When Trials Fusion was released I was working as a sales assistant at GAME, and every time the shop was empty I would fire up the store’s XboxOne and give it a play. Now that I think about it I did tend to play it even when customers were in the shop, or trying to talk to me … to be honest I didn’t do my job at all once it was released, but my manager did the same so I was safe. My relationship with Trials Fusion started out like most, the first few months were wonderful, full of fun, accomplishment and pure bliss, but as it got harder it just got less and less exciting, and eventually frustrating and boring. We left on a rather sour note, I’d gotten to a point where the tracks were so difficult to complete I vowed to never play it again, and if it wasn’t for some wacky ideas compiled together by a mental Ubisoft studio, I’d have never rekindled my love for the game once more. Who knew it would take a gun wielding cat riding a fire breathing unicorn to achieve that!
Awesome Level Max is the latest … well awesome level pack for the brilliant Trials Fusion that is not included in the season pass. Releasing as a totally separate chunk of DLC, Awesome Level Max takes you on an adventure through space and time as you try to repair the tear in the sky and defeat a giant space robot; I think that’s what it’s about anyway. Swapping your helpless innocent motorcyclist and dirt bike for an angry pussy on a magical pony, you’ll traverse across ancient ruins, cities in turmoil and exploding space stations all in aid of bringing a bit of fun and stupid humour back into the game. As well as the ‘story’ mode, players also have the brilliant RedLynx vs Allstars tracks to complete, a collection of brand new typical Trials tracks created by both the studio and some of the most talented track editors from the Trials community. Unlike previous DLC entries that only offered half a dozen or so new tracks, for the low asking price Trials fans are getting 30 all new tracks, 10 super cross tracks and over 100 new track editing options, all packaged together in 1 totally bonkers bundle. Players are certainly getting a lot for their money, but does it really bring the enjoyment back into the franchise before it got all difficult?
Starting with the Awesome Level Max track list first, I begin with controlling that little bloke on his dinky little bike, riding through a rather broken down science lab to collect a set of blueprints that will transform me to a more powerful entity … a revolver wielding moggy with a fire-breathing white unicorn as my mighty stead. Every level in this set list is completely daft and unlike anything featured in the main game or any previous DLC pack, which is terrific to see as it shows the team are still thinking a lot about their product and finding new ways to still make it fun and new. The unicorn itself, though magnificent in stature, is a lot more difficult to control and stabilise than a bike, so trying to gather the platinum trophies in each level is a much more difficult task. Each of these levels however don’t include additional objectives, extra challenges that provided a lot more variety and challenge in otherwise simple tracks, so once you’ve given them your all and achieved that platinum trophy there isn’t any reason to revisit these tracks. Personally I find the added objectives a superb addition for each level, most of them are a complete mystery but when you discover what to do, (whether it be by accident or by pure tekkers), you could at least try and accomplish these if you just couldn’t get the fastest time or that shiny platinum trophy; it’s very disappointing to not find similar challenges in the unicorn levels. Despite each of the tracks being totally original, full of outrageous creativity that should make staff members worried about their sanity, they are ultimately very short and once you’ve tried your best and your best was good enough, they won’t be attempted again.
The ‘Red Lynx vs Allstars’ tracks included alongside the Awesome Level Max tracks are what give this DLC its worth as each of them are fantastic. Each track made by the studio are once again unlike anything seen before and are a perfect showcase of what each level designer can deliver, and boy do they deliver. As well as each track being devilishly difficult to master, you will find the welcome return of 3 additional objectives, 2 of them are dastardly and downright odd, whilst the 3rd is almost like a time trial, where under certain circumstances you must beat the time of that level’s creator. It’s these sub quests that give these levels replayability and why these tracks will be played a hell of a lot more than the unicorn based ones that don’t include them. One track in particular involved a steel beam falling onto my rider’s skull, I then had to complete the entire track as he sunk in and out of consciousness whereas another track asked me to survive riding down a flight of 100s of steps without bailing; I easily spent more time trying to complete these near impossible feats than obtaining the most prestigious trophy. Of course this is only half the story, as brilliant as the team behind the game is, it’s mind-blowing how good fans of the game can also be. Pulling the talent from the most critically acclaimed track creators from the Trials Fusion community, the Allstars tracks are just as fantastic as the studio talent and it really put me to shame as a gamer that I will never be that talented and patient to have a go at it myself. Blurring the lines between professional and freelance level designers, the Allstars created tracks are all incredible, challenging and just as bloody nuts as those we’ve come to be familiar with. Complete with benchmarks to set and trophies to collect, you’ve got an additional 10 tracks to play with that you weren’t expecting that make the price of the DLC even more questionable.
In short, the Trials Fusion Awesome Level Max DLC IS pretty awesome and there’s no denying just how much you get for your money. Whereas the unicorn led tracks are fun and incredibly deranged (in a good way), they just lack replayability and once you’ve achieved the top trophy on each track there is really no need to ever play them again. The Red Lynx vs Allstars track list is superb and I strongly believe these are the best tracks the studio have made to date, not to mention the fan base created tracks are just as fantastic and will truly blow your mind at what you can achieve if you gave the track editor a go yourself. Though Ubisoft have been cheeky to not include this in the season pass it’s well worth splashing a bit of extra cash on for the most fun, creative and arguably stupid tracks yet, so what are you waiting for!?
Disclaimer:All scores given within our reviews are based on the artist’s personal opinion; this should in no way impede your decision to purchase the game.
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