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[Why would you do that?]

This game is really good, but it's not SSX. If it were called anything but SSX, then I'd likely be happier with it. This game's main focus really feels like it's all about getting on leaderboards.

My biggest disappointment is the racing mode. It's all about getting top times instead of having a fun/memorable race like old SSX games.
1. I feel like I'm not racing live characters, but pre-recorded characters, a la Trackmania.
2. With the AI characters, there's always one character "Gold" far ahead, one character "Silver" in the middle, and "Bronze" in the back. This means racers won't ever be next to one another, won't bump one another, won't be unpredictable, etc.
3. Opinions on this subject are largely split, but there's no rubber band AI. In old SSX, I enjoy racing while doing a bunch of tricks and having little regard for the actual race. Doing so in this game leaves me doomed to 3rd place.

The game tries to remove any randomness and unpredictability and instead puts in a system where it will be hard to achieve Gold unless you're strongly focused on doing so. The game tries to create fun in getting top times instead of having fun/memorable races.

For some, that's a good thing. But IMO, the result is a game where it's hard to just simply "mess around" and feel satisfied.

 

[Baconsammy]

I honestly think the demo's difficulty is perfect (for me at least). The race course is listed as Easy, and I was able to Gold it within about 10 attempts. The trick course is listed as hard and I still havent been able to get higher than 8 million it, and the gold is 11.5 million. Seems pretty reasonable to me (an average player of SSX at best).

 

[Chopper]

It the demo up on PSN in Europe yet?

 

[sun-drop]

it's been a while but i'm pretty sure neither of the control setups they give you are what i used to use back on ps2 ..... :/


am i just remembering wrong?


could have sworn i used to be able to pre wind jumps etc, by pulling back on the stick ...

 

[Anticitizen One]

I honestly think the demo's difficulty is perfect (for me at least). The race course is listed as Easy, and I was able to Gold it within about 10 attempts. The trick course is listed as hard and I still havent been able to get higher than 8 million it, and the gold is 11.5 million. Seems pretty reasonable to me (an average player of SSX at best).

The race course is rated easy? Jesus

Also I really hate that prince of Persia button. I keep screwing up my races because I accidentally hit it because I'm so used to that being a trick button in old ssx. The rewind is pointless anyway.

 

[Vespene]

In regards to the discussion about the demo's difficulty, I'd say its as hard as the 2nd or 3rd track of any other SSX.

And about the ridiculously overdone tricking, if Mac and Zoe are doing this crazy shit, I don't even wanna think about Kaori. It's gonna be a 30FPS slide show of different poses. Close your eyes to prevent seizures.

 

[NinjaBoiX]

Glad to see someone agrees with me on the difficulty. I'm tempted to redownload it and use the tips Baconsammy suggested, but I'm not sure if I want to.

Come on man, do it! You're still in the thread, talking about the game, humming and harring. You obviously want to! It gave you a bad first impression, but I think you should give it another shot.

But you should play it for at least 2 hours before deciding.

 

[Sophia]

Come on man, do it! You're still in the thread, talking about the game, humming and harring. You obviously want to! It gave you a bad first impression, but I think you should give it another shot.

But you should play it for at least 2 hours before deciding.

I'll give it a shot after I've slept. I think playing any game that's not Mario at the moment would probably be counter-productive for getting to sleep.

 

[NinjaBoiX]

it's been a while but i'm pretty sure neither of the control setups they give you are what i used to use back on ps2 ..... :/


am i just remembering wrong?


could have sworn i used to be able to pre wind jumps etc, by pulling back on the stick ...

Pre-winds were always on the d-pad, allowing you to still steer slightly with the stick. That is still the case on the classic scheme right?

 

[Label]

it's been a while but i'm pretty sure neither of the control setups they give you are what i used to use back on ps2 ..... :/


am i just remembering wrong?


could have sworn i used to be able to pre wind jumps etc, by pulling back on the stick ...

You still can, you have to hold jump whilst pre-winding.

 

[SLV]

Well, i think it is great, was able to gold the race course within 10 attempts as well. My first time was like 3 minutes. Second was 2.30, then 2.20 and on and on, till i golded it. What is the fun in it if you can gold the race track without even trying ? From what i have seen from the demo, i am even more hyped for the release Will be playing this a lot !

