Sled Storm

"A surprisingly good racer"

Until Sled Storm came along, snowmobile racing on the consoles was an untapped racing field for quite some time. Sure, the genre has simulation racers like Gran Turismo, slick arcade racers like the Ridge Racer games and even racing on H20 a la Wave Race 64. However, many developers were skeptical at the thought of a snowmobile racer ever obtaining any crucial success. Despite the skepticism and the fact that they may have been booed for years to come should the game fail, Electronic Arts Canada developed what is now the definitive snowmobile racer. Sled Storm is proof positive that the unthinkable can be executed properly.

Sled Storm has several play modes, but the main focus falls on the championship mode. Here you'll select your desired racer, each with their pros and cons and then head off to the white powder. You only be competing against three CPU opponents in each race but even in small numbers the AI can be a headache, sometimes landing on top of you and knocking you off your snowmobile. The championship mode has a total of eight tracks and as your progress, you'll race the same tracks over again, but on a higher difficulty and different weather conditions. Controlling your snowmobile in the rain isn't always easy and the CPU is always waiting to overtake you, should you make an error. Thankfully all of Sled Storm's open mountain courses are loaded with shortcuts to help you get a leg up on the competition, but it should be noted that the CPU players will take shortcuts as well. Another nice touch in the AI is that it is actually capable of making mistakes-not something you see much of in other racers. The other game modes come in the form of time trials and multiplayer games. You can race solo or against the CPU in the snocross courses, which are basically designed for purpose of pulling of tricks and earning points. Competitive players will get a serious kick out of this mode. Time trial is basically a practice mode that lets novice players get the hang of the controls and the available courses. Multiplayer allows for four players via split screen-that is if you have Sony's dust collecting multi-tap and three other controllers.

You'll need to do more than just race in Sled Storm. As mentioned before, you can pull of tricks to earn points. You'll want to play like a daredevil and bust out some insane tricks since your points get converted into money. You can use money to upgrade your snowmobile, which is must for the later courses. You'd be wise to buy a spotlight or it will be awfully hard to see in the night courses. Pulling of tricks and earning money is cool, sure, but you don't want to get to wild, or you'll wipe out and if you wipe out while pulling off a trick, you won't get any points for your efforts.

Graphically, Sled Storm is a smooth looking game. There is a good deal of pop up on the tracks with trees and mountains filling in the scenery as you zip by, but the overall package is nice. Even when you're only going at 40 mph because your sled hasn't been upgraded yet, the sense of speed is still pretty good. On the audio side, you have music from Rob Zombie, Econoline Crush, Uberzone and more. You preference of music will decide or whether or not you like the tunes or not, but then again, some may find it appealing either way. You can always mute it in the option mode should the license groups ever grate on your nerves.

Sled Storm, while already a good game has its fair share of unlockables to up the replay value. There are hidden characters, hidden tracks, and if you beat the game with one of the characters on the championship mode, you'll unlock the storm sled, a tricked out mobile with maxed out stats.

Sled Storm is one of those games that surprises a lot of players. Its unfortunate that the game went under appreciated in sales. That's a shame because until the sequel on the PS2 is released, there is no better snowmobile racing game than Sled Storm. People who love snowmobile racing will eat this game up, but even those that have never gotten on a snowmobile in their life can have fun playing this game. Sled Storm can be found pretty cheap, so if you're looking for another game to add to your collection, don't be afraid to give it a try.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/09/01, Updated 07/09/01