo -- barring a gigantic bug within the game no one sees coming, this game is close to being nearly flawless. Now excuse me, I'm going back to the game right now to play another run.

 

SSX is a game which features a lot of variety.

 

Glenn Wigmore: The SSX demo has a lot to like, with some slick presentation, plenty of speed and a fairly cool RiderNet setup to keep you and your friends up to date on challenges and high scores.

The Skyboarding tutorial gets you used to all of the tricks, as well as the wingsuit, and teases what will likely be a cool feature in the full game. I found the tricks quite easy to pull off with the right stick, but a button configuration is also available. It can be a bit dicey landing tricks here and there, but the controls are pretty tight overall.

The two available courses — one for racing and one for tricking — give you a good taste of the white-knuckled action that this SSX is going for. I really liked the look and presentation of the trick meter as well as the ghost racers whose times you are competing against.

Definitely intrigued to see more of this one.

Caley Roark: I was a huge fan of SSX Tricky on the Gamecube, and recently named SSX one of my most anticipated sports games of the year. So, needless to say, I was excited to jump into this demo.

I'll say that my feelings aren't quite as positive as Chris'. That's not to say that there was anything wrong with the demo. The tricks are easy to pull off, the controls are responsive, the presentation is outstanding, and I love the RiderNet feature. It almost recaptures the feel of local multiplayer.

However -- and maybe it's a matter of personal taste -- the whole package didn't grab me. For me, replayability might be an issue; the game boils down to going down hill, jumping, and wiggling the sticks. While similar criticisms can be lobbed at just any game, the demo didn't make me fall in love enough to look past that inherent repetitiveness. Of course, maybe I just need to spend more time with it (and get better) to appreciate its nuances.

I'm sure the full game mixes things up more -- can't wait to see all of the equipment in action and the various drops -- but the demo alone has me mildly, not wildly, excited to see more.

 

The levels are simply good looking and run great.

 

Bo McCready: Like Chris, I can't find much to criticize in this demo. The graphics are beautiful; the controls are intuitive and responsive; the included mountains feel really, really big, and clearly feature many ways to get to the bottom.

The demo doesn't have the over-the-top personality that fans of SSX Tricky might expect. But that's not a bad thing, it just reflects a (slightly) more subdued approach.

I'm a very critical gamer, but I'm not seeing any red flags here that make me worry about the game's quality. If the rest of the game is as strong as the demo, SSX will be a must-buy game.

Jayson Young: I love that the developers kept SSX's classic button controls for people who don't want to do tricks with the right joystick. But if you go with the original control scheme, you're unable to spin as fast as you can with the new controls, which automatically keeps you from getting the best scores.

I also don't like how SSX seems designed to prevent the player from crashing on tricks and grinds. There's too much "auto correct" built into the landing mechanics. So much so, that I had to go out of my way and deliberately land upside down just to get my rider to crash. There needs to be more of a penalty for over-rotating on flip tricks or grinding too long. Despite struggling to learn the new dual-analog controls, I rarely found myself face-down eating snow.

I fear that scores on the online leaderboards might get ridiculous if players are able to run through courses without any real chance of losing their trick combo.

Dustin Toms: I echo both Chris' and Jayson's thoughts. I played the heck out of the SSX series, and I think it's safe to say I'm pretty darn good at the games. So of course, with the new SSX one week away, I'm as jacked as ever. After downloading the demo, my excitement is still up there, especially with the huge terrain on each the map. It took me about 20 gos until I finally repeated a run. The real-life look give SSX a new feel, which I can easily get attached to, and the RiderNet feature is showing us that social gaming really is the next big thing. But I have one concern.

Like Jayson said, if you just let go of the controller as you get closer to landing, your rider will autocorrect themselves as they touch ground. This takes away the challenge of SSX, and will allow anyone and everyone to be a stud.

I'm sure once the final release is out the dispersion of talented players will happen, with harder mountains and courses. But until then, this demo will be plenty of fun for now.