 

[Why would you do that?]

It's gonna be a 30FPS slide show of different poses.

For some reason, that made me :lol

 

[KuroNeeko]

This game is really good, but it's not SSX. If it were called anything but SSX, then I'd likely be happier with it. This game's main focus really feels like it's all about getting on leaderboards.

My biggest disappointment is the racing mode. It's all about getting top times instead of having a fun/memorable race like old SSX games.
1. I feel like I'm not racing live characters, but pre-recorded characters, a la Trackmania.
2. With the AI characters, there's always one character "Gold" far ahead, one character "Silver" in the middle, and "Bronze" in the back. This means racers won't ever be next to one another, won't bump one another, won't be unpredictable, etc.
3. Opinions on this subject are largely split, but there's no rubber band AI. In old SSX, I enjoy racing while doing a bunch of tricks and having little regard for the actual race. Doing so in this game leaves me doomed to 3rd place.

The game tries to remove any randomness and unpredictability and instead puts in a system where it will be hard to achieve Gold unless you're strongly focused on doing so. The game tries to create fun in getting top times instead of having fun/memorable races.

For some, that's a good thing. But IMO, the result is a game where it's hard to just simply "mess around" and feel satisfied.

Yeah, I agree. It's good at what it's trying to do, but I don't feel like it's SSX. Nostalgia? Maybe, but I'm going to be reconsidering my pre-order. Don't get me wrong, it's still a fun game, but not quite what I was looking for judging from the demo.

 

[Cday]

Really like this game's style. The PS3 version seems solid. It looks good and the framerate never gets choppy. That's a relief.

 

[ResidentDante]

Love:

- Wing suit.
- Soundtrack is right on.
- The new look for the characters.

Like:

- Mountains feel dangerous.
- Character customizations.
- Menu layouts.

Dislike:

- No crazy track designs (floating icebergs in Hawaii, pinball megaplex in Tokyo etc.)
- 30 frames instead of 60.
- Its too fast for its own good. Its 50% faster than any other SSX.

Hate:

- A higher dose of everything does not equal better. A challenging 1080 was more rewarding in SSX1 than an easy 4320 in SSX 2012.
- Flailing system instead of a trick system. Seriously, characters trick so fast that it doesn't matter what you press. Just spam a bunch of button combinations and you'll land an insane stunt 90% of the time without even thinking. The PS2 SSX games felt like Street Fighter while PS3 SSX feels like Soul Calibur.

Great summary, this really is how I felt after the demo yesterday. I've pre-ordered the game and will stick by it and hopefully some of the nuisances will grow on me. But first impressions are a little sceptical.

 

[sun-drop]

Pre-winds were always on the d-pad, allowing you to still steer slightly with the stick. That is still the case on the classic scheme right?

...that might be it ..... what i used to rely on was prewiding...and as i approched the jump i'd be pretty much locked into that direction ..... so i could snap into a mean spin ...


will try it again. man it's been so long!

 

[sun-drop]

PS way cool hearing some kiwi tunes while racing down some NZ snow. nice!

 

[Xater]

This game is really good, but it's not SSX. If it were called anything but SSX, then I'd likely be happier with it. This game's main focus really feels like it's all about getting on leaderboards.

My biggest disappointment is the racing mode. It's all about getting top times instead of having a fun/memorable race like old SSX games.
1. I feel like I'm not racing live characters, but pre-recorded characters, a la Trackmania.
2. With the AI characters, there's always one character "Gold" far ahead, one character "Silver" in the middle, and "Bronze" in the back. This means racers won't ever be next to one another, won't bump one another, won't be unpredictable, etc.
3. Opinions on this subject are largely split, but there's no rubber band AI. In old SSX, I enjoy racing while doing a bunch of tricks and having little regard for the actual race. Doing so in this game leaves me doomed to 3rd place.

The game tries to remove any randomness and unpredictability and instead puts in a system where it will be hard to achieve Gold unless you're strongly focused on doing so. The game tries to create fun in getting top times instead of having fun/memorable races.

For some, that's a good thing. But IMO, the result is a game where it's hard to just simply "mess around" and feel satisfied.

