Whether you want to take the mountain home with you or just enjoy gaming in general, snowboarding games have earned their spot in your heart and ours.
Sure, a snowboarding game cannot beat the feeling of the real thing. Snowboarding on a screen will never be as fun as carving down groomers or dropping in on powdery tree lines, but sometimes it is hard to find the time. If you cannot make it out to the slopes after work, on the weekends, or trips, you might as well get some mountain time from your couch! Make the off-season more bearable with some virtual turns.
If you are not an avid snowboarder or skier in real life, snowboarding videogames are a fun way for you to see snowy mountains and follow the best professionals.
Find something new or rediscover some nostalgia with our top 5 favorite snowboarding games!
SSX – PlayStation
Spearheading our roundup is the game that arguably set the standard for the snowboarding games of the future. SSX was developed and published by EA Sports for PlayStation 2, classic. It made its way into legendary status in the year 2000. This game led to a series and reboots, ultimately just more to love.
SSX was renowned for its smooth (for the time – and improved in the 2012 reboot) graphics and easy-to-navigate controls, which helped it gain popularity. The SSX series have some of the best soundtracks of any games – in our opinion at least.
In terms of gameplay, SSX gave players the option to choose from a selection of riders, who boast different riding styles and set-ups. After, you can choose a course or trail to your liking, with tons of rails, ramps, and jumps, perfect for “out of this world” snowboarding tricks and stunts. This series is a force to be reckoned with!
Steep – PlayStation 4 and Xbox One
This impressive offering from Ubisoft offers something for everyone, as players can choose between snowboarding, skiing, paragliding and even wingsuit flying – for the extreme sports fans. Released on December 2, 2016, for PS4 and Xbox One, this game has a variety of breathtaking options for locations: the powdery Japan mountains, to the Alps, and the untouched peaks of Alaska.
Steep allows players to experience extreme sports set in an impressive open world environment, something unique in our favorite snowboarding games lineup. You can also compete in snowboarding to mix it up. If anything, play for the graphics alone!
Amped – Xbox
Featuring many of the real snowboarders we know and love, the Amped series brings familiar faces and an excess of nostalgia. One of our favorite snowboarding games because of the bulked-out career mode, you could spin, jump, and trick your way to virtual fame.
The desire to level up, get higher scores, and complete goals had us playing this game for hours on end. Amped also offered online races to players, which made this Xbox exclusive a bit more exciting and competitive.
Cool Boarders – PlayStation
Throwing it way way back, Cool Boarders was released in 1996 for the original PlayStation. There were a few additional versions released in the following years as well. While the graphics may not have aged fantastically, at the time, they were rather impressive, at the very least memorable!
Players have tons of options when it comes to the location they want to snowboard, they type of events they want to compete in, and what character they want to be – options, we love options.
Courses throughout this snowboarding game had to be beat at the fastest time, for the highest score, a simple concept, but with plenty of courses, competitions, and more, this one kept us busy for countless hours.
1080 Snowboarding – Nintendo
Released by Nintendo for N64 in 1998, maybe we are biased toward this console, but this one hits home. Impressive for the time, 1080 Snowboarding built a foundation for the snowboarding games of the future.
Sure, the graphics are more nostalgic than they are quality, but the game play included fun tricks, fast speeds, and different types of races. Players can choose between a variety of riders, with different stats, perfect for varying events. The unlockable content of this game definitely added to the hours of fun, with time, points, damage, and more to keep track of on the terrain and trails.
Looking to experience the real thing? Shop our huge selection of snowboards, bindings, boots, and more!
