Platforms: PS2, GameCube, XBox
Price: $10 or less

Rating: Dig It!

I'm a huge fan of snowboarding games, even though I have no idea how to snowboard. SSX Tricky kicked off my addiction with its insane "did that guy just do The Worm on his board?" moments. SSX 3 cemented my love for these games; unlike Tricky, it found the sweet spot between the realistic and the ridiculous. This game is just solid, period. solid game play, solid controls, and solid graphics that still hold up in today’s standards.

The single player mode made you conquer every nook and cranny of three different peaks set on a huge mountain, which was a bit different than the usual extreme sports formula at the time, where you collect stuff and unlock new maps (*cough* Tony Hawk *cough*). Each peak hosted a wide range of activities (racing, slope style, half-pipe, big-air), but you could still choose to simply cruise through the entire peak on your own free will. The trick list was vast and so were the über/monster tricks (the really insane tricks), which were far more believable than they were in Tricky. Like I mentioned before, Tricky had you doing all sorts of crazy things on your board and it was enjoyable, but SSX 3 toned it down a bit and somehow catered to those looking for a realistic snowboard sim, as well as the Tricky fans of old.

The game’s soundtrack was amazing and I still listen to most of the tracks today. There's a huge list of characters and tons of boards and other accessories to ensure you never get bored. The last time I played, I had my character in a leather jacket, daisy dukes, and giant angel wings coming out of her back.

I’m convinced that SSX 3 is the best snowboarding game ever made. All snowboarders after 2003 have aimed to be just like it and have failed. Other efforts from Electronic Arts (SSX On Tour, SSX Blur) simply never cut it because they had already created a near-perfect game. After playing SSX 3 recently, it made me realize that EA Sports hasn’t yet made an SSX for HD consoles (Xbox 360, PS3), which really makes me mad.

I recommend the PS2 version due to the controller; the Gamecube pad has less shoulder buttons to perform grabs, so it has a gimped move list. The PS2 controller's shoulder buttons are more comfortable than both Xbox and Xbox 360 pads. If you own a PS3, make sure yours is one of the backwards-compatible models before you buy the game. If you own an HDTV don’t forget to enable progressive scan (480p) to make the graphics look better.

Look for SSX 3 at your local Gamestop’s used games bin. Ten bucks for the best snowboarding game ever? Steal!