"No mustard on my ham sandwich, I want my bike! It's Trials time!" Toast talks about a game that has been released and looked over until now in a segment we like to call Press Pause Radio Retrospective.
It's winter, the time of year where many people living in the Midwest prefer to stay inside and escape the cold and harsh weather. I personally hate and despise winter, even if it is a great time to catch up on games I have missed out on in the past year or so. My friends and I recently had the great pleasure to discover a downloadable game that was released during Xbox 360's Summer of Arcade promotion in 2009. Trials HD is a interesting hybrid of racing and puzzle game, showcasing 3D visuals on a 2D plane. The object of the game is simple; race from the beginning of the course to the finish line as quickly as possible. That is where the simplicity ends, and the insanity and non-stop action truly begins to take shape.
Upon first look it would seem like this title is simply just a motocross racing game, something I have no interest in whatsoever. I now know that Trials HD is more of a physics based puzzle game than anything else, and is what makes the title so enjoyable and accessible to all. During a recent blizzard here in Ohio, myself and a few of my friends decided to play some game trials and Rock Band 2. It's a rarity in this house when the drum set and guitars are not present during a party or get together. On this special night, Trials HD is all we really needed. The trial consists of three levels and one bike, which does not even scratch the surface of the game's 35 track and twelve skill games total. (The Big Pack Expansion also includes additional tracks and Skill Games) My friends in general are not considered to be avid gamers, and with the exception of Rock Band or Wii Sports do not play video games at all. My best friend actually loved playing Trials so much that he offered to pay for the full game so we could play more. I cannot think of a better product endorsement than that. Why does this game appeal to such a broad range of people? I think it's the insane tracks and physics, as well as the competitive nature of the game.
The game supports a friends and online leader-board which will constantly update with your friend's top time and scores, similar to Geometry Wars 2. Seeing this on the screen is a constant reminder that your best run is only a few seconds from what your friend has accomplished, and pushes the player to continue and improve. It even becomes a competition with people in the same room as you, which occurred while we played through all of the different courses and skill games. It was a great feeling to see my friends passing the controller, striving to get the fastest run through a difficult course. The physics also played an important role in that night's festivities, producing several jaw dropping moments when a insane jump was successfully landed or an explosion sent the nameless driver hundreds of feet into the air.
I implore everyone reading to either download the free trial on Xbox Live Arcade, or search on the PC for the free flash games of the original Trials. I cannot recommend this title enough for the next party or snow day you may have.
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