Let’s be honest, for the vast majority of gamers Pure came pretty much out of nowhere. ATV off-road racing games have never really garnered much buzz before release, and Pure would have been no different if not for an absolutely incredible demo. Sporting graphics that are arguably some of the finest seen this generation and gameplay to match, the Pure demo made heads turn. After playing the demo the only question that remained, would the full retail product have enough content to justify a purchase? Let me be the first to say, Black Rock Studio delivers on the promises made in the demo and then some. For those not in the know Black Rock Studio was formerly known as Climax Racing, responsible for the popular Moto GP series as well as ATV Offroad Fury. The name change occurred when Disney Interactive Studios purchased Climax. Despite the name change, the studio’s commitment to quality has obviously stayed the same.

Gameplay:

At it’s heart Pure is an arcade racer that at first glance looks similar to games like Motorstorm, but really is an entirely different beast altogether. What makes Pure different is the manner in which one gains speed. Speed in Pure is directly related to one’s nitro boosts, and that juice can only be earned by doing “tricks”. Tricks make up a core concept within the game, as players will constantly be performing tricks when going over jumps, in order to gain extra nitro juice. Tricks are performed by pre-loading one’s bike (pressing down then up at jump), getting as much air as possible, and then pressing one of the trick buttons. What makes the trick system interesting the manner in which tricks and nitro juice become dependent on each other. The more nitro juice the player has, the more difficult tricks they can perform. Difficult tricks, or “chaining” tricks together earns more nitro juice. Players however, will need to use their nitro juice to keep up with other racers, and risk losing the ability to use difficult tricks if they use too much. It becomes an addictive balancing act, using measured nitro boosts, while attempting to keep the nitro meter full through death defying stunts. Further complicating things, the game punishes you with less nitro juice if you use the same trick too often. This forces players to be creative, and keeps things interesting for those watching the action as well. All of this may sound somewhat confusing, however in practice it leads to some incredible fun. The race circuits are set up with some absolutely breathtaking jumps, and players will find themselves desperately trying to chain together as many tricks as possible while soaring through the sky. The events themselves are broken into three categories, race, sprint and freestyle. Race and Sprint events are standard “first to cross the goal” type affairs. The main difference is that in Race there are plenty of jumps and tracks are usually long. Sprint on the other hand the tracks are very short, and there are very few jumps. Freestyle is completely different from these two in that it’s entirely based on performing tricks. The course is scattered with additional power-ups which give you score multipliers on your tricks, give you more boost, or give you extra gas. This mode ends when your gas tank runs dry.

Graphics:

I rarely hand out perfect scores, but honestly, the game looks absolutely incredible. If next generation graphics had a definition, one could argue that definition would be “Pure”. The tracks and bikes are rendered almost picture perfect, practically photo realistic. The game also boasts an incredible draw distance, something you will see first hand the first time you go over a massive jump. Go download the demo and you’ll see what I mean. The full retail product looks even better.

Sound:

I really like the soundtrack they put in the game. The track list is very impressive with 25 different licensed tracks. All of the tunes fit perfectly with the game atmosphere, really helping to fuel the sense of speed and urgency prevalent in the game. In terms of environmental noise everything sounds exactly how I would imagine it should. The bikes give off a meaty roar, and players have the whole “Dude” thing going on that I would expect of daredevil ATV riders. Using nitro boost also gives a satisfying whoosh. The track list and environmental effects basically all serve to fuel and intensify the “I AM AN INSANE AND CRAZY ATV DAREDEVIL!” experience that the game delivers.

Longevity:

The single player portion of the game consists of the World Tour, which is broken into 10 unlockable circuits each containing between 4 – 7 events. While it won’t take very long for a decent player to unlock all the circuits, I believe that the quest to come in 1st in all events will keep players coming back for more. Depending on how the player places in each event they unlock new equipment to upgrade their ATV with. The ATV garage is practically a whole other game in and of itself! There are 25 different parts to play with and most of the parts affect speed, handling, acceleration, and boost negatively or positively. Players are given and unlock new ATV slots in their garage, which encourages experimentation of parts. What works great on a freestyle jump course, may not work well in a sprint event. There isn’t really any other single player mode although you can play each track individually instead of in World Tour mode. In terms of online longevity, the game offers all of the single player race modes (race, sprint, freestyle) and also adds an additional mode called Freeride. Freeride allows players to “play the way they want” meaning folks will be scored based on what they did in each individual area. For example one player may choose to try to get the most tricks, another may be determined to get the fasted lap time. 16 players can participate in the fun, which should help keep some life in the game once players have completed the single player World Tour.

Overall:

Pure is sheer unadulterated fun. The game offers breathtaking graphics and addictive gameplay, combined with a decent set of single and multiplayer modes. The game is probably one of the best arcade/extreme sports style racers to hit the Xbox 360 this generation, and is in my opinion a game that must be played. Do NOT let this game pass you by under the radar, Pure is truly a great experience.