Yeah that is my biggest problem with the game. It doesn't feel like you are actually racing but just doing time trials. In a game like this I would rather have neck in neck action with other racers.

 

[Cday]

Yeah that is my biggest problem with the game. It doesn't feel like you are actually racing but just doing time trials. In a game like this I would rather have neck in neck action with other racers.

But you can race with other players just not in the demo.

 

[Mr Touchdown]

Far out, I love this demo.

LOVE LOVE LOVE

Holy shit it is SSX. I can not handle the new controls, but the Classic controls are still intact. Managed to gold the Trick It thingy on my third attempt. Still not as good at racing... But that just proves not much has changed.

I want this game.

In my PS3.

What's the highest that GAF has on Bulldog Trick it?? I want in on the crazy!!!

 

[Suairyu]

Unless you're trying to go for some sort of sarcasm award or a kind of "us vs. them" self-assuring ego boost, then I'd say this post isn't accomplishing much.

My point was that "I can't become a master of the game in 45 minutes" is a poor criticism. I can think of a lot of things (and indeed, people have offered as much) about this new SSX that would turn people off. This isn't a valid one, from my point of view.

 

[Shizzlee]

Hmm, 1:56.46 in race it mode now. Only thing I did differently was that I was in Tricky mode near the end. Is your boost more powerful in Tricky mode?

 

[Vespene]

Let me put a lot of the criticism into perspective (my own included).

A lot of people passed judgement on Arkham Asylum based on the brawling demo before launch. It didn't play to the strengths of the game. Even though the combat system was great in the final game, taken out of context in a pure brawl snapshot of gameplay was a diservice to the game's overall design.

I hope I can apply the same logic to SSX. For all I know Zoe and Mac are geared out with crazy stuff in the demo and that's why they're performing trick epilepsy without much effort. The mountain is also one of the more natural ones, for I've seen the Siberia nuclear reactor one which is kinda whacky in an SSX sort of way.

It's only a week away so let's just see what's out there when we get there. First impression was good, but not great.

 

[The Xtortionist]

What's the fast-paced electronic song called?

 

[red731]

What's the fast-paced electronic song called?

I dont know what songs are in demo, but could it be this?

Noisia - Machine gun

Hell, I should stop talking about it and not write answers to questions I cant even know. Five more hours.....fffuu
Waiting till midnight for update nothing - sleepy time - prepared to get to work and then the demo is on store - work. Pain...

 

[The Xtortionist]

I dont know what songs are in demo, but could it be this?

Noisia - Machine gun

Hell, I should stop talking about it and not write answers to questions I cant even know. Five more hours.....fffuu
Waiting till midnight for update nothing - sleepy time - prepared to get to work and then the demo is on store - work. Pain...

Nope. The demo has four songs - Houdini, Young Blood, some hip-hop song and an electronic song. Can't seem to find the name of that last one.

 

[soultron]

Tokubetsu, check your times. I gots 2:01:39. Still working on perfecting my line...

And

My new secret to racing is barely pressing the jump button. Had a run where I never pressed it and I got 2:03. (Or, like baconsammy said, preload and release early so you don't even touch the lip of the kicker. Keeps your trajectory flat.)

Also, it just clicked, after doing the tutorial again, that your first input (of X or B) determines what hand you'll use if you tap them, then your second input determines where you'll place it on the board (as long as you don't press the same button again, or else it will just go into a stalefish or indy.) which makes a fuck tonne of sense. My trick score doubled as soon as I finally started to put that into practise.

I'm in love with this shit. It's a shame several other people aren't enjoying it, but that's just how it goes.

Also, I finally saw the framerate drop on Bulldog. It's definitely there, but I don't think it's going to bother you unless you're a total FPS freak. People are crushing that course with scores of ~30 million, so it's not really harshing their game at all.

 

[Atruvius]

I have never played any SSX game, last board game I played on PSX like eleven years ago.

The demo is fun but really hard. I only got silver on the race and bronze on the trick event. I'm also almost constantly hitting rocks and walls and doing tricks just consists of me just smashing the dualshock.

Game looks nice.

 

[RichardAM]

I take it we're all in agreement the standard controls are better than the classic, but what's everyone using for tricks- right stick or the face buttons?

 

[soultron]

I take it we're all in agreement the standard controls are better than the classic, but what's everyone using for tricks- right stick or the face buttons?

