Stoked (Xbox 360) Review
Posted by Chris Lansdell on 03.21.2009
Mountains? Snow? Jumping off high things? I am definitely not living vicariously through this one...
Title: Stoked
Publisher: Destineer
Developer: Bongfish
Genre: Sports
Players: 1 (offline) 2-8 (online)
Rated: T for Teen
Remember Cool Boarders? I do. I loved that game, there was something liberating about zipping around on a snowboard doing tricks. It was almost exhilarating at times. With fond memories of that game I volunteered to do a review of Stoked, which looked like a cross between some of the later Tony Hawk games and the old Cool Boarders ones. And hell, if it turned out to be like SSX Tricky then I wasn’t doing too badly, I still enjoy busting that out from time to time!
Armed with that expectation I booted up Stoked, and the first impression was “Oh God, into what have I dropped myself?” I can easily pick a coat, pants, gloves and I suppose even a hoodie (preconceived stereotypes of hoodie-wearing teens aside), but when you start asking me what angle I want my bindings at, I can’t answer you. Sure it looked nice enough, but I worried that this was a snowboarder’s snowboarding game, for those who want to but can’t or for the summer months.
All decked out in my sizzick threads (or whatever the youngsters call them), I am taken directly to the tutorial. Normally I skip these, it must be said, but considering my fear that I would be in over my head I figured it was essential. A gentleman rejoicing in the name of Wolle proceeded to teach me everything from an ollie (hey I know that one!) to a frontside back rail transfer (which sounds like something you need to get from Waterloo to Euston). It’s obvious from the start that the controls are going to take a little getting used to, but they are really very well put together and elegant, using the right stick to control jumping and the left to direct yourself and spin or flip. You are also introduced to the essential differences between stylish tricks and “hucking”, or the glamour and glitz stuff. This would become important later in the game because the AI learns your preferred style and penalises you for using the other style.
Having completed all the steps of the tutorial (something I’ve never done in any game), I no longer felt like I was lost in the game, and the mountain was calling me. The fact that I wouldn’t be racing anyone was a real bonus for me in this game; it was just a chance to freestyle down a mountain with only a couple of objectives to meet. Or was it?
Gameplay
Stoked suffers from a nasty case of sameness. Although the feeling of zipping down a mountain on a snowboard, taking off and doing tricks is well represented and almost refreshing, the early challenges required to turn pro are repetitive. There are really only 3 types: One where you have to match the other boarder’s tricks exactly and then surpass them, one where you have to do a type of trick (grind, grab, spin, flip), and one where you have to score higher than the other boarder on a specific jump. The last type is disturbingly similar to the first, and the variety within the challenges is also lacking. Successfully completing a challenge will earn you fame points (or fame point, in most cases), of which you need 66 to reach pro. Wait, 66? Is there some significance to that number in snowboarding circles? This takes A LONG TIME. There is something of a change once you make the pro level, but getting there is an exercise in suppressing frustration. Plus the challenges aren’t the easiest, so every time you repeat them (and get insulted by the other boarders…) the frustration mounts. Urge…to kill…rising…
To be fair, pro level is where the game really shines. As Stoked tries to be a game about being a snowboarder instead of a snowboarding game, there are no gameplay gimmicks or turbo modes to fall back on in rough patches. It’s about the rise to fame of an average boarder, and once that fame is achieved the game becomes infinitely more fun. You are rewarded with new gear, new boards, sponsorships up the wazoo, even pictures in magazines. Unlockable events, challenges and mountains are quickly achieved, and the old gamer score racks up in a quite satisfying fashion.
The controls take a little getting used to, but they are very smooth once you do get the hang of it. I’ve played a lot of games on the 360, and not many make as good use of the full controller as Stoked. Pull the right stick all the way down to crouch, and up to jump and ollie. The better your timing on the switch, the more air you get. Pull the stick halfway down, and you do a tail ride. Pull left or right trigger in midair to perform a left- or right-hand grab, then use the right stick to modify your grab. Pull the trigger on the ground to pre-wind a jump and get more speed on your turns. When in the air, the left stick will make you flip (up or down) and turn (left or right), but the speed of the flip or turn is dictated by how far you push the stick. As I said above, getting the transitions and timing right can be tricky (to rock a rhyme, to rock a rhyme that’s…sorry) but the reward when you hit it is worth it.
