There are two
sides to every coin. On one side of a recent dollar coin you’ll find the Statue
of Liberty; on the other side, George Washington. Both sides are equally shiny.
Both contain an important part of our nation’s history. But some might say that
their significance is not equal.
MX Vs. ATV
Untamed is the shiny new coin in the long-running ATV series from Rainbow
Studios. On one side we have the next-gen versions: fast, exciting, and capable
of taking your breath away. On the other side is the PSP version, a game that
doesn’t try to mirror the console experience as much as you’d think. While
mimicry is what kills most games, that isn’t what hurts this one.
Note: these
screens are from the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions.
Set It Up
MX Vs. ATV
Untamed’s menu is a bit different from the console editions. For starters, you
don’t have to deal with the ridiculous profile setup (where players are forced
to access a separate menu and save their game before playing in order to record
their progress). You also don’t have as many options. Aside from multiplayer,
X-Cross Tour is the only play mode available. "Load/Save Game," "Hall of Fame,"
"Milestones," and "Options" are also listed on the main menu, but they don’t
lead to any actual gameplay.
X-Cross Tour is
where the single-player campaign unfolds. As an extreme sports thrill-seeker,
you’ll control either an MX bike or an ATV. Both have a purpose: the bike is for
uninhibited speed, the ATV is for superior control.
Inside the Tour
are a series of hubs that contain six to eight different activities. The hubs
are formed like the worlds of an adventure game: drive around until you locate
an activity (shown on your map as a yellow triangle and shown in the stage as a
raised platform with a beam of light) and hang around until it’s complete.
Activities may also be accessed from the pause menu, but don’t expect the game
to tell you that. You’ll have to figure that out – and most everything else – on
your own.
Race
If you choose
to select activities via menu clicks instead of tedious exploration phases, the
first one you’ll see is Race. This mode should be the most familiar to gamers.
It’s a straightforward, on-the-track experience with lots of dirt hills, a
couple competitors, and the opportunity to feel excited. Enjoy it while it lasts
– these races are over quick.
Waypoint
Race
The wide-open
hub spaces are utilized here for what the game calls a Waypoint Race. Rather
than cruising the track in search of gold, silver, or bronze (the three of which
are irrelevant thanks to a first-place-only requirement), players must drive
around an open space and pass through a series of "waypoints" in order to stay
on course. Since the levels have no direction – they’re just wide-open spaces
with a giant red wall blocking parts of the environment that can’t be explored –
an arrow, displayed at the top of the screen, is used to guide the player to
each point.
Time Attack
Using the arrow
as a guide, find the goal before the time runs out.
Stunt
Challenge
Score more
points than your AI opponent.
Flag
Challenge
Another game
where the arrow is your friend. Use it to find the flags hidden in each Flag
Challenge location.
Stunt Attack
The goal of
Stunt Attack sounds ambitious: perform like a pro in a wide stunt challenge (my
words). The premise appears to be dead on: gain air before beginning (also my
words). The objective, though not uncommon, does not sound too intimidating:
jump through hoops and execute stunts (yet again my words…or rather, my
interpretation).
What the game
doesn’t tell you is that the stunts must be performed a certain way in order to
pass each hoop. You’ll likely perform the first trick with a question mark over
your head. My first was landed perfectly. About two seconds after landing, a
message appeared to announce that the hoop had been cleared. I then drove up the
next hoop and scored another perfect landing. But this time no message followed.
Instead, the arrow swings around, indicating that I need to go back through the
hoop again. I do it – this time from an angle because I’m worried about the time
limit and start to hurry – and crash. I try it once more. Perfect landing, the
trick is cleared. But again the game waits about two seconds before commenting,
leaving the arrow in its awkward rear position while costing the player valuable
time in a mission against the clock.
After landing
the third hoop (passed), fourth hoop (failed on first try), fifth hoop (failed
twice), sixth hoop (passed), and so on, I became less informed about this
challenge than when I began. How am I not able to dictate my wins? And why does
the game not provide proper feedback for when I lose? The only message that
appears is "sloppy," a message that also appeared at times when I won. No
pre-game information was provided, nor does the manual explain the rules beyond
saying, "Perform stunts and jump through each gate to complete the level." It
does, however, use space to inform us that the X button is used to accelerate.
On the top
right corner of the screen you’ll notice a red bar that says "Next." My
assumption was that the adjoining number had something to do with the point
total needed for each hoop. That theory was flushed away the moment I scored
2,000 points on a goal that appeared to be 1,200.
Finally, after
an hour of winning by chance and cringing at every loss, I came to the
conclusion that wins are based on a group score of multiple tricks, hence the
note on the top left corner of the screen – "Combo." That didn’t make sense
before, and honestly, I can’t be certain that’s the actual goal. But that seems
to be what works (most of the time…).
Stunt
Attack is the lovechild resulting from a one-night stand between Mr. Convoluted
and Ms. Ridiculous.
It’s a shame
the game didn’t bother to explain that, and an even bigger shame that by the
time players figure things out and start progressing through the levels, they’ll
learn that it wasn’t worth the effort. The Stunt Attack levels are the most
cumbersome and structurally inefficient environments you will come across in an
MX or ATV game. But they’re not the only inefficient environments. The
game’s improper use of steep hills, canyons, trees, and other real-world
elements feel as if this was supposed to be the building block for something
bigger.
Stunts – an
essential part of any extreme sports game – are made overly difficult by weird
camera angles and inaccurate collision detection. It doesn’t matter if the bike
or ATV is level with the ground; if the game thinks otherwise, it will tell you
so by causing an accident.
These flaws (or
accidents) don’t take into consideration how touchy the steering
mechanics are. In your mission to collect flags, find checkpoints and complete
other tasks, you’ll have to maneuver through tight spaces, drive up several
dozen ramps and speed along the cars of a lengthy train. That latter objective
is the most frustrating. If you can imagine what it would be like to walk a
tightrope with a knee that jets out with every move, you can imagine what it’s
like to play MX Vs. ATV Untamed.
There are
dozens of other problems that could be mentioned – the graphics, frame rate,
environments, opponent AI, etc. – likely enough to fill a whole other review.
But there’s no need to go on. If there are any players still interested in
proceeding, they must have had their hearts set on buying this game from the day
it was released.
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Gameplay: 5.0
Very difficult…to
enjoy. MX Vs. ATV Untamed contains a lifetime of mechanical problems and
level/objective design mistakes. The game may have been good without them, but
we’ll never know.
Graphics:
2.0
We saw better
graphics at the PSP’s launch. For an example of what an ATV game should look
like, see:
ATV Offroad Fury Pro.
Sound: 7.0
The mostly-punk
soundtrack is pretty good but lacks variety and length. Something EA Trax taught
us (with the Burnout series, at least) is that you can avoid repetition with 35
– 50 song track list. MX Vs. ATV Untamed’s lineup is much smaller than that,
leading to repeated plays of each song before the game is done.
Difficulty: Easy
While the PS3 and
Xbox 360 versions provide a true challenge, the PSP edition is purely
frustrating.
Concept: 5.0
Takes the MX/ATV
gameplay style back a few years, and in unnecessary directions we’ve never seen
before.
Multiplayer: 4.5
Uneventful at best.
Overall: 5.0
Many handheld games
do justice to their console counterparts. The PSP version of MX Vs. ATV Untamed
isn’t one of them.
