
	Platform PC Genre Racing Publisher RedLynx Developer RedLynx ESRB N/A Released April 2008

- Extremely well done physics engine - Excellent graphics - Creative map/track design

- Limited options - Practically no customization - Limited appeal

Review: Revolt (PC) Review: Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition (PS2) Review: Burnout Paradise (360)
Newsletter
Be notified of site updates. Sign-up for the Newsletter sent out twice weekly. Enter E-Mail Address Below: Subscribe \| Unsubscribe

Trials 2 Second Edition

Score: 7.0 / 10

One of the first documentaries I was exposed to as a child was the Oscar-winning On Any Sunday, a film about the thrills and the spills of motorcycle racing in its many forms. Keep in mind, it captured the racing environment as it was in the mid-70's, but while the bikes have changed a little and the fashion sense changed a lot, the basic need for speed of motorcycle racers hasn't changed since that time. One of the hardest forms of motorcycle race is the enduro, whereby racers have to overcome treacherous terrain while reaching various checkpoints at specific times. It looked hard as hell watching the footage from On Any Sunday and those guys were professionals. I've since discovered that RedLynx's Trials 2 Second Edition is almost as brutal to play.

Trials 2 Second Edition can be played either as a free Flash game or in a downloaded demo version which, for $20, unlocks into a full game. The premise is dirt simple. Take your avatar from point A to point B in the shortest amount of

Advertisement

- PC Game Reviews
- Racing Game Reviews

time with the least amount of screw-ups. Your results are then ranked against other players across the world. However, it's never a case of simply hitting the gas and going full throttle. The courses are a combination of planks, monster truck tires, scaffolds, sewer pipes, platforms, and barrels of all sorts, laid out in all manner of configurations to make getting there a serious challenge. Heavily

Advertisement

modeled physics makes the game a case of knowing just how much throttle to use, how much to lean forward, how much to lean back, and when to execute those actions at the proper times in the proper places.

Visually speaking, Trials 2 is pretty impressive. Textures are exceedingly well done, particle effects abound when you reach a checkpoint or cross the finish, and the animation for your rider and the motorcycle is highly detailed. The ragdoll physics when your rider botches a flip or a jump is a bit wince worthy in spots, but still very well done. As for audio, aside from engine sounds and some grunts of pain from your rider, the little music that is available is technically well executed but gets kind of old quickly.

I'm highly reluctant to call this a racing game, or even a motorcycle simulation, when it feels much closer to a puzzle game. Yes, there's a motorcycle and a rider and rankings and all of that. It's incredibly detailed. At the same time, however, it's incredibly limited.

You have no option to choose different motorcycles, different avatars, different helmets or other gear. Your options are limited strictly to your name, a team name (for multiplayer and ranking purposes), and a flag icon to go next to your name. Moreover, there's nothing particularly compelling about completing the courses. They're standalone maps, without anything linking them together either thematically or mechanically. There's no tiered racing series, no compelling storyline, no AI opponents, not even the lure of fat prize purses. Bragging rights are probably the most you'll get out of this game. The different tracks are sometimes fiendishly laid out and it's a credit to the developers that they're coming up with tracks which require short bursts of acceleration and a willingness to apply the physics engine in creative ways instead of a constant "balls to the wall" road race or GP-type track.

The hitch is that you have to want to subject yourself to the courses in the first place. For somebody who's got an extra ten minutes to kill on their lunch hour at Starbucks, Trials 2 is a good entertaining quickie, and you'll be able to see how well you did against the other players around the world. But if you're looking for a more engrossing game, you're likely going to forfeit your chance to develop those mad enduro skills.

- Axel Cushing

(April 29, 2008)