These are a unique sort of sports game in that, while players who enjoy Madden NFL or MLB titles generally have an interest in their real-life counterpart, snowboarding games seem to appeal to all audiences with their sense of speed and how immersive they are. I think it’s a genre that without a doubt has also gotten many people into actual snowboarding too. But really it’s all about the fun! Whether you’re a longtime fan or just got interested in the genre, I hope my picks for these 15 snowboarding games can help you find what you’re looking for. Or even just reminisce about some old times playing these games yourself.
15. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (2009)
Ok, I know this isn’t a “serious” snowboarding game. But hear me out! The snowboarding events in this game are fun and fast-paced, and easy to get into for newcomers. Every multiplayer session is a blast if you’re the competitive sort of person, and you’ll soon find yourself asking your friends for a rematch like there was a million dollars on the line. If what you want is to sit down with some friends and have a bit of casual gaming fun then this is a great option to look into. It at least deserves a spot on this list!
14. Cool Boarders 2 (1997)
Next up we have a game that really paved the way for the genre to become what it is today. Cool Boarders 2 is the sequel to the surprisingly successful 1996 game Cool Boarders and improved upon the formula in every way. The developers UEP Systems really put a lot of work into this. Mostly motivated by their previous triumph and while it is hard to say which is the best, I think it’s clear that CB2 really hits it home. It features both race and trick modes, and you can customize your boarder which at the time was really cool and innovative. Bonus points for easily being the most classically 90’s game on the list.
13. Shaun Palmer’s Pro Snowboard (2001)
Did you like Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater on the PS1? Then this is the game guaranteed to leave you smiling. It takes everything that made THPS a total hit, like wacky tricks and an amazing soundtrack, and then basically put a snow coating over it. The developer team at Dearsoft decided to follow that formula by focusing on tricks and other unique modes for this PS2 gem, rather than just making another racing game. It’s easy to get into but difficult to master. And maybe that’s a good enough reason to wipe the dust off your wired DualShock and pray the analog sticks are still good to go.
12. Alto’s Adventure (2015)
Representing mobile gaming now we have Alto’s Adventure, an endless runner(endless snowboarder?) developed by Snowman. Its beautiful and minimalistic style had critics going wild back when it came out. And just a few minutes playing this game it should be easy to see why. It has an absorbing atmosphere reminiscent of games like Journey or Abzu, which marries perfectly with a simple gameplay(based on tapping the screen to jump and do backflips). Its sequel, Alto’s Odyssey, is another amazing game for sure. But it takes place in a desert and that just isn’t snowboarding anymore.
11. Snowboard Kids (1997)
With its cartoonish visuals and weirdly fun gameplay, Snowboard Kids became lodged in the mind of many who played it back in the day. In this game players compete to go down a trail faster than others by making clever use out of power-ups acquired during the race. It’s basically Mario Kart on snow… except it isn’t always snow. This game has a wide variety of trails to snowboard on and a cast of lovable chibi characters to choose from. It’s a fun game to play against friends and an absolute gem on the N64 and the original PlayStation. It was developed by Racdym who also made a sequel, Snowboard Kids 2 (1999), following the success of the first one. The second game features more characters, a story mode, and updated graphics. All while keeping the core gameplay intact. Although the sequel wasn’t as iconic as the original Snowboard Kids, it’s also an amazing game you should try if you have the chance.
10. Stoked: Big Air Edition (2009)
If what you’re looking for is something a bit more realistic (and recent) then you could try Stoked; ideally the improved Big Air Edition. It focuses on somewhat more intimate freestyle snowboarding, contrary to the big competition feel that other popular snowboarding games have(such as the SSX series). It features several trails from around the world and the ability to choose a drop point yourself, this way you can tackle the trails in several different ways. While originally developed by Bongfish GmbH for the Xbox 360, it also received a re-release for Windows on 2011 so there is no excuse not to try this amazing game.
9. SSX (2012)
A successful reboot of EA’s much loved SSX franchise with both great additions and questionable changes. SSX, formerly known as SSX: Deadly Descents, follows a group of snowboarders tackling nine “deadly descents” around the world including places like The Himalayas and even Antarctica. This globetrotting aspect made the single-player World Tour mode feel epic and engaging. It also featured an “Explore” mode which let you slide down each course from different angles. Neat! With all that said, it was also the first game in the franchise not to support split-screen multiplayer which was a big letdown for many. And ultimately that keeps it from ranking higher on the list.
8. SSX 3 (2003)
EA faced a big challenge after the absolute success of SSX: Tricky made expectations for the sequel incredibly high. Somehow, however, they pulled through and released SSX 3 to critical acclaim. Its amazing visuals took the PS2 and Gamecube hardware to the limit by rendering sprawling landscapes and achieving a sense of scale and verticality never before seen on the series. The gameplay remains similar to the original Tricky but improved in several ways, such as fleshing out the trick system even further. It includes both Race and Freestyle modes as well as different challenge courses a player could try to complete. However what really sets it apart from Tricky and gives it its own personality is the decision to make the whole game take place in a single giant mountain with several trails to shred. It remains one of the best SSX games to date.
7. Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip (2008)
Although Shaun White snowboarding has PS3 and Xbox 360 versions, the spot on this list definitely goes for Road Trip, their counterpart for the Wii. Ubisoft made genius use of the Wii Balance Board to create one of the most fun and immersive snowboarding experiences to date. It brings control schemes that used to belong in arcades right to the middle of your living room. The graphics may not be as detailed as on the more powerful consoles, but they remain colorful and crisp nonetheless. This may not be the number one game on my list but it deserves recognition for how intelligently the developers used the Wii’s unique characteristics to craft an amazing memorable game. It may even help you get in shape for snowboarding season.
6. Infinite Air with Mark McMorris (2016)
Developer HB Studios released this game to strong competition from Steep, offering a more traditional and atmospheric approach to its counterpart. Although it lacks the character customization possibilities we’ve come to expect from modern games, you’ll spend little to no time looking at your character while going down the majestic landscapes this game offers. It features a solid Career mode that you’ll enjoy while learning the ropes of the game’s mechanics. But the real fun begins once you start creating your own trails and, even better, ride down those created by other members of the community. You’ll have something new waiting for you every week with this one.
5. Amped 2 (2003)
If I’m talking about immense landscapes and big areas to explore then I have to talk about Amped 2. Developer Indie Built took advantage of the original Xbox’s powerful hardware to give players massive areas to snowboard and explore, which was a great feat at the time. Not only that, but this game also featured online multiplayer races that made the community go wild. Beside its technical achievements, Amped 2 is all-around a very fun game with a customizable soundtrack, real-life snowboard legends such as Travis Parker to play as, and the possibility to snow-skate rather than snowboard. This changed the game completely by giving it a lot of replayability value.
4. Steep (2016)
Following the success of Shaun White Snowboarding, Ubisoft’s next big dive into the snowboarding genre was Steep. It came out in 2016 to compete with Infinite Air And like its counterpart, it features massive landscapes and many different ways to tackle the same tracks. However it offers players the possibility to explore them not only on a snowboard, but also by walking, gliding on a wingsuit, and even parachuting. This game is perfect if you just want to relax and get lost in the snowy mountains, enjoying the vibrant yet realistic graphics in an intimate snowboarding session. All from the comfort of your pajamas.
3. SSX: Tricky (2001)
If you’re a true fan of snowboarding games then you’ll know this couldn’t be missing from this list. SSX: Tricky was EA’s second release for the SSX franchise and arguably the most iconic and loved to date. It took everything that made the original SSX a good game and refined it, while also shifting the emphasis a bit towards executing gnarly tricks and integrating it into races by making you go faster each time you successfully pulled them off. It also had a lot of personality which was reflected by its characters, the tracks, and actually naming the game after a Run DMC song. And funny enough that song made it into the game as a recurring track. “It’s tricky!” The amazing soundtrack coupled with stellar voice acting brings audio and visuals to a new level(especially for the time). And the overall amazing gameplay made this game into a true classic that has people still talking about it to this day. It’s available on PS2, Xbox, and GameCube if you still want to try it out. However as of this writing it seems the game is not in the PS4 store and it would be completely up to EA to make that call.
2. The Snowboard Game (2018)
If you’re not in the mood to raid your garage and find your old consoles then worry not. The second spot in my list came out quite recently and its available on Steam where it sports very positive reviews. The Snowboard Game was developed by Let It Roll AB, a company comprised of just one guy who loves gaming. Which is insane considering the amount of detail that has gone into this masterpiece. The game features five handcrafted mountains for you to conquer with some campaign missions on each one and amazing multiplayer events. The visuals, as well as the gameplay, are focused on realism which this title pulls off beautifully. The controls are somewhat hard to learn as even the Steam page will warn you. But once you do pick them up you’ll have access to a jaw-dropping amount of content which is constantly being worked on and updated. There’s a lot to love about modern gaming I’ll say that much.
1. 1080° Snowboarding (1998)
I knew this had to be at the top from the moment I decided to make this list. There isn’t a single snowboarding game that did as much for the genre as a whole as Nintendo’s 1080° Snowboarding on the N64. And it isn’t just the 90’s nostalgia talking. This game really took the genre to the next level in terms of quality and graphics that really made the N64 shine. 1080 also features a great variety of characters to pick from with some pretty crazy designs. Not to mention a complex trick system and lengthy tracks to race your friends on for hours on end. Remember the N64 was one of the first consoles to allow for 4 controllers(actually it may be the very first console with this multiplayer feature!) 1080 Snowboarding really outdid everything that came before and put snowboard video games on the map for a lot of people. Remember this was before the Internet so word of mouth really mattered. As expected of Nintendo, they crafted a true classic which even now stands the test of time as the best snowboarding game ever made. And it should be no surprise why Nintendo is still going so strong to this day. In the words of a well-known Xbox exec: never count Nintendo out.
