I don't think a lot of console guys are aware of this. This is Trials HD and Trials Evolution in one big Steam package. Not separate options on a boot-up menu either. Medals won in either HD or Evolution levels contribute towards your total and unlock further events.
I've got a great deal of fondness for Trials, and Evolution in particular. It feels like the end, and the pinnacle, of a hastefully forgotten era. Physics-heavy European PC games from the 2000s. It seemed back then, you had millions of modest wee games about rolling around a marble or stacking up some boxes or something. Trials was a really engaging way to get in on that shit. Your interactions with this wibbly wobbly world are very simple - You only have control over your angle and speed - but through analogue input, you're got a tremendous range of control over any given situation. I think some people ignore Trials because they don't care about dirtbikes, but I think anyone who likes platformers ought to be gobbling this stuff up.
Trials HD's big hook on the 360 was how well it incorporated leaderboards and friends' ghosts. Seeing someone you know off a forum cut two seconds off an obstacle course you slaved over for an hour can curdle the blood, and make for intense rivalries as you repeatedly best each other. There's a modesty to Trials HD, all taking place in big warehouses. It feels like a game your uncle came up with, and you're not really sure if it's possible to complete it.
Trials Evolution is a natural follow-up, but a gloriously ambitious one. There's terrific variety in the levels, from woodmills and canyons to underground government facilities and crumbling castle ruins. Importantly, it all retains that sense of tangibility. They didn't put in a wacky cartoon level where you bounce around on clouds. It's all locations you could see some dipshit take their bike in a YouTube video. It's muddy and sweaty and covered in big purple bruises.
That's all on the side of Evolution's most ridiculous feature - A gigantic open world that's made entirely for the level editor. You can place start and stop points along any piece of this giant slice of rural Americana, littering it with ramps, explosives and pitfalls. It's a great thing to tinker about with, allowing you to drop in wherever you like, attempt to ride your "course" and then maybe work on it further if you're so inclined. The editing tools are so robust that the developers added a 3D ball-rolling game in the minigames just to show off how much it can do.
Another reason this feels like the end of an era is that RedLynx were snapped up by Ubisoft during its production. Another earnest, unique, hardworking little European studio fed to the wolves. Unfortunately, this means the Steam release is a victim of Ubisoft's dogshit DRM system, and you'll have to go through the humiliation of looking up your Uplay password again just to boot it up. Thankfully, Evolution's track making community is so talented that you might never have to buy Trials Rising or Fusion or whatever soulless, abusive shit's further along the Ubisoft production line. This is all you need. Sadly, that also requires registering as a Ubisoft fan.
I've got a great deal of fondness for Trials, and Evolution in particular. It feels like the end, and the pinnacle, of a hastefully forgotten era. Physics-heavy European PC games from the 2000s. It seemed back then, you had millions of modest wee games about rolling around a marble or stacking up some boxes or something. Trials was a really engaging way to get in on that shit. Your interactions with this wibbly wobbly world are very simple - You only have control over your angle and speed - but through analogue input, you're got a tremendous range of control over any given situation. I think some people ignore Trials because they don't care about dirtbikes, but I think anyone who likes platformers ought to be gobbling this stuff up.
Trials HD's big hook on the 360 was how well it incorporated leaderboards and friends' ghosts. Seeing someone you know off a forum cut two seconds off an obstacle course you slaved over for an hour can curdle the blood, and make for intense rivalries as you repeatedly best each other. There's a modesty to Trials HD, all taking place in big warehouses. It feels like a game your uncle came up with, and you're not really sure if it's possible to complete it.
Trials Evolution is a natural follow-up, but a gloriously ambitious one. There's terrific variety in the levels, from woodmills and canyons to underground government facilities and crumbling castle ruins. Importantly, it all retains that sense of tangibility. They didn't put in a wacky cartoon level where you bounce around on clouds. It's all locations you could see some dipshit take their bike in a YouTube video. It's muddy and sweaty and covered in big purple bruises.
That's all on the side of Evolution's most ridiculous feature - A gigantic open world that's made entirely for the level editor. You can place start and stop points along any piece of this giant slice of rural Americana, littering it with ramps, explosives and pitfalls. It's a great thing to tinker about with, allowing you to drop in wherever you like, attempt to ride your "course" and then maybe work on it further if you're so inclined. The editing tools are so robust that the developers added a 3D ball-rolling game in the minigames just to show off how much it can do.
Another reason this feels like the end of an era is that RedLynx were snapped up by Ubisoft during its production. Another earnest, unique, hardworking little European studio fed to the wolves. Unfortunately, this means the Steam release is a victim of Ubisoft's dogshit DRM system, and you'll have to go through the humiliation of looking up your Uplay password again just to boot it up. Thankfully, Evolution's track making community is so talented that you might never have to buy Trials Rising or Fusion or whatever soulless, abusive shit's further along the Ubisoft production line. This is all you need. Sadly, that also requires registering as a Ubisoft fan.
2 Comments
Ah, the glory days of beating rivals off some old forum
HylianBran
1 year ago