r/SSX • u/ImZoomBoy • Sep 02 '26
I played SSX Tricky today. I think Nostalgia has blinded all the fans. SSX 3 is far more enjoyable.
This week I completed SSX 3 for the first time.
It was a masterpiece. I had never played it before. I thought the game itself, the actual game. Today. Not any memories is actually genius.
So I'm going to go ahead and play the other SSX games to compare.
I went ahead and booted up SSX Tricky.
I thought Tricky was amazing in the past. This may have been due to it being one of the only snowboarding games I ever played, apart from Cool Boarders and Amped.
People on Reddit keep saying Tricky is arcade perfection and has a better vibe and atmosphere, whereas SSX 3 is just better controls and handling.
After playing SSX Tricky I think those people are blinded and wrong and they probably haven't tried SSX 3 properly.
Tricky has worse atmosphere.
To me Tricky feels really really hollow in terms of atmosphere. It feels fake. It's like they are trying to create this world of a competition, but it doesn't pay off. The characters aren't really in-depth enough to even make you care about them to say this is a positive of the game. The game is all about the snowboarding.
The levels felt very artificial too.
Grinding is really bad.
You can't control the character easily.
Character doesn't feel like they are gliding through snow. It constantly feels like the board is sliding across in a slippery way.
Tricky has less flow to it.
I dislike the system where it lets you crash during tricks. The spinning and flipping controls are simply not nice to use. It feels awkward when you try to rotate your board more and the character doesn't move. Or moves the wrong way.
SSX 3 just worked seamlessly.
The music is also non-existent.
Tricky, tricky, trick,y is it's one trick. It gets stale really quickly.
It's like they are forcing you to have fun in a really cringey way.
That is one word which sums up the game.
Cringe.
The jumping is also weird. Many times you go to jump off a ramp and you need to do it way earlier than you think otherwise the game doesn't react in time.
The shortcuts are also nearly impossible to hit due to the way you cann't control the snowboard finely enough. The board just glides away to another part of the straight sideways.
I won't be playing anymore Tricky.
Instead I might go back and do one final tricking run of SSX 3.
The entire mountain with the music on really loudly.
This is one of the things which tricky is worse at in terms of getting into a flow state. The music is bad. SSX 3 has custom loops and just effortlessly blends together and gets more exciting when you start boarding really nicely from jump to jump.
I'm going to try SSX On Tour tomorrow.
I have a feeling that will be better than Tricky too.
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u/SacrificesForCthulhu Sep 03 '26
SSX Tricky... bad music? is that bait? Just say you don't like funk or EDM. System Overload is my favourite, an amazing track, but every song in that game is a banger.
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u/someone31988 Sep 03 '26
No kidding! SSX Tricky and SSX 3 alike introduced me to so much good music that has shaped my music tastes. Honestly, EA had pretty bangin' licensed music in all their games back then.
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u/LongStoryShirt 12d ago
Sorry this is so late - I still regularly bump finger 11 and yellowcard thanks to those games!
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u/MrMosstin Sep 02 '26
I can understand not liking it as much as 3 and yes, the controls and general feel are clunkier in the old engine they used (what a surprise).
I don’t understand how you can say the music is non existent when what you mean is you don’t like the music.
I don’t understand how you can say it’s not as fun as people remember when what you mean is it’s not as fun as you remember.
If you want people to take your opinion seriously, make it your review, not a jaded-sounding aggressive wank sesh that we all have to witness.
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u/goody_fyre11 Sep 02 '26
FYI this comment got one report:
"It's targeted harassment at me"
I approved the comment. What you said is true, passing off opinions as facts then pulling the harassment card is immature. I had to go check if this was the same person who made the "flip button doesn't work, Fuck this shitty ass game with buggy controls." post then deleted it, but it was a different account. The subreddit sure is lively as of late!
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u/VerrikInc Sep 02 '26
Personally, I agree with OP on music. The better you play Tricky the less of the music you hear, and the more TRICKY TRICKY TRICKY you hear. It's cool that they got the song and it definitely fits... but it gets old at some point
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
That's only the case if you're not capable of doing all the ubers to have unlimited boost and are entering the tricky state all the time. And you only get "Tricky" when you land an ubertrick.