Buttanz, dawg.

 

[Cerberus]

Nope. The demo has four songs - Houdini, Young Blood, some hip-hop song and an electronic song. Can't seem to find the name of that last one.

Camo & Krooked - Breezeblock

I think that hip hip/jazz song is "What You Asked For" by The Herbaliser. Can't find the song anywhere to confirm it though.

 

[BruiserBear]

I take it we're all in agreement the standard controls are better than the classic, but what's everyone using for tricks- right stick or the face buttons?

No. I'd still much prefer to use the shoulder buttons for tricks, but they don't allow the option to turn off the d-pad for pre-winding, like the old games used to allow. So the classic control scheme is worthless to me.

 

[Mr Touchdown]

No. I'd still much prefer to use the shoulder buttons for tricks, but they don't allow the option to turn off the d-pad for pre-winding, like the old games used to allow. So the classic control scheme is worthless to me.

Eh? The D-Pad pre-winding was always a thing. Or am I mistaken? Relatively sure the d-pad is relegated to tricks while the stick is for steering. That's how the logic was anyways.

 

[Xun]

Haven't had the chance to try the demo yet, but how are both versions comparing to each other?

 

[BruiserBear]

Eh? The D-Pad pre-winding was always a thing. Or am I mistaken? Relatively sure the d-pad is relegated to tricks while the stick is for steering. That's how the logic was anyways.

Yes, the old games defaulted to that method, but I hated it. The developers of the old games included the option to just use the analog stick though.

That option does not exist in this game.

 

[Rlan]

Best at the moment is 2:10.63 on JT2.

 

[Neptune]

I downloaded the demo and gave it a quick spin before heading out. The race wasn't that hard to Gold, but the classic controls were... not great. The original SSX controls are too ingrained in my system for me to want to switch to standard, and the awkwardness was particularly noticeable when trying to do tricks. Like others have said, pre-loading doesn't work well because you still veer too much compared to how it seemed to lock your trajectory before. Also, while I might've misunderstood something fundamental, all the functions they mapped out with the tutorial didn't seem to be replicated in the classic control scheme. Or am I supposed to just be tapping the shoulder buttons now like fighting game combos instead of holding them down longer?

Also, my muscle memory for the original controls seemed to tell me that you didn't use to have to release the Square button at the end of the trick, only the grab itself. Holding it down now makes me crash upon landing. I can't verify this now since the PS2 is stored away, though.

 

[Mr Touchdown]

Yes, the old games defaulted to that method, but I hated it. The developers of the old games included the option to just use the analog stick though.

That option does not exist in this game.

Damn, never knew you could turn it off. Kinda lame it's not in this version then.

 

[RichardAM]

When I was using the sticks for prewinding and tricks i'd always just end up doing rockets and nosegrabs, with the buttons I can seem to mix it up a lot more. The buttons do the manuals and grind tricks too.

I wasn't getting anywhere with the sticks at all :/

 

[Cday]

I take it we're all in agreement the standard controls are better than the classic, but what's everyone using for tricks- right stick or the face buttons?

Well I'm in agreement. Hitting button combinations to do more complex tricks instead of just sliding the stick around is some last gen business that needs to stay there. The Stick scheme is far more elegant once you've gotten the hang of it. Anyone who has played Skate before will already be up to speed.

 

[Patrick Bateman]

Just downloaded the demo this morning. Really nice, but doing tricks right now is more like me doing button smashing, I don't have a good control, yet.

The Origin-stuff is more than annoying, too. Why do I have to log in to Origin when I'm already logged into PSN. One online service should be sufficient..

 

[Manabanana]

Marrshu exactly what games do you play? I'm honestly having a hard time lining up your expectation to place first after 45 minutes of playing with any other game. I don't play a lot of competitive sports games though so maybe it just tends to be an easy genre?

A lot of commenters seem to be getting the wrong impression about what the guy actually had to say, and with some valid points.

SSX demo takes quite a while to get used to with some fairly demanding goals. It's not uncommon to be able to snap up a gold medal in the first few levels of any game, which are generally the areas that are demoed to the public, and with the intention that a game is either accessible or that great challenge exists beyond its opening areas. For the sake of argument, past SSX games had some tall orders to fill on certain runs themselves, so it may not be out of character for the series to be challenging. It can also put off customers as seen here.

