Game Reviews

FMX IV Pro

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| FMX IV Pro
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FMX IV Pro
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| FMX IV Pro

There's a rare breed of humans who think that destroying their bodies and risking their lives in pursuit of adrenal stimulation is worthwhile. These daredevils like nothing better than hurling themselves off, over, and onto various obstacles.

Few of us will ever get a chance to enjoy the thrills and spills they crave, held back as we are by the instinct for self-preservation and good old-fashioned intelligence. However, with the correct application of video game stimuli we might be able to get an inkling of those sensations. That's where titles like FMX IV Pro come in. Gleaming the dirt-ramp

Abandoning the racing roots of its predecessors, the game focuses on pulling off ridiculous mid-air stunts on and around a motor cross bike. You'll speed off ramps, throwing your weight around and performing various arm and leg wiggles to score points.

Your acceleration is handled by the game, leaving you to concentrate on your balance. Either by tilting your phone or tapping an on-screen button you can shift the position of your rider, enabling you to pull off back flips, gather speed, and land with your wheels pointing in the right direction.

You perform tricks by tracing symbols onto the screen once you're airborne. Tapping the screen slows down time and brings up a wheel of moves you've learned, giving you plenty of time to pick one and draw it before you hit the ground.

Harshing my buzz

The problem is, neither of the balancing control methods works well enough, often leaving you falling to the ground head-first. It sucks the fun out of the game, turning what should have been a pleasant romp in the mud into a frustrating series of neck-breaking crashes.

There's still enjoyment to be found here, and the tracing method for pulling off tricks is certainly an interesting one, but the package feels a little slap-dash, and the problems with the controls mean you'll be wrestling with the game to try and succeed.

There are thrills and spills in FMX IV Pro, but they're probably not the kind digital adrenaline junkies have been looking for.

Android version reviewed.

FMX IV Pro

While FMX IV Pro is not without its moments of high-flying enjoyment, its wonky controls mean that you'll spend more time crashing into ramps than jumping over them
Score
Harry Slater
Harry Slater
Harry used to be really good at Snake on the Nokia 5110. Apparently though, digital snake wrangling isn't a proper job, so now he writes words about games instead.