gettingstoked.com/blog | www.gettingstoked.com | Follow Stoked on Twitter

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

“IT’S TIME TO STRAP BACK IN”

– Highest Rated Xbox 360® Snowboarding Game Now Includes Racing, Even Better Controls, Two Massive New Mountains, Upgraded Visuals, and More –

September 30, 2009 – Stoked, which has the highest Metacritic score of any advanced-generation snowboarding game, is now faster, bigger, easier to control, and even more gorgeous in Stoked: Big Air Edition. New features include racing, marked trails that make it easy to find great runs, lots of park objects to use for tricks, two new mountains, better visuals, and faster and smoother riding. Stoked: Big Air Edition is priced at $39.99 and will be released exclusively for the Xbox 360 videogame system from Microsoft® on November 24, 2009.

Stoked gives players physical control of their rider through the analog sticks, which eliminates the need for players to memorize combos and gives them the ability to craft their own riding and trick styles. As players complete challenges and win events with style, they gain sponsorships, gear, and clothing from over 30 real-world brands, like Burton, Libtech, Volcom, Dakine, Nikita, and Quicksilver, and they gain profiles of their exploits in leading snowboarding magazines, such as Snowboard Magazine.

Stoked: Big Air also introduces racing for both single-player and multiplayer modes. Three types of races are included: Head to Head Through Gates, Pack Racing Through Gates, and Freestyle First to the Bottom (multiplayer only).

Players can ride with Pros in the Pro Challenges, in which they match the moves of seven different Pros, including Travis Rice, Gigi Ruf, Nicolas Muller, and Annie Boulanger. Or, they can also race against any of the Pros.

Stoked: Big Air features seamless drop-in, drop-out multiplayer. At any time, anywhere, on any mountain, players can instantly choose to free-ride with a posse of up to seven friends, or challenge them in a variety of competitive riding activities.

In addition to racing, players can compete in a variety of Big Air and Grind-fest events, compete on behalf of their sponsor to take control of a mountain in the Battle of the Brands, ride for media exposure, build a scrapbook of pictorial exploits, free-ride the mountain for high scores, and complete a variety of technical trick challenges.

Features

Key new features in Stoked: Big Air include:

Racing
Race against the world’s top riders in single-player mode or race online against up to seven other players via Xbox LIVE®.  Depending on race type, you can race through gates or carve your own route fastest to the bottom.

Marked Trails
Stoked: Big Air makes it easy to find great runs on every mountain. Each mountain includes eight runs with marked and groomed trails, lots of park objects to trick off and on-screen highlighting of kickers and jumps.

Park Objects
Besides marked trails filled with lots of park objects, many mountains also have park objects spread throughout the wild.

Two Awesome New Mountains
Stoked: Big Air includes all five mountains from the original Stoked, plus two new mountains: Laax and K2. Together, these seven mountains give players over 500 square miles to explore. While every mountain has marked and groomed trails, players can also fly their helicopter to carve their own lines anywhere on any mountain.

Smoother, Faster, Easier Riding
We’ve tweaked all aspects of riding, from camera angles to animations to the sensitivity of the controls, and we’ve made Stoked: Big Air even faster, with even more Big Air opportunities.

Upgraded Visuals
Stoked: Big Air is now even more gorgeous, with a new lighting model, post effects, fog, upgraded particle effects, and more.

Real Riders, Real Pros, Real Sponsors:
Stoked: Big Air features some of the most influential professional riders and names in the sport: Travis Rice, Nicolas Mueller, Wolle Nyvelt, Annie Boulanger, Romain de Marchi, Tadashi Fuse, Gigi Rüf, and Bjorn Leines. An impressive line up of 30 authentic sponsors also appear in Stoked including: Yes, Burton, Blue Tomato, Dragon, Arcus, Von Zipper, Eleven, 686, Billabong, DaKine, Electric, LibTech, Nitro, Northwave, Oakley, Quiksilver, Ride, Hart, Rome, Salomon, TechNine, Vans, Volcom, Anon, Nikita, Raiden, Red, Roxy, Sodalicious, and VonZipper. 

Film companies and snowboarding publications in the game include Absinthe Films, Method Magazine, Huck Magazine, Onboard European Snowboarding Magazine, Snowboard Magazine and Snowboard Canada Magazine!

About Destineer

Destineer is a leading publisher and developer of family-friendly and casual video games for home consoles, portable digital devices, and PC and Mac computers. Destineer is dedicated to creating fun, affordable and accessible games for people of all ages. Through an international network of developers and publishing partners we continue to build on our broad product portfolio and bring the most exciting and inventive titles to the ever-growing casual market.

