Review: Urban Trial Freestyle Vita

Urban Trial Freestyle challenges players to push their risk-taking to the absolute limits to deliver maximum stunt rewards. The game`s nonstop action is complemented by a host of features including trophies, multiple game modes, leader boards, rider and bike customisation, and much more. With slick urban detailed graphics and an innovative physics engine fine-tuned for fun pick-up and play, the game has been specifically engineered to get the most out of each platform. Urban Trial Freestyle has been greatly influenced with the support of Julien Dupont, the “godfather of urban trial freestyle.” Julien is known around the world for his unique street style and technique, mashing down barriers and setting new records.

Pros:

• Detailed multi route levels with some great background animations, mostly explosions and anarchy lending a lot of this feeling form Motorstorm Apocalypse.
• Find money in game to buy and upgrade your bike and customise your character. Money can be really well hidden.
• Graphics are good and the rain soaked levels are stand out examples of this.
• The sounds are authentic as you rev your engine or go full throttle up a ramp.
• Earn stars to unlock more levels, stars are awarded for score and time, the more time you have left, the bigger the bonus.
• There are two types of level, One is a straight up time trial where you will race against the ghost of the best score, or whichever leaderboard you have enabled, such as friends or worldwide. The second type of level is one where you have to do goals within the level. These are scattered throughout and are things such as, top speed, flip o meter or even air time. You will know when the goal starts and finish. Your aim is to score as highly as possible without bailing. Scoring well and keeping your time up is where you will gain the most stars.
• Online leaderboard support which can be broken down to a friends list. Or even further, down to each goal on a level.
• Controls are simple and easy to use, no gimmicks or needless commands here.
• Physics engine means you need to be careful what you do. If you cant manage a flip then maybe look at upgrading your bike afterwards. The bike is very responsive and its immediate so be aware.
• Uses the Vita camera to enable you to plaster your ugly mug up on the bill boards throughout the level. Each mini goal section has a bill board displaying the top scorer with a pic if available.
• Menus are controlled by swiping the screen whilst selecting a level is still done with a button.
• Challenges can be unlocked once you complete an entire level. These are seperate mini games and provide a bit more entertainment. Expect to see such event as rolling a huge barrell as far as you can with out falling off, to a more complicated maze event. Where you must move the Vita around to move the level and make surfaces drivable. Much like on the mini games in Mutant Blob Attacks.
• Plenty of levels to play which have 5 different areas with 8 levels within each area. Every level has a star criteria that must be reached in order to play that level.
• Music is alright and adds a bit of urgency to the whole game.
• Some nice level design touches such as riding away from a boulder, to flying through the air as the explosions go off below you.

Cons:

• Your driver is basically made of glass, if anything touches him then he will fall off his bike, leading to a few angry moments.
• Whilst some level parts are brilliant and feel like they were lifted straight from a film, there is a few bad level design issues. Such as jumping platforms that require pin point execution. There is a few in every other level and can really halt any fun you may have been having on that level.
• Needs more bikes and characters, at the moment you only have one bike and one male rider to use.
• Having the menus only half touch screen enabled seems weird and really goes against the flow of it all.
• Challenges section would of benefited a lot more if they were unlocked from the beginning.
• More game modes would of been nice. Things like score attack mode where the goal is purely to rack up high scores, this would make leaderboards a lot more fun.
• No matter the bike setup, you will never get more than one flip out of the bike in any one jump, despite it looking safe to do so, this wont happen.

In summary, It is a great game and really fun to play overall. Its the first of its kind on the Vita and its a good start. Minor few grumbles aside, the game can hold its own and with a group of mates all setting scores, the replayability is huge. The game for me personally opened up once I beat all the levels and went back through for 5 star and 100% cash runs. Its only then you realise how many secret little parts there are to a level. So please give the demo a try at least and for it to stand any chance of a sequel or DLC, Do not assume its a Trials rip off, it is played in a different way and as such doesnt need the rip off tag. Grab your bike and go have some fun, it gets addictive!