Heavy Shreddin'

"Even though it's already received two 1's, this game is not that bad."

Besides Winter Games, which doesn't count, this is the only ski/snowboard game that I have ever played for the NES. Five years ago I would have agreed with the previous two reviews for Heavy Shreddin', but after having put it away after years of frustration and then playing it again on a whim, I have found that this is actually a very good game. And please keep in mind that it's published by Parker Brothers, which makes it even more impressive coming from a less-established video game company.

I'd like to start off by saying that this game is difficult. If you have never played before, you will probably not make it past the second slope. But with any game, the more you play, the easier it becomes, and I can now beat almost every slope in the game.
Don't let the first mountain fool you, its slopes are rather similar and uninspired, but keep in mind this is the beginners' hill. The other mountains are vastly different with slopes containing half-pipes, huge gaps, cliffs, lakes, chateaus and even highways. Learning how to pass each obstacle will keep you busy for quite a while. The variety of levels is one of this game's shining aspects. My only complaint here is that you must do specific tricks in a certain order on the half-pipes or you lose a life. It would be better if you could freestyle and simply acquire a certain point value in order to advance.

As for the graphics, they are not outstanding but they're not bad either. Your snowboarder's sprite is well animated with smooth spinning and jumping motions, and you can even make him grab the front or back of his board and do hand stands on occasion. All of the tricks look nice. Unfortunately, the other animations in the game are pretty bad. Other skiers and snowboarders you encounter have only two frames of animation, and most everything else doesn't even move. The backgrounds and obstacles are nicely drawn, though.

The music is also average, but it is appropriate. The hills where you are timed have a quick and pounding rhythm that suits the emphasis on speed, the backwoods trails have a wilder feel to them, and the half-pipe theme tries to be radical and other eighties terms. The sound effects are also pretty good. The pound that happens when you hit the ground is effective, and the swooshing that happens when you change directions fits well, though it happens a lot and can get tiresome.

But please remember that we play NES games because they are fun. Even if this game is average in a lot of areas (except difficulty - it is above average there), it is rather quite fun. Learning how to pass all of the obstacles and becoming proficient enough at the trails so that you can throw in a random tail grab or 360 even when it's not needed is very entertaining. So is finding novel ways to kill your snowboarder, like making him do hand stands on the edges of cliffs.
If you can find this game for eight bucks or less, I'd say go for it. Just give it a little bit of time before you go around giving it 1's on review web sites.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 06/13/03, Updated 06/13/03