The main reason Shaun White is one of the first snowboarders to have his own signature game isn't his red hair, or even his former nickname (The Flying Tomato, which he actually dislikes these days). It's because he's a winner, both at the Winter Olympics and the X Games. While avid action sports fans have followed his career closely for years, most people have only seen White get big air on the half-pipe a couple of times and collect a Gold Medal. They haven't seen White ride the way he does 98% of the time, exploring the back country and carving with his friends down mountains all over the world. In Ubisoft's soon-to-be-released Shaun White Snowboarding for the Xbox 360, the entire world will get a feel of what snowboarding is actually like for the sport's most decorated athlete.
Part of the charm of Shaun White Snowboarding is that you can start playing within seconds, as there are no parking spots to find or lift tickets to buy. If you start at the top of the mountain, it's easy to start riding down. Most of the game is played using the analog sticks; your left analog will control direction while the right analog is used for tricks. In order to get in the position to pull off tricks you'll need to jump using the right trigger. If you start at the bottom of the mountain don't fret -- you can usually get to the top via chairlift or helicopter. Even if you can't ride to the lift or the chopper, you can still get to your preferred mode of transportation by running around in the snow, provided it isn't too deep. We also noticed that running can be useful when you get stuck behind a tree.
For those who need everything to be just right before they start riding, Shaun White Snowboarding will have a multitude of gear choices before you decide whether to ride on mountains in Alaska, the Alps, Japan or Park City. Most of the clothing, boards and backpacks are from Burton (a White sponsor), but there's stuff from other companies as well. In fact, instead of a backpack you can choose to buy a guitar to ride with, because as the caption underneath says, sometimes you've got to "impress the snow bunnies." With an available accessory like that, it should be no surprise that the game's soundtrack consists of a variety of classic rock, the kind of music White himself likes to listen to before hitting the slopes. You can also create a character that looks however you want, but you won't start out the game riding as White himself, as you've got to earn that privilege.
None of the mountains in Shaun White Snowboarding are exact replicas of the areas they represent, but they're still gorgeous. Sweeping vistas greet you from the top of every mountain in the game, and it's rare to be forced down a narrow path. No matter which direction you go, there's varied, unique terrain and objects, including several jumps and items from tree trunks to hand rails that are ripe for grinding. The Assassin's Creed engine creates the best visual representation of snowboarding we've ever seen, especially when you make a lot of racket. If you jump, carve and generally make a lot of noise going down the mountain, you'll need to beware of avalanches. However, the avalanches are such a cool feature of the game it can be tempting to ride like a lunatic in order to cause them. When you start hearing the avalanche and feeling the slight rumble from your controller, your only hope is to ride quickly and cleanly, before the small chunks of snow racing past you turn into big boulders that will bury you.
