Amped 3 impressions

When word got out that Amped 3 was going to be more “casual” friendly fans across the globe screamed out in panic. Instead of taking the more realistic approach like Amped 2, 2K Sports decided to go with an arcadeier set up that accommodates both skilled and unskilled gamers. And before gamers even tried a single trick suddenly the general consensus was that the Amped series was ruined.

Thankfully, that isn’t the case.

I’ve put close to five hours into Amped 3, and despite the game being more “user friendly,” it’s one of the better games I’ve played. Dare I say. . . it may even turn out to be better than Amped 2! The series does take a few steps back, but takes a couple more steps forward as well. So for the Amped purist out there who gave up on 3 before making it down your first slope, I say play the game a little longer, because the gameplay is there. It’s there in spades.

The first thing you’re going to notice about Amped 3 is the complete 180 in terms of presentation and style. The cut scenes are incredible weird, featuring everything from sock puppets, to ninja battles (on snowmobiles), to a talking pig head. It’s definitely a change of pace from previous Amped games. Some of their “attempts” at comedy aren’t always funny, but they are entertaining. Aside from the Russian hand puppets, the rest of the clips have been pretty fun to watch. What I like is the clips (and humor in general) add a lot of flavor lacking in the two previous titles. Amped 3 really stands out, easily separating itself not only from Amped 1-2, but also doing a great job separating itself from its rival SSX.

And speaking of SSX, when word got out Amped 3 was going for a more “hip” feel, everyone assumed characters would take on the “extreme” personalities typically found in SSX. It’s true that your crew is far from normal, but they do not have the clichéd extreme personalities abused by so many other titles. In fact, in my five hours of play I’ve barely seen any cut scenes involving my crew. Much like Amped 2 you spend your time alone on the slopes completing challenges and raking up combo points. Every time you enter a story based event then you’re treated to a cut scene, but that does not distract from the overall gameplay.

The first thing you’ll notice when you start playing is Amped 3 is different than any game in the series. However, what you must understand is that different is not bad. I spent quite a bit of wasted minutes trying to perform tricks like it was Amped 2. And since my boarder was still pretty low in stats, nothing I did seemed to work. In the beginning I had a very negative attitude towards the game and kind began to regret my sixty dollar purchase. Something else about the gameplay that was bothersome was how you will “auto land” on rails. Which to the novice doesn’t sound bad, but there are plenty of times when I didn’t want to land a rail because I knew it would send me off course. Also, the game does hold your hand when you’re attempting to land. Sometimes you’ll see your boarder getting ready to hit the ground at an awkward angle and you’re positive you’re going to wipe, but right at the last second you seem to straighten out just enough to nail the landing.

Again, for purist out there (like I was), such things were unacceptable. Hitting a button to land on rails and making sure your boarder was perfectly straight before landing was key elements of the game. It added skill to the game. However, the more I played the more I realized neither is as bad as they sound.

You don’t have to grind on a rail because you hit it. By hitting either the Right Button or the Left Button you can “bump” the rail. Basically instead of grinding you bounce off the rail and keep going. If you’ve played Amped 1-2 then you know what this looks like. So instead of hitting a button to grind on a rail, you hit a button to not grind on a rail. Sounds backward, but with all the added gameplay elements it’s one nitpick I eventually let go.

Yes, the game holds your hand when landing big air, but make no mistake, you’re still going to crash - hard. Similar to the previous Amped, when you first start your boarder has crap for stats. That means as you try and twist and turn in the air you’re more likely to come down at a very awkward angle. So being big headed I attempted to play Amped 3 like I did 2. I wiped four times in a row. Not a problem with the game, but a problem with how I was trying to force the game to play a why it was not meant to be played. Eventually I cooled down with all the big tricks and adjusted my still of play to fit my crappy stats. When I did that I started to land a lot more tricks. So yes, the game holds you hand, but it’s not going to play the game for you. You still have to be on top of your game.

*continued below*

That definitely comes into play when trying to gain style points. In Amped 2 “style” occurred when you slightly pushed the right analog while spinning. The game went into slow motion as you tried to perfectly spin your character. In Amped 3 style is still there but moved to the left analog. The difference this time is that when you go into style mode not only does the game slow down, but it zooms in on your character. While it looks cooler it’s also harder to judge your distance to the ground. Which of course can lead to some unexpected wipes. Add to that the new trick system and suddenly you’ll find that the “skill” is still there, just in a different form.

Comparing Amped 2 to 3 I realize just how paltry the movelist was in Amped 2. Since most of the big points come from using style that is primarily what you did if you wanted to score big. In Amped 3 trick system is more like SSX in that you use button combinations to perform numerous tricks. So one trick may be as simple pressing X then A, or a little bit more complex by hitting B B B A. This allows Amped 3 to have a much bigger variety of tricks at hand. And it should be noted the moves you do are still very grounded in reality. There are no SSX style tricks here. So no, you’re not going to leap off your board in midair and start stringing it like a guitar.