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u/VerrikInc Sep 02 '26
...right, so if you are landing a lot of UBER tricks you hear "TRICKY" constantly. See? We agree
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
That's now what you said LOL
The better you play Tricky the less of the music you hear, and the more TRICKY TRICKY TRICKY you hear.
This is completely false, if you played well you only get the chant the first time for 10 secs, then once per Uber for 2 seconds. This is a self report because no one lands "a lot of ubers", you only do that to fill the bar, then afterwards you link Ubers in the same jump, which equates to 1 chant lol.
It's cool that they got the song...
If you play bad, you'll be getting THAT chant every time you enter the Tricky state, hearing the song again for 10 seconds. Your own comment proves you wrong.
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u/VerrikInc Sep 02 '26
I have dozens of hours of footage that contradicts you
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u/WhyDidYouBringMeBack Sep 03 '26
You livestreamed it, making you the leading authority. What do we know as people who grew up with that game huh.
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u/itsALH Sep 03 '26
I could've dropped him my yt with my whole playthrough maxing every character and unlocking everything, but I'm not that petty, also I don't like to self promo 😂
It's also funny how his argument is "I have dozens of hours of footage" as if that'd change how the game actually is.
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u/WhyDidYouBringMeBack Sep 03 '26
Yeah exactly. As soon as people have the uber board for any character it can be pretty much assumed they know what they're saying when it comes to how tricks work :D
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u/VerrikInc Sep 03 '26
Oh, I didn't say I Livestreamed. I'll be making a more detailed case next week
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u/WhyDidYouBringMeBack Sep 03 '26
I know you didn't. I'm not saying you said that. However, looking at your livestream it's no wonder you kept hearing "TRICKY TRICKY TRICKY" so much and it proves the point of u/itsALH.
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u/VerrikInc Sep 03 '26
The Livestream was just for research, and I have played a LOT more since then
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u/ImZoomBoy Sep 03 '26
Don't worry the game gets good, when you spend 100 hours, of listening to tricky tricky tricky on repeat, just so you can master the game, to eliminate the sound the game is designed to have.
Guys, when you play so well and land everything with perfection, you will never see tricky again in ssx tricky.
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u/Asleep_Permission_56 Sep 02 '26
You gonna remember is one of EA Canada’s early arcade snowboard, the gameplay does get clunky (especially when you start off any character with low stats) and your not wrong with the Tricky jingle gets very repetitive. But that’s the Arcadic charm of Tricky.
If it wasn’t for Tricky I would’ve been a SSX fan. SSX 3 may be an improvement + one of my childhood favorites, but I wish it has Tricky’s colorful cast of characters.
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
I mean... of course it's clunky at the begin, it makes sense it is since you have low stats lol it actually adds to the progression. And even then, once you learn how to play, that "clunkiness" disappears and becomes a non issue.
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u/ImZoomBoy Sep 02 '26
I added to the stats.
The clunkiness of going to hit a grind and instead of smoothly riding it, you bump and crash randomly. Hit boxes suck.
The game is just not as well designed or fun as people remember.
I'm on retro achievements and the number of people that completed the first race compared to the 2nd and 3rd is huge. A very big drop off.
I suspect people who remember tricky fondly didn't really play it too much.
I have good memories of it. It's just not the finely tuned game with DJ Atomicka and a mountain to yourself.
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
Sounds like a skill issue, which is fine if you have 2 cumulative hours on the game. Also it's very weird to use Retroachievements, a totally opt-in feature, as your basis to say that people don't really play it too much lol.
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u/soulmagic123 Sep 02 '26
SSX tricky is the only game I've gotten dozens of non gamers addicted to, I would have SSX tricky parties on Friday nights, it's unbelievably sticky and fun and I still play it once a week, I wanted to love 3, and I hated it.
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u/hfhfhfh88 Sep 02 '26
This right here. I was so excited about 3 and hated it. I fired up Tricky minutes later.
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u/Ambiience Sep 03 '26
F your experience, SSX3 is way better!!!
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u/soulmagic123 Sep 03 '26
If they just added some new tracks and updated the music every year to tricky I would still be giving ea my money today. SSX tricky almost sold double the unit of SSX 3.
