Steep: PS4 Review

Steep: PS4 Review

Released by Ubisoft
Platform: PS4

There's something cool, clear and crisp about life in the mountains.

And it's something that Steep, the first major winter game simulator of the next generation consoles manages to get right.

Ubisoft's game may be all about the mountain and may have some graphical glitches and flaws, but the experience of hurtling through the white stuff is as smooth as anything.

Setting you mountainside and with a board and wing suit, Steep's MO is about soaring to the bottom and unlocking different areas and challenges as the game progresses.

Tricks, twists and turns all combine to gift you points as the gameplay evolves. Scouting through binoculars opens up new challenges as sites become available when sighted and experience unlocks races and further options as the game goes on.

A 3D map helps you negotiate the mountain and various base camps as the game progresses and other racers appear eager to take you on and garner something from hanging onto the coat tails of your reputation.

But there's nothing more primal in Steep than the basic gear being correctly used to hurtle through the powder.

From skis to snowboard, wingsuits to paragliding, the journey through the white stuff is easily done and plays out smoothly. A few of the glitches encountered happened after races as my player found himself ensconced in the ski ranks or wedged into a tree, necessitating a restart. But these are minor niggles and proved a distraction rather than a constant irritation.

There's more than enough to do to keep yourself entertained with Steep and there are definitely thrills to be had during the gameplay as this open world sim expands its boundaries.

Steep's strength lies in its simplicity of execution rather than in its longevity of play. 

This is a game that offers up simple adrenaline fuelled pleasures rather than sinking hundreds of hours into life on the slopes.

And that's no bad thing at all for this beautifully executed game that stands out from a recent glut of shooters as we head to the end of 2016.