SBK - Snow Board Kids (Nintendo DS)

SBK - Snow Board Kids (Nintendo DS)

The Snowboard Kids are back on a Nintendo console after what seems like a lifetime away, and the news is better than good.

If you've been hankering for some of that Mario Kart-style downhill racing-slash-combat on snow, coupled with the over-the-top stunt larks of EA's fantastic SSX Tricky (note not SSX, SSX on Tour or any of its other inferior iterations) then here is manna from wintry heaven: more eastern-flavoured than western, in your hands, at a reasonable price, and with a multiplayer facility too.

What are you waiting for? Stop reading and buy! SBK's main attraction is the World Tour Challenge, in which you select one of the quirky characters to play as, and try to ascend the boarding rankings. A selection of courses from around the world are there for the conquering, but it's not just the trickiness of the terrain that'll test your digital dexterity, oh no.

There're also three other competitors to deal with, and in a nod to the aforementioned Mario Kart, they're each equipped with a weapon unique to them, such as a fireball or a lightning bolt. But then, so are you, so hopefully you can even things out in the long run.

If you don't feel you're ready for the big challenge from the first insertion of the game cartridge (what's wrong with you? This is about as 'pick-up-and-playable' as a game gets) then you can always get to grips with SBK in the Training mode. Slalom mode is another option open to the gamer, as well as Boss Battle, and both these are part of the larger World Tour too.

Needless to say, we ditched the starter, went straight for the main course, and learned as we went along.

And we had great fun doing it. After 30 or so minutes, the manual was consulted to see exactly what use - if any - was being made of the touch-screen, and suddenly it all became clear.

All of a sudden we were tapping away and combining some ostentatious moves while getting mighty air. It was like an epiphany, and looking further through the manual revealed further joys which we shall not divulge here.

Just go find out for yourselves. Snowboard Kids SBK gets a nine dudes out of ten from us. The DS's limited graphical power lets it down a little, but its novel use of the touch-screen and the fact that it's the best portable snowboarding experience we've seen thus far in our long lives bumps up our notoriously finicky rating.

"Please note that this product is a genuine Rising star Games/ Nintendo factory-sealed product. With its original Certificate of Authenticity.  However, this product may not meet the expectations of a Video Game collector due to potential wear to the original cellophane wrap."