About Snowboard Mag

Mission Statement: Our goal is simple: to educate and to entertain; to bring you, the reader, closer to the elements which bond members of our community together. We are here to display the most cutting-edge imagery in a way which opens eyes and stretches our excitement to the world of snowboarding. For more visit snowboard-mag.com

About Bongfish

Bongfish GmbH has developed authentic licensed action-sports video games since 1999. Located in Graz, Austria, the studio specializes in recreating the ’soul & vibe’ of action sports experiences using their own proprietary technology.

About Absinthe Films

Absinthe Films established themselves as a premiere snowboard film production company with the late 90’s. Since then, owners Justin Hostynek and Patrick Armbruster have been pushing the envelope of snowboard film making the world over while remaining committed to environmental awareness and responsibility. For more information on Absinthe Films visit www.absinthe-films.com.

REVIEWS

The original Stoked reviewed significantly better than competitor Shaun White Snowboarding (Metacritic score 74 versus 60).

MEDIA Videos, Game Logos, Screenshots, Rider Bios

SCREENSHOTS:

QUOTES, ATTRIBUTABLE TO TONY CHIODO, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF THE STOKED GAMES

Follow Tony on Twitter

“Stoked has the most revolutionary open world environments ever.”

“It’s all about defining your riding style and crafting the line that suits you.”

“Stoked leaves well-worn resorts behind and gives players absolute freedom to ride wherever they want and trick off of anything they can find in some of the most famous back-country locations the world has to offer.”

“Gameplay is focused on style and finesse, not button mashing; Destineer and Bongfish have created a game that looks and plays like a snowboarding movie.”

QUOTES, ATTRIBUTABLE TO PATRICK “Brusti” ARMBRUSTER, CO-FOUNDER OF ABSINTHE FILMS

Follow Brusti on Twitter

“Developing a snowboard video game has always been a dream of mine.”

“There are endless synergies between a snowboard film production and a game developer that were just waiting to be activated.”

“Bongfish and Destineer have realized this potential, and have shown a real passion for snowboarding, and together we’ve worked to bring snowboarding luminaries from across the planet together for this project.”

Please contact Press to arrange an interview and/or for additional quotes.

Technorati Tags:

absinthe films | travis rice | stoked | snowboarding | xbox 360 | gettingstoked.com/blog | winter x games

We sat down with Michael Putz from Bongfish to get his thoughts on Stoked, development and what the future holds for the great little snowboarding game.

Stoked has received a lot of great feedback from its fans, what has it been like to work on this game?

In Short: Development has been a blast.  We’ve learned quite a lot from our previous games and have always listened to feedback from the players. This has improved the formula piece by piece. All the accumulated experience finally came together like a gigantic puzzle and turned into Stoked for Xbox 360.

Was the first game always meant to be this big of an open world game?

Our first step into open-world-style game play  happened back in 1999 for the game Flow. Although it was more of endless world which was generated using mathematical formulas. It still gave us a good foundation to build from.

Later on we included real-world terrain data and therefore managed to shape mountains resembling the real life counterparts. So play the game. It is DEEP! You have to explore the mountains to get a sense of how huge they are. There is so much to do it is kinda ridiculous.

It is a massive game play experience, what was a typical day like working on it?

A typical day usually starts with coffee while booting the machine and checking the bug-database for the latest updates from QA, followed by some quick calls with Tony (our external producer at the game’s publisher Destineer).

Later I attend meetings with the game-designers to find out what crazy ideas they want to see implemented, followed by a meeting with the engineering-team and hear what new feature they want to build in the engine. Imagine a bunch of guys constantly pushing new features, only curbed by the producers who need to make sure the game is delivered on time. Stoked is only the beginning of an evolution of snowboarding games that push the envelope of realism and culture.

We end the day usually compiling a new build of the game, which is instantly uploaded to Destineer for Quality Assurance. While they are testing we finally get some sleep until the next morning. A good routine.

What did you guys learn from the experience of working on the first game? Dynamic weather, open world mountains, it seems like a lot to put in a game. Have you learned a lot and was it a smooth run?

We already had some experience with open-world, so dynamic weather was the technical innovation. Since nobody has ever featured snow-accumulation in a game, we are pretty excited on being first to own that feature. It’s the very first time snowfall is not just an effect but actually makes an effect in the game’s world by opening up new slopes which previously had been covered by rocks.

