That's right. It's time to hit the powder yet again. We were excited enough when we got word of this eagerly awaited sequel. But now that we've seen the game in action, we literally can't wait for the snow to fall so we can shred the slopes again.

SSX 4 is all about more. More of what everyone has loved about the series from the start, and more of what fans have been asking for since the games became a hit. We were lucky enough to get to talk with Steve Anthony, the associate producer on the new game. He filled us in on the return to the mountain. "The biggest change for the gameplay this year is the emphasis on speed. In the past, even though you were tearing down the mountain, the player never really got the sense they were in fact going as fast as they were. This year we have built an entire system around speed with various layers of visual and audio effects that will kick in as the riders hit speed thresholds." Footage of the game we saw reflected this evolution. As the skier weaved his way through trees and down the hill, the screen began to blur and we could hear the air rushing by. Launching off a wicked jump took us into the stratosphere, where only the lonely bird cries carried over the mountain wind. It is, to the least, a spectacular effect.

Did we say skiers? Yep. Anthony filled us in. "Skiing has been a great addition to the game this year. We have a unique set of animations around skiing with different grabs, wipeouts and landings. Additionally, skiers will have the ability to initiate skiing specific Monster Tricks." Purists needn't fear, however. All the initimacy of the hallmark snowboard options remain intact. Now you'll just have another choice of how you flex your muscles on the snow.

Customization options don't end with your choice of locomotion. Due to fan demand, there will finally be an incredibly flexible create-a-character mode, allowing you to throw your own boarder/skier up against the best the mountain has to offer. Initiating a challenge will also be easier than before, since the new mountain has been designed for fluidity, flexibility and freedom. "One of the biggest differences this year has been the removal of the connectors pieces that we used last year to move between one track and another. This year, there will be much less of a break in the gameplay as the rider is able to seamlessly move down the mountain. Additionally, we have redesigned the gameplay to incorporate both race lines and freestyle lines within one track just like you'd expect to find on a real mountain." Anthony explained.

As a quality sort of wrapping on the excitement of the new action, there is a new menu system that's original enough to deserve attention. The new menu system is handled via a system Anthony described as the "living scrapbook." Scribbles and doodles fill the book, and new menus look like different pages. While the images are hand drawn, they animate in response to your choices, like your imagination brought to life on the page. Innovations like that are always a good sign in our minds. It shows a willingness to take something like the SSX games and make them even better.

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Source: Game Informer Magazine - newest issue. Go buy one to let them know our appreciation!

ok, few things..

pros: um, new speed system, i guess..

cons: ghey c-a-c people (always seem gimped)
skiis..
it didnt say online, they must die.

Yeah, i agree with ya solid...but do you really think it's an SSX thing....that's my issue with it....to me it doesn't fit into the scheme...but if they don't screw it up and make it worthwhile and don't slack off in other areas then i'm all for it.