Customer Reviews

Amped 3

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Amped 3 is the first snowboarding game to come out for the XBox 360. You get to fly through the snowy slopes in full wide screen high definition.

First, it's important to fully accept that this game is made very tongue in cheek. You get cut scenes with drawings almost exactly like Trogdor, you have sequences of 60s-style circles with good/evil George Harrisons urging you on. You get modern alt music mixed in with Blinded By the Light. Sometimes there are Wonder Woman style flashing lights. "The Dueling Serpents of Fangar!"

A lot of the references might go right by people who aren't both classic TV watchers and new website visitors. It's amazing how many subtle funny things are built into the dialogues and cut scenes.

But back to the game. You customize your character - male or female - with the typical array of skin color, body build, hair, facial hair, hat, clothing, board and so on. You have a GIANT mountain to explore that you can explore, do challenges on, follow the storyline on, and just have fun. If you get tired of tracking down cool places to board, you can always snowmobile all over to find a new hidden spot.

Like any game, the key here is to master the controls. Once you get the hang of the different moves, you'll be carving, spinning and sliding whereever you want to go. Dodge in the trees. Launch out over the rocks. The mountain is fully rendered and waits for you. The game is pretty forgiving for beginners, so they don't get frustrated, but also provides enough challenges that skilled boarders will find their ways to have fun.

The graphics in widescren high def are a mixed bag. On one hand, I love the groomed rippled snow and the trails you leave in it. It made me want to put aside the controller and drive up to the ski lifts. The funky stars and circles and other indicators are all true to style. The clouds and sunsets in the background are photo-realistic and lovely. However, the character models are a little plastic looking. Comapred to other games we're playing right now, they weren't up to standards.

It's important to note that the game is about fun - not about training you to be a professional snowboarder. If you slam into a tree, you don't get hauled off to the emergency room. You just bounce off and keep going. If you take a nose dive you just roll and get back up again. I don't really consider this a bad thing in a video game.

Well recommended for snow bunnies everywhere!

Just got my Amped3 a few days ago and have only been playing a few hours. But man... It's about time someone really thought about what a video game is about.

no it's not about graphics, no it's not sound, and it certainly doesn't need to be about realism. It's about fun.

Yes, amped 3 seems a lot easier than Amped 2 and Amped 1. Yes your boarder has non-intuitive controls, yes the game feels like you're in some strange strange indie music, punk rock world, and yes it's a fricken riot.

It's been a long time since I played a video game and laughed heartily and often. In a world of Robot Chicken, CATS vs. Mr.T, Trogdoor the BURNINATOR and everyone's favorite owl ORLY?! Amped 3 fits right in. Yah it'll be very dated due to pop culture references and such, but it's hilarious!

Why 4 stars? Yah, graphics, sound, realism, physics and such have taken a bit of a back seat, I'd like the world to look at bit more realistic than Amped 2, it'd be nice if my boarder did the tricks the way i'm mushing them into my brand new 360 controller, and yah, when you run over someone with a snowmobile... there should be some carnage... but seriously folks, if you buy a video game to have fun and not to challenge your button mushing, thumbstick whirlin' skills, definitely pick up amped 3 and leave your hang-ups behind...

Amped 3 is my favorite video game that features unicorns, action figures being set on fire, Russians, and shiny kitty litter. There aren't any other games featuring enough of this stuff, I must say. But Amped 3 features more kitty litter than you'd ever believe, and it's got some great snowboarding gameplay to boot. Amped 3 is one of the better Xbox 360 launch lineups, and it's the only one that's going to have you laughing and scratching your head in confusion within the same gaming session.

I doubted Indie Built could pull off a great game here. Amped 2, which was generally considered too difficult and too technical, bombed on the sales charts and it came as a surprise to me that anyone wanted to pick up XSN's snowboarding franchise. Well, Indie Built did it, and they did one heck of a job making an enjoyable game. What makes Amped 3 so unique is, well, everything that isn't related to the fantastic gameplay itself. You wouldn't think too much of the game from looking at its bright green box art which features a snowboarder and the prominent, bold, and pink Amped 3 logo. Once you crack open that box and pop the game into your Xbox 360, you'll be thinking differently. Some of the stuff you'll see in this game is more bizarre than anything you'll ever see again. I mentioned unicorns and kitty litter earlier, but those are just two of the seemingly endless items of wonder that are tossed around in this trippy game. I'd like tell you more about the stereotypical anime cutscenes, the cut-and-paste art, or the sock puppets. But I can't. I can't tie any of these things to the Story Mode, and it would be a travesty for me to ruin any of the stuff in this game. It would ruin the "What the heck?" feeling that I was so happy to have while playing Amped 3.

