Developer: Ubisoft
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, PC
Tested on: PS4
Steep: X Games DLC – Review
Every year the X Games are a tournament covering every aspect of extreme games, be it skateboarding, motorcross, snowboarding and the likes. Fun fact: The X Games have never carried out drug tests on competitors which has made them the black sheep when they are being mentioned by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Steep has the X Games base covered with the Steep: X Games DLC. So you’ll be able to do sick tricks when on your snowboard or your skis. Another fun fact: the X Games are all about being an eco-friendly event. This is in its own merit, as some of the sports need things like snow to make the event viable.
Story
You are a nobody at the bottom of the list when it comes to the X Games. You want to change that obviously, so you’ll have to compete in several branches of the event to snag the top spots of the leaderboards and become an overall snow carving legend. There’s no background story, no character development arch, just you, the mountains, the obstacles you must overcome and snow, lots and lots and lots of snow. Maybe even a little smacking-face-first into the side of the mountain. No pain, no gain, it’s the X Games after all.
Graphics
It needs to be said, this game is gorgeous. From the mountain top vistas to the way you carve out snow as you glide majestically, or tumble down the mountain not so majestically, it all looks smooth as butter. This is part of the animations the developer has worked quite hard on, from the way your character balances on your board or skis when grinding out on a S curve or how the characters soar through the sky while popping a sick trick grabbing the tip of their board or the back of their skis, it all just looks so hypnotizing. The ragdoll physics do add a bit of hilarity when you come crashing through the foliage and your skis fly off in any direction. That being said, the game isn’t perfect, there is some texture pop-in, though you’ll be hard pressed to notice once you are hurtling down the side of the mountain. Also some clipping effects, but apart from that there’s nothing game-breakingly bad graphics wise.
Sound
If you’ve stood in the mountains, with a vast snowy carpet underneath you and a view that just screams out beauty, then you’ll notice one thing immediately, the song of silence. It almost hurts to walk on the snow, as the cracking of the snow under your weight disturbs the tranquility. This is something Steep: X Games DLC has captured quite nicely. The rush of the snow as you carve down the mountain, the screeching noise as you grind down the rails, it just works, it entrances the player and sucks them into the game, keeping them locked into immersion. If you like the soundtrack, you might want to saunter onto Spotify as it can be found there, too.
Gameplay
Steep: X Games is a Sports game, combining wingsuiting, parachuting, snowboarding and skiing, to give the player the choice on how to get down the side of the mountain. The X Games are all about sick tricks, even when going at it with an engine strapped to your back, wingsuiting between obstacles. You’ll be able to choose from some disciplines. These range from going down the mountain freestyle doing tricks with only a set goal to get to, giving you full control on how and when to perform a trick to you choosing a drop point which will lock you into a track where you’ll come across some grinding rails. The tracks end in three jumps -just like in real competitions-, so you can combine both down to earth tricks and some aerial sickness for those massive points.
As you land tricks, a score multiplier will increase, up to x4, so your tricks will give you greater value so you can earn better medals faster if you become better at pulling off said tricks. Steep: X Games attracts both kinds of gamers, from the casual player getting a high from landing a sick trick, to the more advanced hardcore gamer going for those really high top of the charts points, making sure everyone else on the leader boards bite the dust. It’s fun to play casually, but becomes increasingly more fun as you get better at it.
Conclusion
Steep: X Games is all about the crispy white snow under your board or skis and the clear skies with either white clouds or stars hanging overhead, whether you flip through the air or grind out tricks on the ground, the game captures its audience and keeps it locked. It has this ‘Skate’ like gameplay, where tricks are easy to learn but fun to master with techniques that get addictive fast. So if you haven’t been blessed with actual snow, you might want to duffle up and get cosy and shred some snow digitally.
Steep: X Games DLC - Review,
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