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The Xbox360
Launch Line-Up has been one defined by its’ sequels. Out of the
four Microsoft software releases, only one offers a game borne of
original conception; Kameo: Elements Of Power. This is
reflected also with the systems’ third-party support, with the
only other original titles being GUN and Peter Jackson’s
King Kong: The Official Game Of The Movie – both little more
than ports from the  Xbox360’s precursor generation – and
SEGA’s Condemned: Criminal Origins. That’s not to say
that Amped 3 is devoid of value purely because of it’s
heritage; it’s simply quite demoralising to realise that along
with the birth of a new era of gaming, we’ve little new
gaming experiences to go alongside – it’s almost as if the
developers have already begun struggling getting-to-grips with the
technology before they’ve even got the opportunity to think about
what they could do with it, as opposed to what they can do
with it – a paradox which Nintendo are hoping to abolish with the
arrival of the Revolution in 2006.
Amped 3 is as basic, yet varied as a Snowboarding
title has ever wished to be. Following in the footsteps of the title
most critically acclaimed for its’ Snowboarding style –
Nintendo’s 1080 Snowboarding on the Nintendo64 – Amped
3 makes a play for the arcade-inspired artificiality of control
whilst dragging the player through Event-after-Event and a small
selection of additional vehicles on offer. The gameplay selection
begins with the player choosing an Event from the Map. The Map is a
nice touch – displaying the entire of the Mountain upon which the
player has scaled for these Events, divided into three-to-four areas
which can be unlocked through progression elsewhere on the same
Mountain. In order to progress, whilst boarding down the Mountain
you will find Events dotted about in which you must compete for
either a Bronze, Silver or Gold Medal – each awarding a varying
amount of Cash and Respect, the latter of which is  needed to further
unlock Story Events. The Events can be highlighted by selecting them
from the Map, but the player must always start at the peak of the
area on the Mountain containing the Event before boarding towards
the selected challenge. The Events range from drifting between
pre-set doors, to out-boarding a Pro, to impressing sponsors and
generally selling-out. There’s plenty of variety and with each
Event set on the same Mountain, each has its own area of play; with
its own obstacles and intrusions, and creates an entirely different
challenge for identical Events on a differing Mountain.
While Amped 3 should be accredited for it’s sense of
longevity, some challenges seem to defy any logical sense of a
progression of a difficulty curve - once a certain level of play has
been achieved, the difficulty level ramps up dramatically – if
nothing else, giving you the opportunity to round-up those last few
challenges on earlier Levels.
In addition to the regular Events, the title features a story
of seemingly grand proportions at first, but quickly becomes one of
the objectives lower down on your list. Also, while riding down any
Mountain, whether looking for Events or just for kicks, pulling-off
large combos will fill an Awesomeness Meter and enter a Challenge in
which you must impress bystanders with your immense boarding skill.
There is a predetermined amount of spectators which you must impress
in each area of each Mountain, and fulfilling the requirement is
treated much like another Event.
The Rider Customisation feature offers a vast array of freaks
for you to play with, although each may discover their own unique
glitches during cut-scenes. The draw distance demonstrated by the
title is really very pleasing, but there’s a distinct lack of
detail on many objects, and developers still haven’t yet
discovered how to make snow trails look realistic. The soundtrack is
pleasingly fresh. Yes, it still revolves around Punk/Rock, but many
artists are those you wouldn’t normally consider artists eligible
for Videogame Soundtrack status.
Amped 3 may seem a tad less technical than many of
its’ Launch Line-Up peers, but, possibly even because of this, it
nevertheless feels all the more complete; offering players what is
seemingly the experience closet suited to the new hardware sitting
snugly beside your television. With an individual look and a story
that is… interesting, shall we say? Amped 3 carves its'
niche. With multiple mountains each containing loads of Events and a
variety of modes of transport, Amped 3 just looks desperate
to shake off that 1080 Snowboarding mould in the way that 1080
Avalanche managed, although whilst retaining the arcade-esque
feel of the series. The variety of the challenges on offer and their
sheer quantity is the title’s biggest attraction, and possibly
it’s rather abstract  presentation, but it still just fails to
cut-close to the top form of the genre.
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