Some fans had some fair complaints about Stoked. Are you guys planning to make any adjustments in future releases?

Absolutely, following the release of Stoked this February, we’ve instantly went back to the drawing board, listening to fans and thought hard how to gradually improve the experience. Look out for something exciting to be announced this fall.

So when is the game coming out in Europe? And don’t Lie!

September 24. Pre-Order Now!

Are there any other people that fans might not know of who are supporting this game?

Stoked features gear and equipment from more than 30 of the leading snowboarding brands. While working on realistic snowboarding games, we’ve managed to build some strong relationships to the snowboarding industry. We’ve always treated ‘their’ sport with respect and put great effort in representing snowboarding in a no-bullshit way.

We built some trust among those people from industry brands and athletes. This years ISPO (world largest winter-sport trading show) was a good example of the support we have received. Stoked was on display at various booths from different brands. Normally those brands are competitors, but they still decided to support Stoked, which tells us we are on the right track.

We also have great respect for Brusti from Absinthe Films, his dedication on helping with athletes & brands for Stoked is invaluable. The game wouldn’t be the same without him.

One last question, what does the future hold for Stoked?

Stay Tuned! We are not done yet!

Last Words?

We’ve worked hard to deliver the perfect virtual snowboarding experience – thanks to all fans out there who supported the product and bought the game.

Bongfish hosts Stoked DEMOS with our sponsors…
and a good time was had by all

Munich, Germany

Thanks to our Sponsors, Vans, Huck Magazine, Arcus, and Libtech for hosting the kiosks. Stoked has been well received as the real snowboarding game to get this year. Also thanks to Michael and Klaus from Bongfish for making the trip to Munich to help promote.

Stoked got lots of love at the VANS booth, people were all eager to play the game.

Libtech was another brand nice enough to host the game & they had free bananas. Double Score!

Huck Mag’s booth attracted quite some crowd. Thanks to Vince and the crew at Huck! They actually built their booth around the Stoked game demo, now that’s loyalty.

Aesthetiker legend Steve Gruber hands-on with the game. Stoked’s Style consultant Brusti of Absinthe fame dropped by (right side) judging Steve’s performance.

As part of our online snow film industry summit, we caught up with Hostynek to get his thoughts on where the industry he helped shape is heading.

What do you think the biggest forces shaping movie production over the last few years have been and what will they be going forward?

Two of the forces that inevitably shape snowboard movie production are funding and distribution. Funding overall is weaker than it has been due to the faltering economy but the competitive field has also narrowed. Those who stay in business through this downturn will be in a stronger position than they were to begin with. The future of distribution is a riddle that everyone from newspaper publishers, to music industry and Hollywood executives are trying to figure out. It is the future which many mistake for the end. It’s just the end of how we know it. People will want to keep watching our films. How the viewing experience is delivered is what will eventually change. The only element in the foreseeable future of snowboard film making, that is truly scary, is climate change if people continue to ignore it.

How has digital distribution affected Absinthe and the industry in general?

Digital distribution for snowboard films is in it’s infancy but it has the potential to grow up fast and no one knows what sizes it will be wearing in the next couple of years. For the well being of our planet it is a much better distribution model but people will continue to buy Absinthe DVD’s even as new distribution channels materialize. There are a lot of layers to our films that reveal themselves over time. They aren’t perceived as being disposable. People who ride will continue to want to have them to hold, to open, to watch again and to keep in their collection.

What are your thoughts on how to make this channel more beneficial than harmful in the future?

By embracing change and putting our energy into making a better product instead of fighting the inevitable. By putting everything we have into our films for so many years, a relationship has been created between Absinthe and our audience. If we continue to deliver, they are down to support what we do and that is the difference. Sure, some people will rip it, they are snowboarders, it’s inevitable. But a lot of people do understand that if you don’t support what you love, it goes away. Kids understand this on some level too.

What role do you think movies have in shaping the sport, whether it be for new riders, public perception, stoking current riders, etc.?

Like with the skate industry, they are a big part of what drives our industry. They can be a strengthening influence on our sport if ethics and standards are upheld, or they can become very damaging through proliferation of weak standards. A lot of it is up to the distributors and retailers. It comes down to whether they take on everyone who throws something together or if they set some standards of what should represent snowboarding today and what should represent snowboarding to the next generation.

What do you see as the best and worst aspects of the movie business right now?

