We pulled up to the starting line on our black and blue race sled, and there was tension in the air. To our immediate left were, apparently, some of the sport’s top competitors. With names like Tucker Chitwood, Anker Rasmussen and Sergey Chirtserv, it was obvious this was a truly international event. Just after we bolted off of the starting line, however, our concentration was broken…
“Um, John? What are you doing playing games on your phone?” the owner of our media company asked when she entered my office. “I thought you said that you were on deadline?”
“Yeah… this is, like, research or something!” I replied.
The game being played was Mad Skills Snocross, a new mobile game produced by a company out of Denmark and a followup to its Mad Skills Motocross game. It was released to the public on November 9.
Frankly, through the rounds I’ve played so far, it’s a rather hokey game. In the earliest rounds, you can just hold down the accelerator and pull away from all of your competition in the straight-line course that features a handful of bumps. As you advance rounds, you can play with different controls that affect your sled’s attitude while in the air. Going for big air is the challenge, but a crash on the landing will bury you deep in the pack as your racer regenerates.
In terms of technology and play-fun, it’s not that much different than games we played 20 years ago on our son’s Gameboy. As you progress through the rounds, you can upgrade components on your snowmobile… again, not unlike stuff that’s been out there for a long time, but fun to see the modern snowmobile iteration of it.
And, the price is right – zero dollars and zero cents through the Apple App Store or Google Play. It did take up a decent chunk of memory, though – 135MB on initial download.
And, apparently they roped the Amsoil Championship Snocross into the deal: That’s who sent the press release below. If they continue to build it out the way the press release implies, maybe they’ll be onto something.
So, as it sits, does this game give players the real thrilling experience of competing on the track? Hell no! That said, is it more fun than playing more solitaire, Sudoku or Wordle on the phone during downtimes? Probably.
PRESS RELEASE FROM ISOC AMSOIL CHAMPIONSHIP SNOCROSS BELOW
MAD SKILLS SNOCROSS GAME LAUNCHES WITH AMSOIL CHAMPIONSHIP SNOCROSS AS PARTNER
Combines one of the world’s biggest action sports gaming companies with the biggest snowmobile racing series in the world
[PITTSBURGH, PA, NOVEMBER 9, 2022] — Mobile game developer Turborilla AB has announced the global release of Mad Skills Snocross, available now as a free download on the App Store and Google Play. This surprise game release is the follow-up to the smash hit Mad Skills Motocross 3, which has been installed more than 30 million times globally since its May ‘21 release. Mad Skills Snocross is being released in partnership with AMSOIL Championship Snocross, which is the largest snowmobile racing series in the world.
“We’re really excited about this game, and we’re especially excited to be working with AMSOIL Championship Snocross,” said Turborilla CMO Bryan Stealey. “We’re really looking forward to the start of the series in December, as we’re going to add replica tracks and in-game events designed around the real-life races. The crew there is so invested in the sport, they’ve been great to work with, and we think we’re going to have a blast working together this season.”
Like all Mad Skills games before it, Mad Skills Snocross is a side-scrolling physics-based racing game that is easy to play but impossible to master. It features more than a hundred challenging tracks, and more will be added in the coming weeks and months – including the AMSOIL Championship Snocross replica tracks. There are also daily challenges, as well as online events where players can race against their friends and neighbors. Players can also customize their in-game riders and sleds, and there will be options to select real-world brands soon.
The Mad Skills Motocross franchise had risen to prominence partially because of its strong reputation in real-life motocross and action sports. Mad Skills Snocross is following a similar formula: in many ways it’s an arcade-style side-scrolling racing game, but it also features elements of physics realism and other details that will strongly appeal to snocross racers and enthusiasts.
“We think partnering with a respected brand like Mad Skills will be really great for AMSOIL Championship Snocross,” said series president Carl Schubitzke. “We were very excited when we learned they were making a snocross game. We’re both committed to making the sport bigger and better, and by working together, we think we can do some really cool stuff that snocross racers and fans are going to love.”
The game’s November 9, 2022, release was announced with a brilliant hand-drawn trailer that was produced by Denmark-based IMOV Studios. It’s been viewed more than 60,000 times in its first week of release across a variety of platforms.
Download Mad Skills Snocross for free now here: https://mad.mx/3NKmUJ7