The more I learn about the new trick system the more I enjoy it. Because memorizing button combinations and knowing when to use them is a bit more complex then hitting the right analog for everything (i.e. Amped 2). What makes the system even more complex is that while you’re trying to perform varies button combinations; you’re also trying to gain style points on the right analog. So actually there’s even more hand-eye coordination necessary to pull off some of the more impressive tricks in Amped 3.

So like I stated earlier, the game takes a few steps back and a few steps forward. The landing takes a step back because it’s so much easier, yet the trick system takes a huge step forward because it’s a lot more complex and engaging. When Amped 2 finally becomes backward compatible the first thing I’ll notice is how lacking the tricking system is. Sure the landings might be harder, but the tricks are where its at. And while landing is easier in Amped 3, don’t assume you don’t have to try.

However, one thing that bugs me about the trick system is that there is no legend (i.e. trick list) detailing what button combinations does what. You can find a couple scattered throughout the game but most you’ll have to find them on your own. In Amped 2 the tricks were clearly explained to you (then again, there were a lot less tricks). I wish that every time you performed a new trick it were added to some sort of trick list where you can easily go back and see what tricks you’ve done. Sadly, such is not the case.

Overall I must say I am impressed with the new trick system. Granted you have to play for a bit to first build up your boarder’s stats, plus you have to complete numerous challenges to unlock new tricks. But once you do the game flows so much better. Also, the game moves much faster. With the way the mountains are designed I’m almost immediately getting ready for another trick right after I landed the last. What’s even cooler is that you can “powder” along with “butter” to build up combo points. When you powder you dig deep into the snow while turning either left or right. And when you butter you tilt forward balancing yourself on the ground. So when you start factoring in the new tricks, the new style system, and the ability to powder suddenly the game isn’t as simple as previously thought.

Furthermore, some of the new challenges are fun as well. In one challenge I had to use one of the gliders and fly through hoops until I reached the bottom of the mountain. I’ve had to follow a famous star with my camera and capture pictures of her crashing on her snowboard. And of course you have the always fun “match the pro” challenges. There are numerous other challenges as well, and best of all they’re scattered throughout the mountain. So as you’re making your way down you can easily find yourself trying four different challenges in a single run.

After spending some time with Amped 3 I have to say this is one of the most well rounded launch titles to come out. I don’t believe the reviews have done this game justice and the game is severely underrated by the general public. If you’re looking for a game that plays just like the previous Amped games, then yes you will be disappointed with Amped 3, because it’s not like the previous games. But what Amped 3 is is a very fun game that’s totally unique and original all on its own.

If you liked the previous Amped games (or even SSX) I would suggest picking up Amped 3. But remember, you have to put some real time into the game. I’m five hours into the game and I just unlocked the third mountain with another four mountains to unlock! Even still there are plenty of tricks left for me to unlock and stats to build my boarder. And the more I unlock the better the game gets. I didn’t like it at first, but I love it now.

If I had to give the game a score now, based off just my impressions I would give Amped 3 a solid 8.5. I won’t say it’s better than Amped 2, but I will say it’s on its way.

P.S.

I was feeling kind of lazy and. . . . didn’t really bother to check for errors.

Wow. you put some serious time into that, while you could have been playing the game!! I agree a lot though, I like the game a lot and will be trading in my madden or NFS(whichever pepsi sneds me) when I get it. Lottuson listed most of the ood qualities, here' s my take on some things lacking, and these are more annoyances than anything.

1. This game has an amazing soundtrack, well over 100 songs, and while you' re able to edit playlists, etc, there is no way to preview the songs as far as I' m aware. You can switch songs in game using the dpad, but in the audio options where all the songs are I can' t find a way to listen to them to prune the crap out.

2. I love the SSX series, and am used to the stat building system there, and while this is different, I don' t mind that at all. One thing I would like to be able to do though is see my stats. I have no idea how my character fares, and where they are in relation to the top of their skills.

3. The graphics while great some times, the mountains look beautiful being able to just see the whole way down, some areas like the tracks your board leaves in the snow, and ice effects (where they could have really wowed us) look no better than PS2/cube/xbox.


If I' m wrong about the first 2 points please point them out somebody, I' d love to know how to do those 2 things.

I' d give it the 8.5 as well, but I do LOVE snowboarding games.(9 if points 1 and 2 are wrong)

No, there' s no way to preview songs unfortuatenly. It' s pretty bothersome to me as well. And to answer number 2 you can' t see your stats either. However, if you haven' t completed every stat challenge then chances are there' s room for improvement.