Trials HD BIG Pack Review

By Dan Whitehead Published 6 January, 2010

Back in the saddle.

Version tested: Xbox 360

Did I like Trials HD? This tentative email enquiry from Eurogamer editor Tom Bramwell was more loaded than he perhaps realised. Yes, of course I like Trials HD. I love it, because I have a soul and people who do not love Trials HD are hollow, empty creatures. Would I like to review the first dose of DLC, the boastfully titled BIG Pack? Again, the answer was an emphatic yes. But professional duty meant that it came with a humiliating confession: as much as I love Trials HD, I'm very, very rubbish at it.

It can't have come as a surprise - after all, Tom sits atop my Friends leaderboard on virtually every course, his inhuman dexterity writ large with brisk times and impossibly few faults. I'm somewhere near the bottom, with times that are more tortoise than hare, and faults soaring into triple figures (current record: 172 faults on Technique!). My shame is there for Tom - nay, the world - to see.

Thankfully, the fact that Trials HD apparently turns my usually skilled fingers to floppy rubber doesn't matter. Not just for Tom, the kindest, most gentle taskmaster in the history of games journalism, but for the game itself. Trials HD is that most wonderful of things - a game where it's not just okay, but downright fun to be crap.

'Trials HD BIG Pack' Screenshot 1

Pants: soiled.

It's a game that shines for those lofty God-like beings striving to shave an extra second off their perfect runs, while also thrilling mere mortals like myself, clawing our way through each track from checkpoint to checkpoint, each green light a desperately needed resting place, spending more time flailing at the edge of control, crushed and splattered rather than roaring majestically to victory.

Either way, it's a hoot, offering the sort of immersion that even the biggest, most detailed RPG world can't hope to compete with: being able to feel the thing under your control, involuntarily moving along with it, so complete is the connection between player and game. To be able to cater to the best and worst among us, offering these tangible pleasures for all while also rewarding dedication and the persistent application of skill, is truly something to applaud, and so it goes without saying that this temptingly priced expansion (400 Microsoft Points) continues to showcase this rather breathtaking precision design from developer RedLynx. Is it more of the same? Mostly yes, and that's why it's so great.

'Trials HD BIG Pack' Screenshot 2

Cars can be used as static ramps, or as interactive rolling elements to be toppled or balanced on.

New courses make up the meat of the package, effectively doubling the Medium and Hard tiers of the game and adding a couple of extra Extreme challenges for the truly masterful to boot. They're an agreeably eclectic selection, covering most of the subtle variations that make Trials so much fun. For those who enjoy the technical challenge of mastering tricky jumps and manoeuvring a bike up and over simple yet devilish obstacles, there are the likes of Workshop of Secrets, Pro Speedway, Final Flashback and Junkyard.

If you prefer the more woo-hooooo levels, with the massive leaps, explosions and other action movie ballast then the pack also provides for you. Condemned Complex and Prison Break find you racing through blazing and broken environments, hurtling through plate glass, dodging flames and negotiating tilting floors.

There are even a few levels that take the game into even more outré directions. Dangerous Ride involves surfing on cars as they rattle down makeshift tracks. 1 Bit Trip recasts the game in the form of its retro inspirations, retaining the physics but swapping the graphics for bold neon green and black angular shapes. It's sly, witty and a fine way of shutting up those irritatingly smug detractors who dismissively bring up Trials' debt to games like Kikstart and Wheelie, as if that was a) some sort of dirty secret or b) a bad thing.

Space Station is another quirky level, and shows off one of the new physics tweaks made available by the BIG Pack. Played entirely in low gravity, navigating this Alien-inspired location is made trickier by the way small movements now have big effects. Seemingly designed to test those who've grown complacent in their bike handling, it's both challenging and entertaining.

'Trials HD BIG Pack' Screenshot 3

Wheels of Misfortune's sickening rolls and swoops will reacquaint you with your lunch.

Elsewhere, less showy courses still provide their moments of brilliance. Wheels of Misfortune is all swooping ramps and rotating monster tyres, stretching your ability not only to maintain momentum but to use sudden shifts in direction to your advantage. Skyway uses springboards, trampolines and giant fans to create a dizzying aerial gauntlet which offers little room for error.

