MX vs ATV Untamed

There are two sides to every coin. On one side of a recent dollar coin you'll find the Statue of Liberty; on the other side, George Washington. Both sides are equally shiny. Both contain an important part of our nation's history. But some might say that their significance is not equal.

MX Vs. ATV Untamed is the shiny new coin in the long-running ATV series from Rainbow Studios. On one side we have the next-gen versions: fast, exciting, and capable of taking your breath away. On the other side is the PSP version, a game that doesn't try to mirror the console experience as much as you'd think. While mimicry is what kills most games, that isn't what hurts this one.

Note: these screens are from the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions.

Set It Up

MX Vs. ATV Untamed's menu is a bit different from the console editions. For starters, you don't have to deal with the ridiculous profile setup (where players are forced to access a separate menu and save their game before playing in order to record their progress). You also don't have as many options. Aside from multiplayer, X-Cross Tour is the only play mode available. "Load/Save Game," "Hall of Fame," "Milestones," and "Options" are also listed on the main menu, but they don't lead to any actual gameplay.

X-Cross Tour is where the single-player campaign unfolds. As an extreme sports thrill-seeker, you'll control either an MX bike or an ATV. Both have a purpose: the bike is for uninhibited speed, the ATV is for superior control.

Inside the Tour are a series of hubs that contain six to eight different activities. The hubs are formed like the worlds of an adventure game: drive around until you locate an activity (shown on your map as a yellow triangle and shown in the stage as a raised platform with a beam of light) and hang around until it's complete. Activities may also be accessed from the pause menu, but don't expect the game to tell you that. You’ll have to figure that out – and most everything else – on your own.

Race

If you choose to select activities via menu clicks instead of tedious exploration phases, the first one you'll see is Race. This mode should be the most familiar to gamers. It's a straightforward, on-the-track experience with lots of dirt hills, a couple competitors, and the opportunity to feel excited. Enjoy it while it lasts – these races are over quick.

Waypoint Race

The wide-open hub spaces are utilized here for what the game calls a Waypoint Race. Rather than cruising the track in search of gold, silver, or bronze (the three of which are irrelevant thanks to a first-place-only requirement), players must drive around an open space and pass through a series of "waypoints" in order to stay on course. Since the levels have no direction – they're just wide-open spaces with a giant red wall blocking parts of the environment that can't be explored – an arrow, displayed at the top of the screen, is used to guide the player to each point.

Time Attack

Using the arrow as a guide, find the goal before the time runs out.

Stunt Challenge

Score more points than your AI opponent.

Flag Challenge

Another game where the arrow is your friend. Use it to find the flags hidden in each Flag Challenge location.

Stunt Attack

The goal of Stunt Attack sounds ambitious: perform like a pro in a wide stunt challenge (my words). The premise appears to be dead on: gain air before beginning (also my words). The objective, though not uncommon, does not sound too intimidating: jump through hoops and execute stunts (yet again my words...or rather, my interpretation).

What the game doesn't tell you is that the stunts must be performed a certain way in order to pass each hoop. You’ll likely perform the first trick with a question mark over your head. My first was landed perfectly. About two seconds after landing, a message appeared to announce that the hoop had been cleared. I then drove up the next hoop and scored another perfect landing. But this time no message followed. Instead, the arrow swings around, indicating that I need to go back through the hoop again. I do it – this time from an angle because I'm worried about the time limit and start to hurry – and crash. I try it once more. Perfect landing, the trick is cleared. But again the game waits about two seconds before commenting, leaving the arrow in its awkward rear position while costing the player valuable time in a mission against the clock.

After landing the third hoop (passed), fourth hoop (failed on first try), fifth hoop (failed twice), sixth hoop (passed), and so on, I became less informed about this challenge than when I began. How am I not able to dictate my wins? And why does the game not provide proper feedback for when I lose? The only message that appears is "sloppy," a message that also appeared at times when I won. No pre-game information was provided, nor does the manual explain the rules beyond saying, "Perform stunts and jump through each gate to complete the level." It does, however, use space to inform us that the X button is used to accelerate.

On the top right corner of the screen you'll notice a red bar that says "Next." My assumption was that the adjoining number had something to do with the point total needed for each hoop. That theory was flushed away the moment I scored 2,000 points on a goal that appeared to be 1,200.

Finally, after an hour of winning by chance and cringing at every loss, I came to the conclusion that wins are based on a group score of multiple tricks, hence the note on the top left corner of the screen – "Combo." That didn't make sense before, and honestly, I can't be certain that's the actual goal. But that seems to be what works (most of the time...).

 
Stunt Attack is the lovechild resulting from a one-night stand between Mr. Convoluted and Ms. Ridiculous.

It's a shame the game didn't bother to explain that, and an even bigger shame that by the time players figure things out and start progressing through the levels, they'll learn that it wasn't worth the effort. The Stunt Attack levels are the most cumbersome and structurally inefficient environments you will come across in an MX or ATV game. But they’re not the only inefficient environments. The game’s improper use of steep hills, canyons, trees, and other real-world elements feel as if this was supposed to be the building block for something bigger.

Stunts – an essential part of any extreme sports game – are made overly difficult by weird camera angles and inaccurate collision detection. It doesn't matter if the bike or ATV is level with the ground; if the game thinks otherwise, it will tell you so by causing an accident.

These flaws (or accidents) don't take into consideration how touchy the steering mechanics are. In your mission to collect flags, find checkpoints and complete other tasks, you'll have to maneuver through tight spaces, drive up several dozen ramps and speed along the cars of a lengthy train. That latter objective is the most frustrating. If you can imagine what it would be like to walk a tightrope with a knee that jets out with every move, you can imagine what it's like to play MX Vs. ATV Untamed.

There are dozens of other problems that could be mentioned – the graphics, frame rate, environments, opponent AI, etc. – likely enough to fill a whole other review. But there's no need to go on. If there are any players still interested in proceeding, they must have had their hearts set on buying this game from the day it was released.

Gameplay: 5.0
Very difficult…to enjoy. MX Vs. ATV Untamed contains a lifetime of mechanical problems and level/objective design mistakes. The game may have been good without them, but we’ll never know.

Graphics: 2.0
We saw better graphics at the PSP’s launch. For an example of what an ATV game should look like, see: ATV Offroad Fury Pro.

Sound: 7.0
The mostly-punk soundtrack is pretty good but lacks variety and length. Something EA Trax taught us (with the Burnout series, at least) is that you can avoid repetition with 35 – 50 song track list. MX Vs. ATV Untamed’s lineup is much smaller than that, leading to repeated plays of each song before the game is done.

Difficulty: Easy
While the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions provide a true challenge, the PSP edition is purely frustrating.

Concept: 5.0
Takes the MX/ATV gameplay style back a few years, and in unnecessary directions we’ve never seen before.

Multiplayer: 4.5
Uneventful at best.

Overall: 5.0
Many handheld games do justice to their console counterparts. The PSP version of MX Vs. ATV Untamed isn’t one of them.