I love a good old bit of snow, I’ve been playing Elder scrolls V Skyrim and normally I’m not really a fan of those types of RPG’s but navigating frozen tundra really does peak my interests. EA are releasing a game in February called SSX, you may remember the franchise that made its debut on the PS2, and it’s most popular title in the series was called SSX tricky. Check out the most recent trailer below;
Mission objective.
- Recognise SSX Tricky as one of the most dominant influences.
- Reveal the tricks mechanics.
- Fast paced action editing to fit the music track.
Recognise SSX Tricky as one of the most dominant influences.
I personally spent more time on the mountain of SSX 3, it was great to have a kind of sandbox area that I could explore casually. Any way back on track to what SSX tricky delivered. It was the sequel to a Playstation 2 launch title called SSX; the original was a bit more tame than the most recent outings and delivered a great snowboarding arcade racing game. SSX Tricky introduced celebrities such as David Arquette, Macy Gray and a new trick system that saw your character perform outrageous tricks. This wasn’t really a revolutionary move because titles like Tony Hawks pro skater had already developed games that benefited from ludicrous tricks, however in SSX Tricky it felt right because the characters were flamboyant and would trash talk each other as they raced for first place.
Yeah, I could do that... If I wanted to...
When the new SSX was announced the developers made an announcement stating that they were after a different experience and released some gritty looking artwork. Fans were not too happy with this direction and forums flooded with topics of the fans slagging off the new game before any real details were released. This video is a way that allows the developers to say to the fans that they embrace SSX’s heritage and don’t intend to keep it a more gritty experience. The trailer uses the most dominant track in the SSX tricky game called tricky by Run DMC. However, it is adapted and the message that comes across is that they are enhancing the game play mechanics seen in previous titles to make something different, possibly even better.
Reveal the tricks mechanics.
The Tricks are obviously the most important part of the game and the trailer does a great job of allowing the viewer to catch up with what is happening. Some of the tricks happen so fast that you are unable to follow them, thankfully they have captured the images at a glorious high frame rate and was able to slow them down so that we can see every intricate motion. They have a team of animators working very hard on this stuff and it must make them very pleased that they can show off their handy work, allowing the human eye to catch up with everything that they have created. You have tricks on rails, tricks in the air and even some tricks that allow you to interact with helicopters in mid air.
Helicopter Trickanomics.
Fast paced action editing to fit the music track.
I love the editing on this video, it is fast paced, it fits perfectly with the audio and it is incredibly exciting. I have a fascination in effecting time in video, whether it is in super slow motion or if it is in time-lapse. There are segments of the video that cut between shots with a look as though the camera had been knocked, a very retro look to it and is probably a tribute to older titles
It's a bit like watching crimewatch... Have you seen this man?
Overall.
It’s difficult to point out any wrong doings in this video because essentially, it is a trick montage. It does not reveal any information about the story, it doesn’t highlight tracks and it is essentially a single part in a much larger marketing campaign. It does reveal a little bit of flair with regards to characters acting out towards the camera, but other than that this is a focused trailer on one element of the final game. As it is, you can’t fault it’s delivery but perhaps it would be better to judge how the entire marketing campaign delivers rather than a single trailer.
