SSX 3 offers a single giant mountain to ride non-stop. Coherent world, brilliant sound design and breathtaking speed. One of the most memorable extreme sports games on PS2.
Your verdict
Category
Sports2 players7+
Description
An EA Canada and EA sequel released in 2003, the third SSX entry. A total reinvention with an open mountain of three interconnected peaks, freely traversable with integrated races, freeride and challenges. Full customization, a legendary hip-hop/electro soundtrack and more spectacular tricks than ever. The franchise's absolute peak.
SSX 3 review
MAX
Art direction
★★★★★
"Iconic"
MAX
Music
★★★★★
"Legendary"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
Snowy slopes bathed in electric colours, dizzying jumps and turbocharged staging: snowboarding takes on the air of a permanent visual party. The speed, the neon and the pop energy compose a jubilant arcade aesthetic. This visual extravagance, lively and stylish, turns every run into a spectacle.
Carried by the virtual DJ Atomika and an ultra-rhythmic electro-hip-hop selection, the descent turns into a non-stop party. The music marries the speed and the tricks, boosting the flow as much as the adrenaline. This supercharged energy, inseparable from the series, keeps a devilishly effective groove.
Gameplay
"Masterful"
Bombing down a single unbroken mountain while stringing together tricks, boosts and improvised lines delivers a heady, free-flowing sense of glide. The trick system, approachable at first and then dizzying, rewards daring as much as mastery. Generous, readable and as sharp as ever, it remains the summit of a genre few snowboarding games have managed to match since.
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
Bombing down a whole mountain in one go, from snowy peak to valley, chaining dizzying jumps and endless tricks: the sense of riding hits its high. The freedom to carve your own line and chase the perfect combo grabs you instantly. Smooth, exhilarating and overflowing with style, an absolute must of arcade snowboarding, even more gleeful with several players.
Addictiveness
"Obsessive"
Tearing down an oversized slope while chaining grabs and spins to swell your boost gauge and then unleashing it all in a stratospheric jump delivers an immediate rush that calls for the next descent. Unlocking riders, slopes and tricks keeps reviving the urge. The courses repeat a bit, but this speed, this style and this adrenaline rush keep a formidable pull.
Difficulty
"Balanced"
Lifespan
"Massive"
Carving down a single seamless mountain, trick after trick, unfolds a snowboarding game brimming with races, challenges and secrets to ferret out. Unlocking the runs, polishing your combos and aiming for the best score keeps restarting the descent. That generosity, paired with exhilarating replay value, earns the title a stubborn reputation as a cult boarding game.
The Japanese edition of SSX 3, a local cut of a boarding series deeply Western in tone and soundtrack, little followed in this market. Its appeal lies in this restricted Japanese distribution, making it a variant less common than the PAL and US versions of an otherwise acclaimed entry. A target for collectors of unexpected imports from the PS2 sports catalogue.
Better with friends
An open-mountain snowboard descent, where you barrel down vast, seamlessly connected slopes in search of the perfect run. The competition is savored two-player in mastering combos and exploring hidden lines, where finding the right shortcut changes the game. Heady and generous, it turns the slightest descent into a canvas for expression where you vie in style as much as in speed.
Is SSX 3 still worth playing in 2026?
Released in 2003 on PS2, EA Sports BIG's project gathers its slopes into a single open mountain ridden from peak to peak without a break, a feat that renews the sense of freedom. The richer, clearer trick system and the rider progression sustain a rewarding loop. The vivid art direction, the polished soundtrack and the exhilarating sense of speed make for a peak of arcade boarding. The more measured structure charms as much as it shifts the nervous tempo of Tricky. A benchmark of the genre still just as enjoyable, recommended for fans of stylish snowboarding and of timed challenge.