But I'm going to stop myself there, since the temptation to rattle on about every inspiring moment is strong and YouTube is no doubt already groaning with footage of every new track. Truly expert riders may only find a few of these fresh courses offer a genuinely tough challenge, but for the vast majority of players it's a shrewdly pitched selection. Some you'll breeze through but have a whale of a time doing so. Others you'll obsess over for weeks, trying to crack some fiendish obstacle or improve on a score you know isn't good enough. For all its great ideas, Trials HD is nothing if not a motivator for self-improvement.

'Trials HD BIG Pack' Screenshot 4

This burning ring of fire was officially licensed from the Johnny Cash estate. True story.

The only area where this pack disappoints is in the Skill Games. 12 more are on offer, but they're all new versions of the old standards. Given the new physics objects, and the multitude of crazy gameplay avenues they open up, repeating the same bone-breaking, ball-rolling, ski-jumping challenges feels less exciting this time around. All these new objects are unlocked for use in the editor, however, so there's no reason why you can't make your own fun with them.

That small quibble aside, the BIG Pack is DLC done deliciously right. It not only expands the game in the right way, but does so in the right places, at the sweet spot where challenge and vindication overlap. For the price, there's no reason why anyone besotted with Trials HD shouldn't jump in.

9 / 10

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Picture of Dan.

About Dan Whitehead

Dan has been writing for Eurogamer since 2006 and specialises in RPGs, shooters and games for children. His bestest game ever is Julian Gollop's Chaos.

Read more articles from Dan by visiting the Dan Whitehead archive page.

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Comments (47) Latest comment 1 year ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • RedSparrows #1 2 years ago

    got it love it trials is my mistress hurrahs all round

  • Roland_D11 #2 2 years ago

    Thanks for the review, I was tempted by the Big Pack but did not buy it yet, because I am very, ahm, mediocre at Trials... Tonight I will buy it :-) .
    Edited by 1 at 06/01/10 @ 12:59

  • GamesConnoisseur #3 2 years ago

    Big Pack RESTORED my love of Trials HD in a stroke! I never regretted getting this DLC for an instance and a must buy. Its really added to the quality of the main game and finds you bunch of new things too as aptly described in the article.

    So what its Kickstart for the current gen, its exactly what I and others want! Lovingly reimagined in HD gen with all the juicy effects.

    Well done RedLynx.

  • crwoody #4 2 years ago

    Just. one. more. go!

  • wizlon #5 2 years ago

    The new tracks are an excellent selection of roller-coaster exhilaration and nail biting tension. Good stuff. Less said about the skill games the better though...

  • local_celebrity #6 2 years ago

    Outré? What's wrong with 'out there'? This is a game about pikey motorbikes, after all. Not the fookin' French new wave.

    No, but in all seriousness, great review. Such a shame I can't go anywhere near this game. Seeing a grown man have a temper tantrum is never a pretty sight.

  • Roland_D11 #7 2 years ago

    @Superet

    No, I did not follow that thread ;)

  • Hobo #8 2 years ago

    At 400pts, it's disgusting that people felt the need to wait for reviews on this.

  • ram #9 2 years ago

    Probably the worst game in the world if you need your sleep.

    ...just...one...more...go....

  • Roland_D11 #10 2 years ago

    @Hobo

    And why is that disgusting? For me 400 Points are €5. Do you buy everything at that pricepoint without looking? I hesitated because I feared the pack would only be fun for people who excelled at the base game.

  • f00b_inc #11 2 years ago

    So jealous, I'm sure it's been asked but... PS3 version/substitution? :-(

  • spekkeh #12 2 years ago

    I don't have to the original game and never played it.. Do I need the original game, id est is this an addon, or does it include the original game?

  • RexRunti #13 2 years ago

    @f00b_inc to be honest I'd say the closest thing on the PS3 to Trials is Little Big Planet, so don't be too jealous.
    Edited by 1 at 06/01/10 @ 14:14

  • Roland_D11 #14 2 years ago

    @spekkeh

    You need the original game, this is just an expansion.

    @RexRunti

    I didn't play LBP, had it moments in it where you wanted to throw your controller at the tv? And pick it up again for just one more try? ;)
    Edited by 1 at 06/01/10 @ 14:17

  • Psychotext #15 2 years ago

    Some of the best DLC ever for one of the best downloadable games ever.

  • Hypercube #16 2 years ago

    I only got the original recently, and got the DLC shortly after Xmas.

