My love of SSX is at odds with my hatred of EA and their 'totally wicked like Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch' sports games. The games in the series have, for the most part, balanced the obnoxious EA ethos with a game that is incredibly fun and rewarding.

My love for SSX is also at odds with my dislike of real snowsports, although I put this down to having my first skiing experience after I had played an SSX game. The images I had of zipping down a sheer descent and then pulling a combo-breaking Uber Trick were quickly dashed as I stumbled onto the beginner slope, lost control and ploughed into a child. The noise of a wailing child and the snow in my jacket, burning me, dissuaded me from ever attempting to better myself at skiing and convinced me that I should stick to SSX.

A wise choice.

So, as of 2008, what have we on our gaming platter? The last SSX game was, technically, SSX Blur on the Wii but, from what I could tell, it seemed to rehash a lot of the SSX 3 and On Tour tracks runs. The 'innovative' control scheme (a symptom of any game lashed to the Wii with duct tape and staples, reminiscent of early DS Stylus-wankery syndrome) is one I have yet to try but I fear the precision of the analog sticks and shoulder buttons would be lost. Oh, prior to Blur there was On Tour, which was a snowboarding abortion pandering to morons... so let's brush over that one.

And what can we expect in the future? Well, although no announcements have been made, I expect that EA will continue the series on the newer consoles. It seems very likely, as they have done so commercially well. I cannot wait for the newer incarnations. The thought of a snowboarding game powered by delicious new technology is enough to send me into a frothy mouthed state of delirium. Let's just hope that they avoid the use of motion controls. I don't want to lose my love for virtual snowsports because I have just ploughed into a group of virtual child-skiers and it is bringing back a strange burning sensation in my chest...