A departure from the arcade style of SSX, Amped offered a sometimes painful realistic approach to snowboarding (you had to land a trick perfectly or you’d eat snow) but still found its audience. In fact, it remains one of the hottest snowboarding titles for the Xbox to this day. It was no surprise, then, when Amped 2 arrived at just about the same time as SSX 3. The battle continues, but can Amped 2 win this round?

As in all sports games, there seem to be two main styles and, subsequently, two types of fans who buy sports video games. There are those who love the over-the-top, arcade style nearly trademarked by EA Big and its titles, SSX3 among them. Then there are those who lean more toward the simulation side of things, which is where Amped 2 falls in. Such "sim" players like their games to resemble real-life to the most exacting detail, and that’s what Amped 2 tries to do.

Of course, if Microsoft made a true simulation of snowboarding, I’m not sure anyone would buy it. Even the best sim needs to exaggerate the air involved and the number of flips possible to move games. To solve this, Amped 2 exaggerates where it has to, but mostly delivers a realistic experience. Media members are scattered along the slopes trying to catch your next great trick on celluloid. Big trick scores, big media love and squashed snowmen lead to bigger and better things in your career. Sponsors will even swing by, hoping to see your best tricks and reward you with fabulous cash and prizes. In essence, there’s a bit of reality, a bit of crazy fun, and a pretty enjoyable experience.

That said, it’s not all good. On the whole, Amped 2 feels a bit sluggish at times, and the riders sometimes feel like they’re knee-deep in powder struggling to pick up speed. I can’t help but think that this was intentional to give Amped 2 that sim feel, but it takes away from the overall "get up and go" mentality. The controls are also a bit clumsy, and tricking sometimes feels awkward, with big style tricks often becoming an exercise in frustration.

Also, not unlike Midtown Madness 3, the gameplay and options are deep, but in a rather repetitive way. Once you’ve seen all the mountains, I’m not sure you will spend much more time in the single-player mode. After that, the multiplayer and Xbox Live will really make the game take shape.

There’s nothing quite like taking it to the slopes with some friends on Xbox Live. With game types like "King of the Mountain," "Best Trick" and "High Score," you can spend hours, days, weeks playing against friends or strangers. Given the game’s graphics, I expected there to be a lot of lag, but I was surprised to find the game ran as smoothly online as in the single-player mode. It may not be quite as addictive as Project Gotham Racing 2 on Live, but Amped 2’s online features are still laced with happy dust.

Online or off, Amped 2 is a great-looking game. The mountains and environment are nicely rendered, and they really give you a sense of size and the magnitude of each locale. When you’re at the top of a peak, the draw distance is nowhere to be found, giving you a sense that you’re miles away from the bottom.

The riders themselves are not only highly customizable, but also have a really nice high-poly look that’s far less "cartoony" then Amped 2’s EA counterpart. The look and feel certainly fits the simulation style of the game, as opposed to the over-the-top look in SSX3. But then again, Microsoft Game Studios has a knack for making pretty games. Rest assured that Amped 2 really makes use of the Xbox’s power.

The sounds of Amped 2 are exactly what you want them to be. Microsoft was smart enough to realize that environmental sounds and groans of crashing riders were not enough to fill the speakers. You also need a large library of tunes playing while you board. If you’re not a music savant or really into the indie music scene, you won’t recognize many artists in this library, but with the customizable soundtrack, Amped 2 can be exactly what you want it to be aurally.

To be honest, I’m a big fan of the SSX franchise and didn’t expect Amped 2 to improve as much as it needed to from the original to win me over. But after learning the sometimes-awkward controls and mastering a few moves, I grew to like this game. I sit here now taking full ownership of my error. Amped 2 is a good game, especially online. If you enjoy extreme sports titles with a more realistic approach, then this game is for you.

See more screens on the Amped 2 media page