1080° Avalanche, released in Japan as 1080° Silverstorm, is a snowboarding game for the GameCube, developed by Nintendo's in-house development studio, Nintendo Software Technology, and published by Nintendo. Avalanche is a sequel to 1080° Snowboarding for the Nintendo 64. The game has an emphasis on racing, rather than doing tricks, in contrast to other popular snowboarding games, such as the SSX series. It can output in 480p and Dolby Pro Logic II and supports four players on one GameCube as well as LAN play with up to four GameCubes.
Gameplay
Similar to the gameplay of 1080° Snowboarding, it is focused on racing more than performing stunts. There are differences between this game and Snowboarding, with one being the Avalanche - the final event of every Match Race challenge is a daredevil run through an avalanche-prone trail where the player has to outrun an avalanche that starts in the middle of the run or even at the very start. In over 20 courses, the players can compete in the main Match mode, along with Trick Attack, Time Trialand Gate modes. Unlike the first game, each rider has specific boards to them, and up to three new boards for each character could be unlocked throughout the game. There are also bonus boards, which are surreal objects replacing the snowboard, such as a penguin or a NES controller.
Development and release
In 1999, it was confirmed a sequel to 1080° Snowboarding was coming to the Nintendo 64. Second-party studio Left Field was responsible for development. When the game failed to materialize, it was confirmed the game was no longer being produced for the N64, but for the Nintendo GameCube. Not long after this announcement, it was also confirmed Left Field was revoking its status as a second-party studio so it could develop multi-format titles. Development of the game was handed to Nintendo's American development studio, Nintendo Software Technology Corporation. 1080°: Avalanche was released in two different versions; a common single disc, and a double disc format. The second disc was not a game disc, but rather a mini-DVD, featuring half an hour of extreme snow sports footage, set to music from the game. This version was only available at Wal-Mart, and is differentiated by a red sash on the front cover.
Reception
It received a score of 7.5/7/5.5 from Electronic Gaming Monthly: Dan Hsu, the first reviewer, said, "You can't beat its cornea-stripping sense of speed". While Hsu found fault with the game's trick system, it was severely criticized by third reviewer Shawn Elliott, who believed that "Avalanche can't compete with SSX 3".