One final thing that bears mentioning is the physics. A game that wants to live or die by immersing you in the experience of snowboarding needs to have flawless physics and collision detection, and unfortunately Stoked just doesn’t. Trying to trick off a lump of ice can be great and get you some huge air, but it’s just as likely to throw you on your face for no obvious reason. Although things like snow-covered logs are nicely textured, those lumps can also cause problems with the game recognizing the grinds incorrectly. There is nothing more frustrating than hitting a combination perfectly only to fail the trick because you hit an obstacle that was actually a foot to your left.
Graphics
Stoked does an excellent job of making you feel like you’re going down a mountain. Unfortunately, sometimes that mountain looks like a 4-year-old just discovered the browns or greys in his box of 128 crayons with the built-in sharpener. Those things ruled, mulberry and plum were the best ones. Screw gold and silver. The snow flies beautifully, and if you fall you will be covered in it when you stand, shaking it off as you get going again. The boarders are well drawn and react to their environments, and the ability to view your stunts from different angles makes you feel even better about that stalefish 360 front flip you pulled off.
Sound
I had no idea what to expect from the soundtrack to a snowboarding game, but some of the songs on it are not bad. They fit the mood of the game and the atmosphere they are trying to evoke (flying down a mountain) to a tee. The sound effects are acceptable, with the sole exception being the lack of thuds, splats and crunches when you fall headfirst on a rock.
Fun Factor
There is fun to be had here, no doubt. Despite the frustration of trying 13 times to hit the same trick combination and missing the required score by 7, the sheer exhilaration of soaring through the air and rotating is not to be missed. You just don't get that feeling from some of the more cartoony snowboarding games (SSX, I'm looking at you...) and that's worth something.
Where this game really shines, apart from the above-mentioned Pro level, is multiplayer. Any game that has a “The Ground Is Lava” mode is scoring heavily in the win column in my book. If you're just picking up the game, you WILL get your ass handed to you repeatedly because the online modes are best played once you get the controls down pat. But after unlocking all the fun stuff in pro, THIS is where you will have your fun.
I don’t know if it was just me, but another thing that this game suffers from is long stretches of featureless terrain. Sure it’s realistic, and you can still do small tricks off the little bumps, but it does take away from the thrill-a-minute feeling that the earlier sections give you. There are also parts of the mountain that are so flat that you have no choice but to end your run. Like I said, I may be the only one to have found these since I have a tendency to go off the beaten path, but it frustrated me.
Lasting Appeal
It's tough to talk about this category, because as it stands I literally do not know if I love this game or hate it. I'll play it, get particularly frustrated with a difficult section or challenge, and swear I will never play it again. Then I'll come back like that guy on How I Met Your Mother who was dating Laura Prepon and she kept cheating on him, thinking I can make it work if only I try something different. You'll go back and you'll hate yourself for it. Unless you catch on a lot faster than I did, in which case you'll love every second.
The 411
Stoked has some problems, and they seem major, but you have to play the game to truly understand that they're not. Knowing what awaits you as you progress in the game, the satisfaction of achieving that trick on the 38th try, the feeling of going down that mountain...it's all worth the occasional fit of controller-throwing rage. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go beat Wolle on that Grab-Flip combo...
Graphics
8.5
Barring the odd sketchy bit of scenery, it's beautiful.
Gameplay
7.0
Too many glitches, grumbles and groans. Rewards are great but don't quite justify the time it takes to get to them.
Sound
9.0
I don't know if I'm over-rating this because I expected to have to turn the BGM off, but I loved the soundtrack here.
Lasting Appeal
8.5
Yeah, I'm still playing it. Especially online.
Fun Factor
7.5
It would be higher if I hadn't literally screamed at my TV.
