PC Game review - Trials 2: Second Edition review

To celebrate the recent release of Trials: Evolution on XBLA, I thought I'd review the PC entry in the franchise, Trials 2: Second Edition.

PC Game review - Trials 2: Second Edition review.

Trials 2: Second Edition is an excellent stunt game that needs just a tad more variety.

Trials 2: Second Edition is a 2D stunting/racing game originally made in Adobe Flash by Redlynx Entertainment. Trials 2: Second Edition's graphics are definitely below average, but considering it's release date & it's gameplay style, it doesn't even matter.  Trials 2: Second Edition's music & sound is nice at first, but after playing for a while that constant buzzing of your motorbike's engine just gets extremely annoying, and I just ended up playing this while listening to my own music.  Trials 2: Second Edition's level design is really quite great, as each individual jump feels hand-crafted to perfection. It is an extremely hard game though, and I often found myself screaming or rage-quitting (and no other game does this to me, except for Half-Life 2: Deathmatch with my family). As for the action, it's really quite simple. There are only three controls, forward/backward, lean left/right, & bail. It was very funny do a jump/spin combo and baily mid-air - oh so funny! I often just crashed deliberately because of the beautiful physics engine. Although it is fun to do this, sometimes when crashing, or even just driving for that matter, it glitches and you bike turns into what looks like a demented wheelchair. Overall its a great game though. But the one thing that they definitely could've done better, is more levels, more gameplay modes, more customisation, and a level editor for an easier way to get more maps.

Now, for the scoring.

Gameplay            8.5/10

Apart from the occasional glitch, this is great to play!

Graphics              6/10

Not up to par, but good enough for a bike game.

Sound                   4/10

The music is ok, but the effects are so annoying!!

Fun                       8.5/10

Great fun to play - until it gets too hard that is.

Campaign             8.5/10

Nice levels, but some are hard to the point of virtual impossibility.

Replayability        8.5/10

With so many failed attempts, you'll definitely want to try again.

Multiplayer          2/10

No built-in multiplayer, but you can compare times with friends.

Control Scheme   10/10

Simple but effective.

Originality            6/10

Definitely not the first bike game, but one of the best.

Extras                   2/10

No extras, but there are a few more gameplay modes.

Overall score: 64/100

 Trials 2: Second Edition is a great motorbike stunt game that could do with just a bit more features.