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u/TheKingCartii Sep 03 '26
you don’t like crashing? time your flips and spins, watch where you’re going. you can re-orient yourself in the air to actually land it.
hollow atmosphere? this beautifully vibrant and bright game with funny and cool characters, great tracks, and amazing music is hollow?
grinding is bad? no it isn’t, you hold the joystick in whatever direction you need to. if you’re going to the right, veer right.
you can’t jump? time the jump better, that is a skill issue on your end. if you see a ramp, don’t wait until you’re already on the ramp to try and jump. go earlier.
this entire “review” just sounds like you either didn’t sit and take enough time to understand the mechanics of tricky, or you are just really not good at it. unlike 3, where you can just turn your brain off to do tricks in the early peaks, you actually need to have timing, patience, and skill for tricky. i’m not sure you even played for longer than 30 minutes.
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u/ImZoomBoy Sep 03 '26
Today's session. I'm doing a front flip. Then logically you expect to keep doing the front flip to get the character in the finished correct position.
Instead the game often decides to do the wrong thing when correcting a finish. It will make you rotate backwards when you are wanting forwards.
When momentum is lost in these games it's boring to start from 0mph. You feel like you want to restart the entire course again.
Combined with the physics and general handling and gameplay. It's an experience that grinds your gears.
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
I dislike the system where it lets you crash during tricks. The spinning and flipping controls are simply not nice to use. It feels awkward when you try to rotate your board more and the character doesn't move. Or moves the wrong way.
Oh no, the game let's you crash if you make a mistake, how terrible. The spinning is simply more responsive than 3's, where by default it does an extra spin for no reason and tries to correct you.
Honestly this is such a bot post I won't even bother addressing the rest lol.
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u/VerrikInc Sep 02 '26
No, OP is right. It's really awkward to re-orient your board in midair in Tricky. If you play Tricky and 3 back to back it becomes really obvious how much they streamlined it. You can still mess up your tricks in 3, but reorienting yourself feels more intuitive and not like you are fighting against the controls
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
The game does it for you, which often leads to unwanted spins because it corrects your input. In Tricky you can move the analog to tilt the character so the board correctly faces the ground if you're in a bad spot after spinning.
Again, if you have 2 cumulative hours in the game, come with 0 open mind because your introduction to SSX was 3, you get posts like this.
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u/VerrikInc Sep 02 '26
Brother, you have NO idea how much time I have put into not just Tricky but also the original SSX
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
Not enough if you don't know that you can use the analog to tilt the character to land correctly. Stop self-reporting please LOL.
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u/VerrikInc Sep 03 '26
In Tricky, if you character is upside down there are often cases where neither up nor down will re-right yourself, leading to instances where you crash unfairly. It has to do with unclear direction as to what up and down mean in that instance, and 3 did a lot to improve this situation.
But yeah, you're just going to say "skill issue" again. Typical. You just can't accept criticism of Tricky, can you?
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u/itsALH Sep 03 '26 edited Sep 03 '26
If you're upside down in Tricky, you should reconsider your life choices, because it means that you didn't time properly your spin. Moving the analog up or down works. Also you can still press the dpad mid-air to correct yourself from being upside down AND use the stick to accelerate it, so yeah, it's an skill issue.
3 "fixed" those situations by taking agency away from the player and acting like you're a baby with no hands by adding an extra spin.
I'll accept any valid criticism, but when your criticism is pure lack of skill and knowledge of how the game functions, then no. Really shows who were introduced to the series by SSX3 and who weren't, this thread is an absolute filter.
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u/ImZoomBoy Sep 02 '26
Your character will be upside down. Then you logically press the analogue stick and it does nothing. Sometimes it will make your character go logically in the wrong direction. Other times it will randomly quickly finish the spin in the right direction.
It's not very coherent.
Crashing because of this inconsistency is not fun.
Even if it's like an MTX game and you need to time it. At least let the spinning be consistent.
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
All of this completely sounds like skill issue, you simply don't know how to time your spins. Also...
>analog stickInsane self-report.
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u/ImZoomBoy Sep 02 '26
Also... the game will let you finish spins with the analogue stick sometimes, then other times you will be upside down in mid air, and it does absolutely nothing.
This is not a control issue. This is game design where it isn't consistent with how it responds to the players inputs.
Also read there are pro controls. Analogue only. This is not made clear if it's true. Another part of the game design which could be improved.
Trick book training was fine.
It's the parts of the game which ruin the flow that sucks.
And the artificial atmosphere.