For me, the best and worst aspects of the business haven’t changed:
1) I get to work outside at something that never gets old and make a product that I believe makes a difference.
2) People who don’t love snowboarding still have too much influence on our sport.

What are your predictions for the next couple of years for production companies, distributors and retailers?

A lot of people who aren’t in it for the riding will move along.

In an economy like this, how do you convince sponsors that films are a good place to put their marketing dollars?

By showing them our films.

Do you see snowboarding films moving to a more team based model like in skate?

It hasn’t worked out that well for most people who have tried it so far. Making a snowboard film that leaves a lasting, positive impression on a massive audience is not easy, quick or cheap. But it is a good way for manufacturers to gain a firsthand perspective on what it takes to pull it off for real.>

The wait is over.

June 24th, 2009 Hit the mountains on your quest to become the next snowboarding phenomenon in Stoked, the open-world, back country snowboarding experience featuring five huge open-world mountains, changing weather patterns, and the sponsorship and cooperation of some of the most respected and influential names in the sport.

Developed in conjunction with world-renowned snowboarding movie creator Absinthe Films, Stoked captures the pioneering spirit of professional back country riders. Exhilarating snowboarding experiences are born from dynamic backcountry conditions. The riders who brave and master these conditions are the stuff of legend in Absinthe videos and the pages of snowboarding magazines. The look and style of these riders are emulated across the world. In Stoked, it’s your turn to become a legendary rider and wow the world on Xbox Live online entertainment network by becoming an absolute snowboarding phenomenon.

In Stoked, craft a snowboarding career with your own customizable style and ride five famous mountains featuring over 45 square miles of open terrain in each location. Discover new drop points by helicopter. Dynamic and ever-evolving weather conditions await riders as they choose where they ride and what they ride in by tracking conditions that suit their tastes.

Riders get instant drop in access to multiplayer action where they team up with friends to create a wide variety of riding experiences, both cooperative and competitive. Players can also go up against other riders on Xbox Live in a series of sponsored events to boost their fame!

Own trick spots, show up rivals, and build your reputation. Take pictures of friends and capture video of your best moves to win the kind of attention that lands you on the cover of a snowboarding magazine. Conquer massive mountains and carve your path as a snowboarding phenomenon in the deepest, truest backcountry snowboarding video game yet: Stoked.

With the title already performing well in America there is a huge anticipation for the title across Europe.

“We at zushi are delighted to have reached an agreement with Destineer for our first Xbox 360® title Stoked. After a successful launch in the USA earlier this year we believe Stoked has huge potential in Europe which zushi is backing with our biggest ever pr & marketing campaign spend across trade and retail.” Barry Hatch zushi games.

“Destineer is thrilled to be working with zushi to bring our highly anticipated game Stoked to the UK and Europe. We’re equally excited to be working with zushi and hope to continue working with them to bring more Destineer titles to these territories.” explained Paul Rinde, CEO of Destineer.

Stoked is also supported by the biggest magazines in the snowboarding industry. Headlining is Method Magazine one of the biggest snowboarding magazines in Europe. Along with Method, Huck Magazine, Onboard, Snowboard Canada, and Snowboard Mag. “It is an awesome opportunity to be featured in a game like this. It is a great experience. I am sure that all European fans of snowboarding will love this game.”

Five Gigantic Real-World Mountains: Leave worn-out resorts behind and travel the world in search of the ultimate back country location. Explore five world-renowned summits. Discover new drop points by helicopter, bail out and experience more than 45 square-miles of open terrain on each peak.

Dynamic Weather and Environments: Every day the snow and weather conditions change on each of the mountains featured in the game thanks to a dynamic weather and time of day system. Snow accumulates on mountain surfaces, changing the riding experience, opening new paths, and building new trickable features and challenges. Different weather conditions offer different experiences and riding challenges. Choose where, when, and in what conditions you’d like to ride!

Seamless Multiplayer: Invite your friends to ride with you in instant drop-in multiplayer! While riding together you can select custom helicopter drop points, create competitive or cooperative challenges, or call out tricks for members of your posse to pull off as you snap their photos. When you’re ready to get serious, go up against other boarders on Xbox LIVE in sponsored events to build your fame.

Style Crafting: As you develop your style, the animation system will adapt to how you play, and the other riders on the mountain will emulate your moves! But doing tricks isn’t the only way to convey a sense of style. Thirty of the industry’s top gear manufacturers, clothing brands, and international magazines have joined forces with Destineer and Absinthe to help you build your career. As your legend grows so will your stylistic choices.

