Snowboarding the Fourth Phase Review: Epic and Cinematic Snowboarding from Red Bull Media House
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- Published on Friday, 19 February 2016 15:23
- Written by Jaymes Carter
Red Bull Media House in collaboration with Roadhouse Interactive, have released Snowboarding the Fourth Phase. It follows rapidly on the heels of the last successful game from Red Bull Media House, which was Bike Unchained. The Fourth Phase is an upcoming film starring American Professional Snowboarder Travis Rice. In short, this game is epic, cinematic and fun to play.
I was impressed when Red Bull released the game Bike Unchained. I thought the art direction was brilliant, and the gameplay mechanics were good. When I found out that Red Bull would be releasing a snowboarding game, I couldn't wait to give it a try. I can't say exactly what it is about snowboarding games that make them so fun. Maybe it is the thrill of pulling off amazing stunts without the fear of hurting yourself. Or, it could be, that I have been hooked on playing snowboarding games ever since I played SSX Tricky back in 2001, on my XBox. EA Sports Big created an amazingly fun and easy to control game in SSX Tricky. These days, there is a bit of trepidation for me, when it comes to playing snowboarding games on mobile devices. The primary reason for that is because the controls can be difficult to get right. You don't have to worry about that with Snowboarding the Fourth Phase. Roadhouse Interactive nailed the controls, making it easy to pull off tricks with a few swipes and taps on your screen.
Snowboarding the Fourth Phase is Travis Rice's film, which is a follow up to his film The Art of Flight, which was released in 2011. It followed Travis Rice and other professional snowboarders through various environments to catch huge air, in some of the most beautiful places on earth. The cinematography is mesmerizing and the stunts are flat out amazing. The Fourth Phase will be released later this year in October. The game is a prequel of sorts. I am looking forward to the movie even more now, because of the brilliant trailer that has been released, and this new game that arrived in the Play Store this week. It is free to play, but the monetization structure is not off-putting. You can enjoy playing this game without the worry of draining your precious hard-earned dollars to do so. With that out of the way, let's talk about the game.
The game starts you off with a brief tutorial that explains the controls. There is a brief story that explains that filming is taking place for the Fourth Phase. You get a chance to get in on the action. You have been out of the action for a while, but you are making your way back into the sport. The controls are easy to understand and navigate. You tap to jump for a short jump, swipe up for a longer jump and rotate/flip your character by swiping in the direction you chose. On the left side of your screen are four buttons that allow you to perform different types of grabs. In combination with the swipes and taps, you easily pull off some truly cinematic stunts, that you are able to take photographs of in-game, but more about that later. The swiping to carve through snow may take some getting use to, but it works well, once you get used to it and learn the different courses. It also depends on which perspective you choose to play the game. You can play with the view that is over your shoulder, or a view which shows you from the front shredding down the mountain. I found the latter easier, especially when it came to pulling off tricks.
Similar to Bike Unchained, you follow your snowboarder on his journeys and are able to earn coins when you complete different goals. There are quite a few different maps for you to explore and there is plenty to do in the game from Career Mode, Quick Run, and Contests, which include two different competitions that run for a specified amount of time. When I say there is a lot to do, there is a lot to do, which makes this a free to play game that has depth and variety, and one that is destroyed by the worry of having timers to deal with. The only timer that is in the game has to do with the contests, which you have to have tickets to play, but they replenish quickly. The are rewards that are given at the end of the contests, depending on where you place globally. It is good to see early on which prizes are being offered, so you know how hard you want to compete, and what your winnings will be when you are done.
The Career Mode is where you will spend the bulk of your time. There are nine different zones to explore. You start off in the Greenline zone and work your way up to the other zones by gaining XP and upgrading your character and equipment. In this game your gear is important, from the clothes you wear to the boards you choose. These items give your character a multiplier, which is used at the end of your trips down the mountain. Since unlocking other areas to explore is based on successfully completing goals and gaining XP, your equipment is important. There are multiple ways to gain equipment. Some of the equipment is unlocked by completing goals, but the primary way to get equipment is through the use of purchasing boxes. The boxes vary from black boxes, which can be unlocked by watching an ad, or silver, gold, and special boxes that can be opened by using coins. Coins are given in the competition mode, career mode and quick runs. There are multiple ways to earn coins, and get boxes, so you don't really feel pressured to purchase the boxes to enjoy gameplay. They actually appear to be optional in-app purchases.
Snowboarding the Fourth Phase looks great. Screenshots really don't do this game justice. The game looks wonderful on both my Nvidia Shield Tablet and my LG V10. Recommendations for devices are Android 4.1 and up, and at least a screen resolution of 800 x 480, and at least 1GB of Ram. The tie into The Fourth Phase movie is perfect in the game. There are different photographers on the mountains that ask you to pull off certain tricks. The really neat part about this is that you have the option of controlling some of your photographs. Being able to snap a photo, and then rotate the image around for the perfect shot is truly invigorating. If you are a camera buff, you may enjoy this mini-game that occurs every now and again. I found myself taking a slew of screenshots because it was fun and easy. The game also incorporates the use of Everplay, so that you can share your runs down the mountains with your friends and upload them for other people to see and possibly learn from. When I said there is a lot to do in this game I wasn't joking.
Snowboarding the Fourth Phase is the perfect snowboarding mobile game. It doesn't involve riding pipes or anything like that. It is just you against the mountain, and your will to pull off some epic stunts. You can't really go wrong by downloading this game. If you are a fan of snowboarding games, go ahead and hit the install button. If you are not familiar with the genre, this game is easy enough to grasp and the perfect entry level for learning more about snowboarding. There is a whole lot to see and do. Red Bull Media House and Roadhouse Interactive have made a great game. Sometimes it is still hard to believe that we have this high-quality of a game in the palms of our hands.
source: droidgamers
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