If a dude doesn't have the patience for a demanding demo then let him be, I figure. I'm not having the best time either in adjusting from SSX3, so I share his frustrations at least in having the patience to devote my time to this demo and master two whole levels-- just to have beaten the AI score for a gold medal. Maybe later when the game launches though.

 

[sun-drop]

Ok it just clicked, back on classic and using the d-pad when approaching to prewind, yup this is SSX.


awesome, day one

 

[xxczx]

I played a bit before the Nintendo Direct but oh my god what

This is so hard, turning and tricks, even jumping/pre-wind is hard to do compared to SSX3 I've been played a lot of recently.

I'm glad we have this demo so I can be ready for the game.

 

[Manabanana]

But you can race with other players just not in the demo.

But without any physical contact-- a cornerstone of the SSX series and the sport itself being based on multiple riders having to interact with each other in a race.

Not to beat that dead horse anymore, I just think its cute that a video game is named after a sport where you can shove each other but instead throwing in ghosts. It's like if football let you run trough everyone's ghost as you time trial to a touchdown.

 

[RoadHazard]

But you can race with other players just not in the demo.

No, you can't. Not really. You can race with other players around, sure, but you can't really race them. You'll always be doing your own thing, never directly racing another player. And the other players won't ever "physically" be there, they'll basically just be live ghosts that you can see but not interact with.

Anyway, reading some mixed impressions in here. Some stuff sounds a bit troubling, while other stuff doesn't really worry me. Gonna try the demo myself when I get home, of course.

Would like some more impressions of the PS3 version, though. Is there really input lag or an unusually large dead zone? Is it really less sharp than the 360 version? Etc.

 

[Cday]

No, you can't. Not really. You can race with other players around, sure, but you can't really race them. You'll always be doing your own thing, never directly racing another player. And the other players won't ever "physically" be there, they'll basically just be live ghosts that you can see but not interact with.

When you try the demo you will realize how silly it is to whine about there being no punching in this game since there would never be a situation where it would be useful. The levels are a lot wider and the game is a lot faster.

 

[FyreWulff]

People actually used punching in SSX after the initial start? It was fairly useless once the pack separated. Even more so in 3 (I never played On Tour, so I don't know how it worked there)

They replaced the mid-track "instant uber" mechanic from beating down other snowboarders with the tricks you can do off/near the helicopter.

 

[soultron]

No, you can't. Not really. You can race with other players around, sure, but you can't really race them. You'll always be doing your own thing, never directly racing another player. And the other players won't ever "physically" be there, they'll basically just be live ghosts that you can see but not interact with.

I know what you're getting at, the whole no collisions = not "real" racing, but I still feel the heat when I race someone's ghost data in the demo. I feel like I'm racing, as if they were there with me, almost. And that's just in Explore mode. When the full game comes out and we can be racing in the same space, at the same time, you can react. One of the things I find interesting about Explore is that, depending on whose ghost you're challenging, you're tempted to follow their route and copy their style because that's the best run they've posted.

But in Global Events, if someone has already posted a great score/time they feel comfortable with, following their live player might not be a great idea because they might lead you away from the line they established their best time/score on. That's a pretty interesting dynamic if you ask me. Some of the best SSX players have been secretive and protective of their best runs, so this dynamic causes them to question where and how they'll be aiming to post their name, either Explore or Global Events.

All in all, I'm having a blast right now because I've collected a handful of challenging friends to race against. I know none of what I said is going to change your mind, and that's not my aim, but I just wanted to point out some of the interesting sides of competitive play this game brings about.

I feel like I'm discussing semantics and technicalities on the level of a fighting game, just as a quick side note. It's a funny feeling.

 

[Curufinwe]

I honestly think the demo's difficulty is perfect (for me at least). The race course is listed as Easy, and I was able to Gold it within about 10 attempts. The trick course is listed as hard and I still havent been able to get higher than 8 million it, and the gold is 11.5 million. Seems pretty reasonable to me (an average player of SSX at best).

It took me about 90 minutes to top 10 million, so that was a decent challenge. I'm hoping I do a little better on the PS3 demo.