Amped 3

The Amped 3 XBox 360 game gives great value for money. Four of the seven mountains are huge, providing virtual mile upon virtual mile of varied, explorable terrain. The physics engine is pushed hard for a first generation game too, providing a genuinely deep view. You can set your eyes on a good looking rail into the trees over a mile away, and ride for four minutes until you reach it. That impresses me some. This is also the first snowboarding game that has come close (for me at least) to capturing that freedom, excitement and calm you feel when you really clip in at the top of a hill. It's the power of the new generation that helps create this sensation, producing sound effects as you push through the different kinds of snow that are so real, and visuals that at last let you see powder, ploughed snow and ice ahead of you, rather than a just a sea of pixelled white. Stop yourself, angle the camera down, and you know exactly what kind of snow you're standing on. It really is almost (almost) a substitute for the real thing.

The story is also engaging, though bizarre, and lightheartedly fun. Just as it should be.

This has the drop on SSX, which (having played this) now seems to take itself far too seriously. I can't speak for everyone, but this is the closest thing yet to try for and achieve a sense of genuine (recreational) snowboard culture.

Amped 3 is the best snowboarding game ever. Buy it.