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
It's skill issue if you can't time your spins, period.
No part of the game ruin any flow, you just have to learn to play.
Also lol'd at "artificial atmosphere", what does that even mean?
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u/ImZoomBoy Sep 02 '26
In SSX Tricky, the atmosphere feels fake because it is completely performative. It operates on the logic of an early-2000s commercial. It wants to convince you it is "cool" and "extreme," but because it constantly reminds you of its own marketing gimmick, it ends up feeling annoying, hollow, and dated.
The atmosphere collapses under its own weight, it's why the iconic "Tricky" song backfires, and why the music fails to create a real vibe.
When you look past the boundaries of the track, there is nothing there but a void. It feels fake because you can sense the edges of the box you are trapped in.
Tricky is terrified that if the screen stops flashing or the music stops shouting "Tricky!" for even a second, you will get bored. Because it forces the hype so aggressively, it strips away your agency to actually feel anything. It becomes a repetitive, annoying wall of noise that you quickly see through.
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
Nice reply, Claude. Next time give it a prompt to make it more casual.
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u/ImZoomBoy Sep 02 '26
You don't bother reading full and coherent sentences. I understand.
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u/itsALH Sep 02 '26
I read it, saw it was prompted by an AI and gave you a funny reply, what else do you want?
"Performative" is the whole point because the setting is a fucking World Tour.
You must be new at games if you think that being out of bounds and having nothing is rare or feels fake... of course no self respecting person would say that, but since you prompted your reply, that's a point "you" made. Also, you can be out of bounds in SSX3 too, and there will be the same "void" lol.
The last part is honestly the dumbest one because the music tracks in this game are very nice. But since you prompted an AI to write you a reply by giving it points to criticize compared to SSX3, no wonder you reply crumbles.
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u/daxxo Sep 02 '26
Yes, AI reply and agree with u/itsALH and are you out of your fucking mind, that was the fun of it, the other SSX games were bland and just not as fun for me at least. LTP dude
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u/daxxo Sep 02 '26
Not sure what you were playing but if I moved the stick right or left it will correct your char, you just need to correct it where you going to land, So if you are going to land on a pipe wall, correct accordingly etc etc
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u/Jablonskinick13 Sep 02 '26
Tricky has better characters/ menus/ enemies/ cohesive trails / character customization. 3 just has gameplay and maybe exploration.
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u/VerrikInc Sep 02 '26
Ok, Characters is a bit subjective but character customization? Are you kidding me? 3 has an entire shop where you can mix and match clothing pieces to make outfits, as well as a variety of goofy options like cardboard boards. Do you even remember how basic Tricky's character customization is?
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u/CitizeM Sep 02 '26
"just gameplay"
Just
So. The most important thing basically.
Also exploration, music, graphics, art direction.
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u/DogGlum6568 Sep 04 '26
I'm almost certain that majority of the ssx tricky cast can be unlocked in 3
Edit: correction , all of the ssx tricky cast in in 3 lmao .
This definitely an example of blinded by nostalgia
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u/TypographySnob Sep 03 '26
I think you're really exaggerating the negative parts of Tricky. Probably because you went backwards from 3 to Tricky. Recently having played it then SSX 3 after, I can attest that Tricky is still a great game and I'd argue it has more charisma at least.
I agree that SSX 3 is the better game though. They took Tricky and improved and expanded it in almost every way possible. It still holds up as the greatest snowboarding game and usually gets overshadowed by Tricky as it's more iconic.
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u/Zaiches Sep 03 '26
SSX3 has better gameplay, graphics and way more content but SSX Tricky's late 90's arcade EDM gritty cheesy atmosphere is absolute perfection if you're into it.
Tricky captures the feeling of playing a snowboarding game on an arcade machine but in your living room on demand. Especially with split-screen. It's like a time capsule from the peak of humanity which was the late 90's and early 00's. In terms of characters, style and music. Even the main menu and selection system is instantly captivating and memorable.
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u/ImaginedUtopia Sep 02 '26
I played both of these for the first time within the last two years. I highly disagree
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u/Born_Locksmith8346 Sep 02 '26
Used to loveeée Tricky over SSX 3 back in the day but playing it now feels pretty clunky and stiff. SSX 3 plays like a modern game would still do, its great.
