One hundred years from now, a historian may categorize snowboarding's greatest achievement as its expansion of the English vocabulary. For its part, snowboarding has brought new meanings to the words "indy," "mute," "method," and "melancholy." For those not attuned to the sport's phat lingo, these are all terms for snowboarding maneuvers that generally refer to grabbing a particular part of the board while airborne. Not a word of this terminology is overlooked in the first snowboarding game for the Dreamcast. Also included are appropriately stylized characters, each with two outfits to choose from, and licensed gear from real snowboarding companies Bonfire and Salomon. Armed with a glossary in the form of a user manual, players will soon be able to talk the talk. But in this game, walking the walk, or rather pulling the tricks, requires quite a bit of controller dexterity. Luckily the game is not based solely on snowboarding tricks, but also has a healthy dose of racing at its core. What makes this game stand out is the length and detail of each downhill course. Jumping off the roof of sheep farms, avoiding falling icicles, and catching the spotlight of a hovering helicopter are all in a day's play in Rippin' Riders and that's just the first track!
