Snowboard Hero for iOS

Snowboard Hero is a 3D snowboarding game that might be the best yet for iPhone--once you get the settings squared away. Start by choosing between Career and Record Chaser modes. In Career mode you'll start by playing as the default character, "Dude," but after racing and beating specific challenges, you'll be able to choose from six different characters with varied skills. Start by going through the tutorial, which gives you the basics for jumping, grinding rails, and performing tricks. From there you'll need to complete challenges that vary from going down the hill as fast as possible to trying to pull off the most tricks as possible to get a high score. Earn money by pulling off tricks and grabbing pickups as you speed down the hill.

After a few races you'll earn enough money and unlocks to buy new clothing. You'll also be able to purchase new boards that have varying strengths and weaknesses. Part of the fun in Snowboard Hero is choosing the best board for the challenge at hand. Later you'll be able to unlock new characters, each of whom has higher stats than the last, and you can buy new tricks for bigger scores.

When we first hit the slopes in Snowboard Hero, we thought the game looked great graphically, and we liked the onscreen trick controls that include pressing the screen and swiping in a direction for more complex tricks. Our only issue was with the tilt-to-steer controls, which felt far too stiff. We highly recommend exploring the options to set the sensitivity to about 80 (out of a 100) for a more realistic turning experience. After we tweaked the settings, we found Snowboard Hero to be one of the best of its genre in the App Store, so we think it's crucial to try changing the sensitivity early before you judge this game.

Overall, Snowboard Hero offers great-looking graphics, solid controls (once you tweak them), and enough challenges and unlocks to keep you coming back for more. If you've been looking for a good 3D snowboarding game, Snowboard Hero is the game to buy.