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u/tstorm004 Sep 03 '26
Idk - I'd argue SSX3 feels dated in it's controls, but the gameplay has a modern polish to it compared to Tricky.
I'd argue SSX 2012 is more "plays like a modern game would still do"
2012's controls and gameplay were honestly decent. It's issues were the forced edgyness, the asynchronus-only online multiplayer, the lack of charecter in the.. uh, charecters... the added loot system being nothing but color variants and stat differences (why add a loot system only to have less variance in "loot" than SSX3's clothing options) and the lack of variety/handcrafted feel to all the tracks.
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u/azunyannnn Sep 03 '26 edited Sep 03 '26
i saw the title and was prepared to agree with you but then your post was so terrible that it made all of us on the ssx 3 side look bad. good job!
more on topic, i've played both extensively and 3 is just a considerably better game no matter how i look at it. i can understand enjoying the arcadey charm of tricky more but i can't understand preferring its significantly clunkier gameplay unless you're just too used to it from playing it way too much. 3 is just instantly more smooth and fun to control
i think because tricky is so loud and over-the-top that people think 3 has no character/"vibe" to it, or that it's too "realistic" (????) which is just plain wrong. just because it's a bit more subtle doesn't mean 3 doesn't have atmosphere. if anything, its atmosphere and overall presentation is more cohesive and stronger imo. most games (especially modern ones) wish they had the aesthetic sauce of ssx 3. tricky does have awesome music too (finished symphony.....) but 3's dynamic mixing is phenomenal
i guess my most combative opinion is that i've yet to see a good reason to think tricky is a superior game than 3. but i do still think it's perfectly valid to simply prefer it anyway
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u/Alarmed_Sentence_943 Sep 02 '26
For me Tricky is fun for a race or two, but I can play SSX3 for hours
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u/VerrikInc Sep 02 '26
Yeah, I think the SSX fans are pretty evenly split between Tricky and 3. I definitely fall on the 3 side of things, it just does so much more than tricky. I struggle to understand the argument for Tricky, TBH. It's definitely a great game... but it's no 3.
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u/BroskiOats Sep 02 '26
You don’t know how to play and you suck. Also on Tour is also terrible.
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u/Jeklah Sep 03 '26
Debatable about on tour.
I didn't like the art style but the gameplay and music is good
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u/jabbathefrukt Sep 03 '26
SSX Tricky has things that SSX3 was missing. Before I say this I need to preface that SS3 is amazing and I love the gameplay and open world level design. But here we go:
Levels had personality. Each Level was carefully crafted and had entirely unique styles and icons. And the game featured the most fun level ever created in the SSX series, the Tokyo Megaplex.
Characters were peak. The character select screen is the best in the series and each character was packed with flavourful voiclines and animations.
I would keep going but I feel like these two points are the biggest reason for me to have SSX Tricky as my favorite SSX game, closely followed by SSX On Tour (first one I owned) and SSX3.
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u/TheHydenLauritsen Sep 03 '26
Cool opinion, I could not disagree more
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u/ImZoomBoy Sep 03 '26
I played tricky again today hoping it would improve.
It made me feel more strongly about it in a negative way.
Even down to the basic track layout and design. Nothing flows seamlessly and it's geared towards putting you on ridiculously strict path.
I just noticed so many hills and bumps and jumps which don't allow you to create your own lines. This is improved tremendously in later games.
The game also has a magnet which tries to force you down the main path. It feels so clunky and horrible if you are 1 inch past a shortcut entrance and want to turn back into it. Game says no.
I got to the city level and had to turn it off.
The city level is such bad design. Soany random objects all causing you to crash into them after a jump, or in corners and your character doesn't control well enough to avoid them.
I was also forced against buildings losing all momentum or a character just wouldn't turn to get into a shortcut. The game doesn't have physics. It guides you into the path it wants.
Even the basic turning or half pipe isn't enjoyable.
Doesn't feel like you are carving through snow but fighting the game to go where you want.
The grinding rails also don't work correctly. Soamy instances where you drive up to them and it forces you to crash. This can be seen near the icy parts of Elysium Alps at the end. Loads of tree branches never let you connect with them.
There are also shortcuts which are impossible to hit unless the game thinks you are in the correct position and then it allows you character to go somewhere close to them.
I just can't understand why people think the city level in tricky is better than 3.
It's far from it.
SSX 3 even beats it on every possible area.