    Without doubt the most un-put-downable game I've ever played. The other night, I started playing "just for a bit" at about 10:30 pm. I stopped at just gone 2am.

    And I'm still crap at it.

  • daver #17 2 years ago

    Just started getting into the new tracks before New Year, and my box RROD'd. By the time it's back fae Germany, I'll have a fair bit of work getting back in front of my pals!

  • andywilkie35 #18 2 years ago

    Good score for good game

  • darc #19 2 years ago

    I'm confused about one thing: is the "Trials 2" release for PC the same content as this Big Pack for XBL, or are they now two different games?

  • tinyspark #20 2 years ago

    I wish they'd added more easy levels for cackhanded players like....i love TrialsHD but half the games is wasted on me cos I cant get past hard, i barely scraped through medium.

  • crwoody #21 2 years ago

    darc,

    Trials HD is more like trials 3 I think.
    Edited by 1 at 06/01/10 @ 15:31

  • darc #22 2 years ago

    Thanks, crwoody, but now I'm totally confused. :) I thought HD was the Xbox version of Trials (eg. Trials 1, for PC) and Big Pack was an expansion pack of Trials HD. So I figured either there would be a corresponding expansion for the PC version, Trials 2 was it. Is Trials 2 older than Big Pack? Is Trials 2 older than Trials HD for that matter?

    Steam put Trials 2 on sale for $2.50 around the same time Big Pack went live on XBL, hence all the obsessing LOL.
    Edited by 1 at 06/01/10 @ 15:36

  • GamesConnoisseur #23 2 years ago

    I m not skilled enough, extreme is just hair pulling 'how the heck can ANY player do those?!' but must say hard is quite do able, just probably in three figures retries. I did then realised there is subtlies to how your body position, bike, speed and momentum all affects how you proceed past some of the 'problems'.

    In a way it is a puzzle game in which you try out range of options to solve the level, sometimes switching to the slowest bike did it for me!

  • crwoody #24 2 years ago

    darc,

    It's goes, Trials, Trials 2 + exp then Trials hd + exp.

    Just get Trials HD and join the obsession with the rest of us :)

  • gjgjg #25 2 years ago

    best value ever. puts some 'full/hard' releases to shame.
    just one achievement left too, that damn gold tournament one!!!!

  • oupe #26 2 years ago

    Again shockingly addictive, loved one bit trip although they should've put 8-bit (1-bit?) sounds in this level.

  • darc #27 2 years ago

    Awesome, thanks, crwoody, totally clear now. I already own Trials HD (it was in my top 5 picks for 2009 GOTY, for the record) and will definitely pick up the Big Pack. It's best with the XBox controller and huge TV anyway. :D

  • kenbrilliant #28 2 years ago

    Why all the skill games bashing? I'm quite enjoying a few of the new ones - Hill Climb and the one with the rocket car especially. And the flipping one is a better layout than the original.

    I still don't get the bone breaker one though - my best score came from when i just hurled myself at the very first small hurdle and broke 41 bones in one movement.

    Other than that though, all of the new tracks really are quite lovely. Apart from the fucking donkey one. So annoying. So so annoying.

  • MrV333 #29 2 years ago

    Excellent DLC for an excellent game. Trials is already eating heavily into time I should be spending asleep, I haven't even touched the level editor yet...

    Anyone unsure about splashing out for this due to perceived weak skills shouldn't worry, the new medium levels alone are fantastic (with the exception of the last one with all the pipes - it hates me).

  • Mr.DNA #30 2 years ago

    I adored Trials HD for a good few hours after purchase- my eyes popping out of my head at the glorious speed with which the various motorcycles careered over the wooden ramps, gasping in admiration at the expertly-designed levels, and planning the next "empty" at my house so that I could show it off to my casual, Modern Warfare-playing friends. Then, just over halfway through, I absolutely hit a brick wall and could not for the life of me manage to nudge my bike over the various obstacles, leading to much frustration and very little in the way of "fun". I realise that it's my fault for being utterly pish at the game, but not being able to get past most of the levels after the game's half-way point just sickened me, and for that reason this DLC is not something that I have been excited about, and not something that I will be downloading, even in light of Dan's glowing review.
    Edited by 1 at 06/01/10 @ 17:55

  • Seabeast #31 2 years ago

    I HATE this game, really do HATE IT.

    I still play it every single day, though. :)

  • OrgasmicMutton #32 2 years ago

    I am so spectacularly shit at Trials!