The Story Mode is where most of your time will be spent. There are hundreds of challenges. Some are extremely generic to the genre--score points, go through checkpoints (which in this case are acid-influenced magic circles), or do a trick to impress a sponsor. These goals are the ones I didn't like, and they were the ones that I got really tired of when I was finishing up with the story mode. I especially hated the kitty litter challenges, because I hate picking up random, scattered, unimportant items in games like this. The ones I enjoyed kept me playing, though, especially the crash-your-sled one. The goal here is to launch your player off of his sled and physically harm him as much as possible. Needless to say, this is endlessly entertaining and constantly funny. It's even funnier when you're not riding on a sled, because sometimes you'll barrell downhill on a chair or a portable toilet or other objects. This is what I wanted to see from such a unique, artistic game--fun, creative modes. Sadly, the generic goals don't do the game any justice, but Amped 3 is a lot of fun to play and that's what allowed me to trudge through the ho-hum junk and reach the exciting stuff. Indie Built made Amped 3 easier to play (which is something XSN failed to do with Amped 2) and they did so by making the controls very similar to Neversoft's Tony Hawk series. All of the tricks are mapped to the controller's face buttons and grinds are made easier with an auto-snap system that aligns the player with rails. These two factors alone make playing Amped 3 simple and fun while the difficulty comes from the challenges themselves, not the controls. This alone makes the game much better than Amped 2.

While the art is fantastic and the presentation is impressive, the visuals of Amped 3 are its most disappointing factor. Launch titles are expected to show off the power of a new console, not show any kind of shortcomings. Amped 3 doesn't really impress me visually. If you told me this was an Xbox game and I didn't know what you were playing, I wouldn't think twice about it from looking at the graphics. It certainly doesn't look bad--little touches like powdery snow effects look really nice. It's just that this game's visual calibur is very low when it's compared to 360 beauties like Perfect Dark Zero, NBA 2K6, and Madden 06. The audio factor is quite different--there are hundreds of songs, dozens of artists, and hilarious voice acting to boot. If you're a fan of indie rock, electronica, and hip hop, you'll love the tunes found here. Since the original Amped, I've appreciated the fact that the series has featured so many low-key, unsigned bands.

The Xbox Live factor here is pretty disappointing. There isn't any online multiplayer at all, and the most interaction you'll have with other players is through the Leaderboards, which hold records for every single challenge found in the game. I thought it was fun to see how I sized up against other players but I would have loved to actually hit the slopes with someone else. Maybe they'll do it with Amped 4.

Mentioning Amped 4, I'd love to see Indie Built go for another round. Amped 3 is a fantastic game. It offers fun snowboarding gameplay, an art style that will blow your mind, and a story that will bust your gut in laughter. You don't have to sift through a lot of junk here--there are some annoying challenges, the graphics are ho-hum, and the lack of Xbox Live multiplayer is certainly a let-down. Other than that, I can't complain. Check this game out, it's great. If nothing else, you'll want to get that "What the heck?" feeling I mentioned before.

When I first put in the game, I was like, "Wow, this is gonna suck." I only thought that though because the story and the video clips are ridiculously corny. But once I started playing, I realized that the game itself is a ton of fun with cool challenges and good snowboarding mechanics. The music soundtracks are great. If you like the style of snowboarding in SSX then you should like this game. I've beat the game, but I still don't fully understand the story because I skipped most of the video clips. They were to corny to bear. To sum it up this game is a HIPPIE STYLE SNOWBOARDING GAME. It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed playing it.

