Extreme Air Snowboarding by Sumea has to be the best Snowboarding mobile game made thus far. The gameplay rivals that of a GBA game, and the addictive nature combined with sharp graphics makes it a very cool experience.

The game is split up into 3 modes, (4 if you count the multiplayer) they are: Career Mode, Speed Pipes and Collect Items. Before you get into these there is also a Tutorial mode that is excellent in breaking you into the game and getting comfortable with the controls (something you wish more games had, this also gives it a more GBA feel). Career Mode has 11 levels or “missions” that all take place on the same track, but each mission has different requirements to be met in order to complete it. The requirements range form the amount of points scored, different tricks to be done, and combos. Speed Pipes and Collect Items are just that, 2 different tracks that have you complete those set tasks. Both of these modes give you an almost never ending challenge to beat your own records. Also, the addition of the Multiplayer mode lets you play rounds with up to 4 players, taking turns to compete for the highest score; perfect for being on the bus or train with friends.

The gameplay is just awesome; the movement of the snowboarder is very smooth and realistic. The game uses a 3-D perspective to send you speeding down a long track with slopes on both sides, and various obstacles in your way. In Career Mode, when you catch some speed you can fly up the slopes on either side and do tricks in the air to get points. You can also jump off boxes and rails to do the same. There are 5 set tricks in the game, and you can create different combos of these tricks to get more points. It’s very cool to see how many moves you can pull off in-a-row, which leads into the addictive nature of the game. The desire to constantly outdo yourself is always there, fueling you to play more and more, especially at the end because the last 2 mission of the game are quit difficult.

The only complaints I can really make here is 1) the sound. Unfortunately there are no in-game sound effects, only intro/outro music. The music is nice, but some effects would have added to the excitement of the game. 2) If you can really count this as a complaint, the menus. Sumea makes some of the coolest games on the market today, no doubt about it, but they still use the generic, white background nokia menus which just seems lame. In my opinion, putting a bit more into the menu system adds to that “gaming” experience and makes you forget even more that you are playing a great game on your phone. I can imagine that adding to the gameplay is always more important, but it would be a nice extra to make the game stand out even more.

What’s also cool about this game is that the graphics are relatively simple; there are no huge explosions or 6 different terrains, but the game doesn’t need all that to be fun to play. This is an outstanding game, it plays well; it looks great, what more could you want out of your phone? Sumea continues to succeed in making high quality mobile games, and they are only getting better.

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