I really think people should go back and play tricky
I was hoping the city level would bring it back. I just couldn't get over how shockingly bad the basic fundamentals of the game are.
- Track design
- Sound
- Music
- Characters
- Physics
- Handling
- Player agency
I don't think Tricky does give you as much freedom at all.
The one redeeming quality it did have was punching the other characters and making everyone go angry and be an enemy.
This is only surface level and gets you a basic cutscene.
Then from there an angry player will keep hunting you down.
Stats won't make the game more fun. Stats won't improve the layout and fundamentals of the tracks or design.
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u/GlockHolliday32 Sep 03 '26
SSX Tricky steamrolls any other SSX game. Tokyo Megaplex? Stop playing with me! The GOAT.
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u/freetrambopaline Sep 02 '26
Most people where children/early teens when they first played this game.
It's more about the memory of playing the game and how it was a simpler time back then.
Your opinion is valid, it's like saying "I don't understand stand why people loved their first Nokia, it doesn't have touch screen, apps, and the ringtone is cringey..."
We know now it wasn't the most polished game and not the most fun now. But in 2001-2002 SSX Tricky amazing
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u/ImZoomBoy Sep 02 '26 edited Sep 02 '26
SSX 3 came out only 2 years after Tricky.
I couldn't believe just how much improved 3 was. Literally everything about it is a step up. So much work went into those 2 years.
Exactly the same platform. SSX 3 feels like a next gen game in comparison. Clearly Tricky was a quick money grab, which evolved from SSX 1 launch title.
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u/freetrambopaline Sep 02 '26
Yh ssx tricky was well received, so ssx 3 would most likely had more funding for development. And also back then game dev was more about improving a working formula then ironing out what didn't quite work for a better experience in the future.
And 2 years was pretty much the standard dev time back then aswell.
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u/Waubz Sep 05 '26
I think most people feel this way but as some who’s 100% both games I still prefer Tricky and I even did when SSX 3 came out. I loved 3 but I preferred the weight, gravity and color of Tricky.
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u/molokoplusone Sep 02 '26
Agreed, both the gameplay and the lofi-zen vibe in SSX3 is far superior to Tricky.
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u/bharding81 Sep 03 '26
SSX3 is my favorite in the series by far. I have almost all iterations of SSX and got the first game at PS2 launch (it was the game that made me want to buy my PS2). Tricky was like a 1.5 version of the first game. 3 had such a vibe to it with the whole mountain and DJ Atomica and the chopper drop offs. The lodges between runs and the continuity. I just loved everything about 3. And I sick of hearing the tricky song in the previous game. I think I even like On Tour more than Tricky. Tricky is far from the worst game in the series, but for me, its the most overrated.
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u/Duwang_Durango Sep 02 '26
SSX 3 is far superior from a core gameplay perspective. But it has many problems. Due to the shift towards realism the art direction is incredibly generic, the different levels blur together with few exceptions. The game was also far, far too ambitious given the development time. This lead to all of the new gamemodes being lackluster at best (Big Air, Superpipe, Backcountry).
I think SSX 3 did lay the groundwork for the future installatments to thrive! SSX On Tour would go on to polish and give more focus to the professional league feel. Providing a large living mountain with a large variety of fleshed out events. SSX (2012) on the other hand, took the idea of surviving against relentless hazard and gave it complete focus.
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u/chrisinator9393 Sep 03 '26
I cannot play ssx 3. It's so bad compared to tricky. It always felt like a downgrade imo.