When I first bought Amped II on the original XBOX I couldn't stop playing it. The controls were easy to master, the game play was fun, quick and dynamic. This game is none of these. The action feels sluggish and frustrated; the load times are ridiculous and it seems the development team spent more time on making the game seem "cool" and not enough on actual game play. This is a HUGE step back from Amped's last release. The overly slick styling detracts from Amped 3, making it all filler without much else. Maybe this is what ten year olds expect from their video games, but I was extremely disappointed.

so 1st off let me express my love for the amped series. i have spent countless hours playing both amped 1 and 2. i recently got amped 3 at my local EB. going against my gut feeling of skipping this title. i do not regret it though.

Positive:
funny story
intresting characters
create your own character
snowmobiling anywhere anytime on the mountain
sledding
different than anything else out there


Negative:
graphics are not great especially for a 60 dollars xbox 360 title

horrible horrible controls-wayyyyyyyyyy to floaty i feel like i have no real control over my character. you now automatically grind anytime your get near something you are able to grind. EVEN IF YOU DONT WANT TO. also it is very very hard to fall, land sideways and you automatically land and straigten out. you have to land upsidown to fall on your snowboard.


so im half and half with this game. in one aspect it is very cool to be able to go up and down the mountain at anytime. almost like GTA on a mountain resort. the story is funny and quirky and fresh. character customization is fun as always. yet the heart and soul of amped...ie the controlls took a huge step back in my book. it really does take the fun away when your character feels like they are on the moon. carving is almost uncontrollable. any precision is forgotten, i always have to constantely go left right left right just to line up a jump. and i just get the major sense that i am on a bike far to small for me with training wheels...and pink little tassle on my handle bars...and the gay little whistle...(analogy)


2k bring back the tighter controls we love!


if your used to the old games i would rent 1st. i honestly am a huge fan of snowboard games so im gonna stick it and beat the game. idk if ill trade it in eventually who knows. anyways its not a must buy 360 title but ya...

hopefully amped 4 will be better



360 must buys: Call Of Duty 2 stay aways from PDZ...DOA 4 and NFSMW are also very fun games

I really love Amped 2 and that's the reason I bought this game.
But Amped 3 is completely different. It's very funny and has lots of things to do.
But at the same time, it doesn't have multiplayer mode or tutorial (the controls are easy, but it was nice to have this feature to learn all).
I don't regret buying this game, but I like Amped 2 better.

cheats made it great especially the fast spins it is a very fun game if u want an updated snowboarding game dont get it ..but for kids and just for fun id get it if i were you

I purchased Amped 3 after being disappointed by the last 2 snowboarding games I had played. I bought it used and figured for the price at least it would be something different. My expectations were not too high since Amped 3 is actually older than the previous 2 games I had bought, but I was in for a pleasant surprise. Amped 3 is by no means a snowboard simulator, it is a game and it makes you realize that from the very opening sequence, but the good news is it is a very fun game! The first thing I noticed is that even from the beginning there was an extensive amount of customization for your snowboarder and his gear. Real brands and gear are available from the beginning and as the game progresses you unlock alot more. The game is one of the most wacky/humorous you will ever play and continues to amuse from start to finish (ME GUSTA!!!.. those who played it will know what I mean :) The game play is fairly simplistic but is fast paced and has a ton of variety. Some challenges are about tricks, some are about maneuvering, and some are about collecting kitty litter...yup. It's not just snowboarding, no you get to drive a large variety of things including snowmobiles, hang gliders, sleds, and toilets to get around the parks. The graphics are basic but very colorful and the levels have a good deal of variety and always feel fun and full of snowboarders and skiers. My only complaint with the levels is that you can't use the lifts(ala Shaun White)I could go on and on, I know that Amped 3 may not be for the ultra hardcore snowboarder who is looking for the most realistic experience possible, but if that's what you want might as well just go boarding or at least get the Wii version of Shaun White with the balance board. Having said that this a great game regardless of whether you even like snowboarding or not.

Pros: Lots of customization for character, board, bindings, clothes etc..
Plenty of variety in the gameplay
Easy to learn controls
Humorous story and artwork
Colorful levels
Fun, fun, fun
Very cheap price especially when used

Cons: Controls not as fluid or realistic as Stoked/Skate
Graphics are somewhat outdated

This game is alot more realistic than SSX and has an amazing storyline. The areas are based on real mountains and are very open. The best parts are being able to ride a snowmobile at anytime in the game, which makes getting places very easy.If you liked Tony Hawk, than this game is basically the same with the controls and feel.