" Not bad...but certainly not the same quality as some existing games "

      Title: Jonny Moseley: Mad Trix by 3DO

      Format: Skiing for PS2

      Reviewing Monkey: Simi N.

      The Hype: Give it your all as you attempt to win the gold skiing down many courses in spectacular and fantastical settings including Los Angeles, Machu Pichu, and even Washington D.C. Use your skills to pull off awesome tricks and rail slides to win it all.

      What This Monkey Thought...

      Graphics: Not bad. The game looks pretty good, but certainly not the same quality as some existing games such as SSX. Still, the game certainly has its charm. The courses are pretty nice looking, but could have had more flare. The characters are not as complex as they should be and they could definitely have used more polygons. At least until you get to the big mountain levels, the graphics are just kind of bland. Textures aren't bad, but are pretty boring; the same goes for the special effects (fireworks and such). 3.5 out of 5.

      Sound: The music in this game is pretty good, I mean it fits the style of the game and everything, I'm not going to go out an buy the soundtrack though. As for the sound effects, they are way too quiet, and really aren't up to the quality that many other games dish out. By far the worst aspect of the sound in this game is the announcer's voice. I swear this guy couldn't sound less interested in what he's talking about if he was commenting on the contents of pig crap. I mean if you're going to have an announcer you should at least make sure he sounds excited, that is what adds excitement to the game. 3.5 out of 5.

      Game Play: For the most part this game is a simple mix of SSX and Tony Hawk. The deal is this; you go down the mountain performing tricks to get points. If you get enough points, you win either a gold, silver, or bronze medal. But of course you're timed so you can't afford to stay in one area all the time. The trick system is designed just like that of SSX, the shoulder buttons perform grabs, X jumps, Triangle lets you perform a slide, and you have to charge your jumps to get really big air. The problem is that the physics are really terrible. Sometimes you will land on your back, and somehow pull off the trick, while other times you'll land on your skis and fall over. Regardless of whether or not you're lined up with the rail simply pushing triangle lets you grind. Etc. It's quirky, confusing, and worst of all boring. 3 out of 5.

      Level and Environment Designs: The levels are by far the best aspect of the game. The courses are really diverse and all of them have plenty of jumps and rails to slide on, as well as alternate paths and special objects to trick on. The track layouts are really cool and the surroundings are nice full of recognizable landmarks. 4.5 out of 5.

      Multiplayer: What the hell! No multiplayer? With this kind of game there is just no excuse for that! 0 out of 5

      Replayability: Really this game will take a bit of time to beat and unlock all the crap that you can, so by the time you do it all (if you don't get bored first) you will probably be finished with it. This aspect of the game is hurt most, though, by the lack of a multiplayer mode. And to top it all off the poor physics will just annoy the ever-loving crap out of you so it's not likely that you will want to deal with the frustration over and over again. 2 out of 5.

      Story/Dramatics: There really isn't a story, you just compete to get points, but there is nothing to tie the different events together. No rating.

      Instructions and Learning Curve: The instructions do a good job of filling you in on all of the controls, however they don't prepare you for the horrible physics by telling you that your character will frequently defy the laws of space and gravity. The game itself will take a while to get good enough to get gold medals on the courses (hint rail slide as much as you can while tossing tricks in there). The learning curve is fairly steep, and the game isn't interesting enough to keep you trying. 4 out of 5.

      Installation and Real System Requirements: The game does a reasonable job of utilizing the PS2s capabilities. I never saw any slowdown at all. The load times could be shorter, but aren't really that bad. And of course it supports the Dual Shock functions. 3.5 out of 5.

      The Verdict:

Over all, Mad Trixs is pretty cool, but just doesn't live up to the quality of similar existing titles. The physics could really use some work and the presentation needs to be spiced up a bit. Overall it wasn't a bad attempt, it just needs a little polish.

      The Good: Well the game has decent graphics and I like the tricks system. It has a pretty shallow learning curve and the music isn't bad.

      The Bad: The entire presentation of the game is really bland. Especially the announcer's voice, which seems to suck the excitement right out of the game, and the physics are horrible.

      The Overall Ugly: It's nice that there is finally a skiing game in this age of the ever-popular snowboard, but it definitely could have been pulled off better.

      What it's Worth: If I really wanted a skiing game I could see spending $25.00.