Ski Story Review: Skiing is better in hell

Ski story They are two very different things at once. On the one hand, it’s a visceral skating experience, providing a tight, fast, ground-level view as you force your way through tricks and combinations. But it’s also a surreal journey through the underworld as you control a skateboarding demon and take on the devil. Think of it like Dante Hell meet Thresher magazine, and you’re most of the way there.

The premise is actually a little weirder than just skating through hell. You play as a demon made of glass, who is both hungry and tired, so he decides… to eat the moon. This angers Satan, and your response will be to delve into the deeper layers of Hell where more delicious moons of different colors await you. You’re guided by a talking rabbit, and at various points you’ll meet a bathroom blogger, a frog coffee maker, a cute trash bag, and a whole lot of talking skeletons.

The result is a kind of mixture of skateboarding and adventure games. To descend further into Hell, you’ll need to complete missions, which mostly involve doing a lot of skating. Ski storyThe game world is mainly divided into three types of levels. There are central areas where you can skate freely, as well as do tasks like doing laundry or finding a pass so you can take a nap. This usually involves performing specific combinations of tricks, collecting items, or chasing something or someone. There are also fast-paced sequences where you speed down a set path trying not to crash while racing through portals, and complex boss fights where you have to defeat eldritch horrors by performing combos.

Basically, it’s a lot of sledding with some vague and occasionally philosophical dialogue. Which is good because there is skiing in it Ski story excellent. The action takes place from a third-person perspective, but with the camera nice and tight, sort of Gears of warwhich brings you really close to what’s happening. Despite that Ski story It’s very forgiving – wiping means shattering your glass, but you can restart instantly – it feels incredibly tense and reactive. Actions have weight to them. Better yet: The controls are relatively straightforward, at least by skateboarding standards, so it’s possible to pull off impressive combos without faking your hand into a claw. The game also gradually introduces new concepts that allow you to slowly control things. You don’t even learn how to grind until a few chapters in.

What really brings the two sides together Ski story Together is her sense of style. This is the coolest game I’ve played in ages. Almost everything is tough and gritty, from the gothic color scheme to the squiggly glowing spikes that act as obstacles. There are towering red skeletons lazing around, and levels that feel like you’re navigating through a hellish version of New York City, complete with bagel shops and subway tunnels. It’s like I’ve never played anything else, especially when you mix in the adorable side characters, which smooth things out, and the surprisingly soothing soundtrack that helps you get into the flow state so necessary for skating.

_{Ski story It will be released on December 8th on PS5, PC, and Nintendo Switch 2.}