  • Hypercube #33 2 years ago

    @Mr. DNA - just stick with it, a very similar thing happened to me. One thing that really helped get me past the "Oh fuck it's impossible" point was watching other people's replays of the levels. Sometimes it made me suddenly realise what you could do with the bike, or just made me want to give it one more go.

    I've gotten gold medals on the first 3 medium levels, and the others are mostly silver (with Underground stuck on bronze - I hate that fucking level!). Of course, there's no point banging your head against it if you're really not enjoying it, but there's more depth in the game than I had thought when I first started playing it.

  • tinocat #34 2 years ago

    Bought this last night and I'm surprised that I appear to have gone from shit to slightly less
    shit since I last played the game. Excellent fun though.

  • espy #35 2 years ago

    Put it on Steeeeeeeeeam, please. You'll be swimming in (even more) money and everyone will be very happy.

  • Toothball #36 2 years ago

    Oh, this sounds really good. I've yet to buy Trials though. Was hoping it'd show up in the Christmas deals. Holding out a bit longer though as the season left me with loads of games to work on.

  • Moribundman #37 2 years ago

    @f00b_inc I think there's a slower, cuter game in the same spirit called Little Big Something or other... ;-)

    @espy Much more likely. And I will buy it again on PC as well so I can take it anywhere with me! (Yay!)

  • Roland_D11 #38 2 years ago

    @Sofa

    Why the hate? I really liked the form of the review, because I felt the same as Dan. I am not good at trials and reading that the expansion is enjoyable for someone who is not good at it helped me a lot.

  • CHAZBIGPOTATO #39 2 years ago

    Oef!

    I think the reason they left out the sound effects is because it is made with the same building blocks used for the other levels, just with extremely clever use of lighting and camera position to create the effect of it being old school.

    I believe they said somewhere that all levels in the game are created using the track editor we get.

  • Mr.DNA #40 2 years ago

    @Hypercube: OK, so I followed your advice and bought the DLC, and I'm glad that I did. I'm enjoying it every bit as much as I did in those first few hours with the original game, and even if/when I do hit the obligatory brick wall, I've still had my money's worth, seeing as how the additional content was a very affordable fiver. Cheers.

  • TheRankinator #41 2 years ago

    Superb add-on, absolutely loving it. But RedLynx, come on, the fans have been asking since the original release for an easier way to share tracks with the world, there are some FANTASTIC levels out there but hardly any chance to play them. How can you release this DLC, bringing even better features to the level editor yet no good way to share them!

    I remember an interview before the DLC release, and a member of the team stated "This new pack will benefit the community in a BIG way", how sad I was to find out that only meant new toys for the level editor. However judging by the success this game has received, I'm sure there will be another add-on (well here's hoping!) and it will be included :)
    Edited by 1 at 07/01/10 @ 21:54

  • JayKwon #42 2 years ago

    Best DLC buy of the year!

  • Dunk360 #43 2 years ago

    If you're stuck on a level, go to the leaderboards and watch replays from the top few players... can really help, and can improve your time massively.

  • davisorle #44 2 years ago

    Trials HD is simply amazing. This pack is well worth ^^

  • MrChuckles #45 2 years ago

    I've known my current best mate for 3 years.. In that time he has seen me frustrated, depressed, happy, sad, emotional, drunk, ill, slightly mental, in hysterics and generally mellowed out...

    However, the first time he popped over and i showed him Trials HD, he said 'Sheesh dude, in all the time i've known you, i've never seen you get so fucking angry!'...

    Love the game, but can't help but shout obscenities at my blatant inability to finish 2 of the initial extreme tracks... Argh, that fucking small box on the ramp.. i mean, argh!

    Will i buy the add-on, i don't know if my heart can take it...

  • DiamondIce #46 2 years ago

    I have never called a game more names than this one (not even FIFA 10).

    I still love it though.

    And for some reason the break from the game has improved my skill (if skill is the correct word). The DLC is well worth the 400 points.

  • fisherpot #47 1 year ago

    I'm abroad at the moment and I missed the release! aghhh, cos I miss this game so much!
    I won't be able to play till middle of feb when I get home and it's the 1 thing I'm really looking forward to getting to grips with the new big pack! I have also mastered the art of keeping myself calm during play time which helps out my times like a eagle soaring through the sky! Roll on Feb!