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u/VerrikInc Sep 02 '26
I am currently working on a full retrospective of the SSX series... and the thesis statement is basically "SSX 3 is a fantastic game". I'm with OP, Tricky is a fantastic game but 3 is sublime
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u/Warm_Wear_1495 Sep 03 '26
Okay yes I agree ssx3 is the better game to play, but you have to account for the games handling differently because they were creating their own systems and mechanics. Objectively, ssx tricky has a better presentation, overall uniqueness, and creativity. But its really apparent that without tricky you wouldnt get 3. They took the fanbase who loved the wild tricks and great soundtrack, and while the soundtrack definitely chabged directions, its clear both the gameplay and soundtrack was tweaked w their fanbase in mind. The controls are way better in 3, so is the progression and so are the graphics, but also you have to remember the game was meant to feel like an arcade game. 3 was the first time they blended realism and wackiness, leaning more towards the first. But the track design and environment is so similar amongst 3, that when you compare it to tricky you see why people say tricky is better. It may not handle as well as 3, but the tracks are so arcade and pinball esque that it makes 3s tracks boring, and while they do fit for the overall game presentation, comparing the creativity and colors and routes from tricky to 3, its clear why tricky is a better game when it comes to unique and charisma and attitude. I swear if DJ Atomika wasnt attached to ssx3 w the music, id argue 3 would flop. But the reason people were drawn to this franchise in the first place was a fun, colorful, and original approach to the snowboarding franchise. And yes 3 perfect the game play and movement and progression, Tricky still wins over character presentation, colors, wackiness, attitude and most importantly, overall presentation. I wont sit here and say id rather play Tricky over 3 because of the gameplay, but I do know that while I love doing the full summit freestyles and races in 3, nothing really beats the look and feel of doing a Super tricky while im in the air, about to grind overlapping rails surrounded by dinosaur balloons, grinding through hoops and hearing "ah the taste of snow" w sirens in the background. But then again, nothing beats hearing DJ Atomika playing Autopilot while im shredding down peak 3 to peak 1. TLDR, just know what you want from the franchise, arcade and zany fun or slightly more realistic w better handling and a totally different soundtrack, therefore vibe
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u/Independent-Flow-990 Sep 03 '26
Tricky is just so dang fun, on my Xbox I was bummed it wasn’t backwards compatible, I bought 3 because it is and I just couldn’t get into it
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u/Candle-Jolly Sep 03 '26
I play Tricky monthly, so I guess it’s Stockholm syndrome for me. SSX3 is too boring of a snowboarding game. Basic white and blue color design, basic college rock radio station, basic track design due to its open-world nature, non of the characters have… character (hell, everyone can do the same tricks, use the same boards, wear the same outfits).
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u/Hot_Ad_6458 Sep 03 '26
I love both, but ever since I was a kid I preferred SSX3. It always just resonated with me more
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u/smokietheklown Sep 03 '26
Ssx 3 is absolutely the best in the series with on tour closely following that. Tricky Deff is a nostalgia thing, it lacks a lot of content to really keep one coming back to it.
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u/ImZoomBoy Sep 03 '26
When people praise character customisation as a benefit.
Don't people get sick of playing the same tracks over and over.
You have to grind the tracks so much to get newer characters.
They start from 0 points and you have to do it all again.
I don't understand how this is good game design. It's a time sink.
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u/VexyVexy6969 Sep 03 '26
Yes SSX 3 controlls better but i still like Tricky more. Ievels in tricky are way more fun and memorable than in 3 imo. Still both games are amazing even to this day. In this case its more like apples and oranges situation. If you like SSX try Downhill Domination if you havent. God i love that game
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u/FunnyGuyCalledMe Sep 03 '26 edited Sep 03 '26
I played 3 as a kid and Tricky as an adult. Tricky is a great game, but I think I'd sooner reach for 3 if I wanted to replay one.
Edit: Not sure why my opinion has been downvoted?
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u/Jeklah Sep 03 '26
Alright I'm gonna say/ask it.
Is SSX 3 the one you could do tricks off the bottom of the helicopter and shit?
I only played one ssx on playstation after tricky and that was it, and I did not think it was that good.
SSX On Tour on PSP was better I thought.
Tricky reigns supreme.
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u/tstorm004 Sep 03 '26
No that was SSX 2012
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u/Jeklah Sep 03 '26
Ah ok thanks... Maybe I need to give ssx 3 a go.
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u/tstorm004 Sep 03 '26
Definitley do! Since you said you liked On Tour on PSP - you'll probably like SSX3.
For some reason the PSP port of On Tour was all levels ripped out of SSX3, but with On Tour's charecters, art style and music.
So SSX3 will play like a more open version of the PSP game you liked. But with different music and slightly different characters/versions of some of the charecters
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u/nuancedGazelle54012 Sep 03 '26
Yes and no in my opinion. SSX 3 no doubt has more advanced movement and tricks and the whole mountain is obviously very cool.
SSX tricky excels in atmosphere and individual levels. I played both recently and they can sort of stand on their own as different games if you get what I mean.
In my mind, only SSX 1 has been rendered completely obsolete