Real Riders, Real Pros, Real Sponsors: Stoked features some of the most influential professional riders and names in the sport: Travis Rice, Nicolas Mueller, Wolle Nyvelt, Annie Boulanger, Romain de Marchi, Tadashi Fuse, Gigi Ruef, and Bjorn Leines. An impressive line up of 30 authentic sponsors also appear in Stoked including but not limited to: Burton, Dragon, Arcus, Von Zipper, Eleven, 686, Billabong, DaKine, Electric, LibTech, Nitro, Northwave, Oakley, Quiksilver, Ride, Hart, Rome, Salomon, TechNine, Vans, Volcom, Anon, Nikita, Raiden, Red, Roxy, Sodalicious and VonZipper!

About Bongfish

Bongfish GmbH has developed authentic licensed action-sports video games since 1999. Located in Graz, Austria, the studio specializes in recreating the ’soul & vibe’ of action sports experiences using their own proprietary technology.

About Absinthe Films

Absinthe Films established themselves as a premiere snowboard film production company with the late 90’s. Since then, owners Justin Hostynek and Patrick Armbruster have been pushing the envelope of snowboard film making the world over while remaining committed to environmental awareness and responsibility. For more information on Absinthe Films visit www.absinthe-films.com.

Visit the Official Website

Visit the Official Blog

More Information on Stoked

Check out the online review HERE

Whatever snowboarding games have taught you to expect…don’t expect that from Stoked. That means no candy-colored snow, no adrenaline meters, and definitely no well-groomed runs jammed with jumps and rails. Stoked zeroes in on one thing: landing tricks in the backcountry. It comes off as a little too laser-focused and a lot too technical, but if you’re at all interested in snowboarding games, we guarantee it’ll impress you, too.

Our favorite feature took us a little while to notice: the weather. And thanks, but we’re not dopey enough to be excited about simply boarding through a blizzard. In Stoked, the five big mountains constantly change — one time you might plow through deep, plush powder, but if the sun’s been blazing for a bit, that same run might be mined with bare rock and dirt the next time you try it. You can even chopper back up to the summit (a painlessly quick process; there’s very little commuting here) and follow the path you carved on your last run…unless it’s snowing so hard that your trail got covered up.

So Stoked’s slopes are big, pretty, and damn cool to explore, but it’s the gameplay that matters, and here Stoked might lose some of you. The trick controls feel great, and working the controller to execute twists, flips, and slides feels natural pretty quickly. But the game is all about boarding to a certain spot and either beating a high score or landing a series of specific tricks. If you blow it, don’t expect mercy — success or surrender are your only options. The minimal in-game help (only grabs are detailed) and heavy use of jargon means you’d better know what a 50- 50 or a Switch Frontflip is…or you’ll be pausing to RTFM or Google your way to enlightenment.

Once you crest what can be a steep learning curve, you’ll start plowing through the dozens of challenges that dot every nook, but here’s where that “laser-focused” part might start chapping your hide. We found ourselves really wishing for a race, a boardercross, or even just a boring ol’ slalom to give us a breather from the tricks, tricks, and more tricks.

Fortunately, terrific multiplayer can be that break. Eight players meet up on the mountain and invite each other to events (including races!) that can be started anywhere. Our favorite: a cool competition called The Ground Is Lava, where the only way to keep your board from melting is by staying in the air.

We saved the best for last: Stoked is priced at a sweet, sweet $40. So even if a tricks-splosion isn’t your personal boarding nirvana, there’s enough great stuff in this game that you’d be crazy to not check it out.

Destineer Announces ‘Stoked’ for Xbox 360 has Gone Gold!

MINNEAPOLIS, MN, February 18, 2009 – Get ready to ride! Destineer and developer Bongfish have announced that Stoked, the open-world, backcountry snowboarding video game exclusively for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, has gone gold and will be shipping on February 24. Developed in conjunction with world-renowned snowboarding movie creator Absinthe Films, Stoked offers five huge, open-world mountains, dynamic and changing weather patterns, the participation of X Games champion Travis Rice as well as some of the most respected names in the snowboarding community worldwide.

Travis Rice takes X 13 Big Air crown with an awesome double back 1080

Travis Rice is enjoying some payback. Payback to Torstein Horgmo after losing to him last year at the X 12 Big Air. Payback to Mikkel Bang after losing to him last year at the Munich Air & Style. Or maybe just call it a good hearted comeback after Rice had a near-fatal encounter during Slopestyle practice. VIDEO