| Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX | |
| Developer: | Z-Axis Neon Studios (GBC) |
| Publisher: | Acclaim Entertainment |
| Series: | Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX |
| Engine: | RenderWare |
| Platforms: | PlayStation, Game Boy Color, Dreamcast, Microsoft Windows |
| Released: | PlayStationGame Boy ColorDreamcastWindowsMaximum Remix PlayStation |
| Genre: | Sports |
| Modes: | Single-player, multiplayer |
Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX is a 2000 BMX video game developed by Z-Axis and published by Acclaim Entertainment under their Acclaim Max Sports label. The game was released on the PlayStation, Game Boy Color, Dreamcast and Microsoft Windows. The player's main objective in the game is to choose one of the riders and work their way through a total of 12 different levels, completing objectives to unlock new equipment. It received "favorable" reviews. A sequel, Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX 2, released in 2001.
Following in the footsteps of the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series, the player holds the assigned Jump button in preparation of performing a trick and releases it to jump. When in the air, Big Air tricks can be performed that can also be "modified" with the aid of the modifier button, or the Big Air button again (modifiers themselves can also be modified). For example, the player jumps from a ramp and performs a Superman (Big Air trick). The game also features ragdoll physics that are featured primarily in the Wipeout multiplayer game mode.
There are a total of four game modes and twelve levels. The first six levels are all challenge based. The player must complete specific goals in order to advance to the next level. The final six levels are competition based, where the player is judged on their performance in a number of timed runs.
Proquest is the main mode of the game and could also be called career mode. The player chooses one of the riders and seeks to progress through all the levels of the game in a series of two-minute runs. The first six levels are completed by finishing all the set challenges within them, and the competition levels can only be cleared when the player finishes a run worthy of winning the contest. Once the player finishes each successive level, they will receive new bikes (a total of four extra bikes for each player) and clothing. Upon completion of the game, videos of Dave Mirra and Ryan Nyquist and special cheat codes (depending on the character chosen) are unlocked.
Any unlocked levels can be played here. The player has the same timed runs as in the Proquest mode, but there are no goals to complete, judges to impress or new items to gain. The only real 'objective' of this mode is to improve upon the player's own high score.
In this mode, the player can freely ride any level that has been unlocked in the Proquest mode. There is no time limit, so the real aim of the mode is to allow full and unrestricted exploration of the level to find the best spots to score and to practice performing tricks.
Note: only the PlayStation and Dreamcast versions have a multiplayer mode.
There are several different multiplayer modes available. Unlike many other similar extreme sports video game titles, the game modes are turn based. As with any other mode, any level unlocked can be played.
The PlayStation version of Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX received "favorable" reviews, while the Dreamcast and PC versions received "average" reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. Garrett Kenyon of NextGen called the Dreamcast version "a bit of a surprise, and an extremely pleasant one."
Lamchop of GamePro said of the PlayStation version in one review, "While Tony Hawk fans may jeer at the blatant copycat approach, BMX stunt fans will applaud this fun game."[1] In another GamePro review, Iron Thumbs said that the same console version was "is in no way flawless, but once you get the hang of it, it's a fun game. If you like biking, and enjoy exercising patience, this might be the ultimate game for you."[2] However, Four-Eyed Dragon said that in spite of the music, the Dreamcast version "has no style at all. Skip it at all costs."[3]
Chris Simpson of AllGame gave the PlayStation version three-and-a-half stars out of five, saying, "Although Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX has some noticeable flaws, it provides a very fun and entertaining experience."[4] Jon Thompson later gave the Dreamcast version four stars out of five, saying that "while it won't ever win any awards for originality, it still manages to be a solid title that is actually great fun to play, once you get used to the controls."[5] GameZone gave the latter version 8.5 out of 10, calling it "a high-flying game that showcases some of the best stunts performed by the cream of the BMX freewheeling crop."[6] Edge, however, gave the former version six out of ten, saying, "It's still a lot of fun and surprisingly addictive, but the title should have been significantly smoother, both visually and in terms of playability."[7] Brett Todd of Computer Games Strategy Plus gave the PC version four stars out of five, calling it "one of the most rewarding console-style games to grace the computer in some time. Those of you searching for another stunt-happy extreme sports game would be advised to give this one a shot. It may lack a few options and some of the depth that computer gamers normally require from their purchases, but few currently available action titles boast such compelling action."[8]
The Maximum Remix version received "average" reviews according to Metacritic. Jeff Lundrigan of NextGen said of the game, "It ain't bad, but if you own Dave Mirra, there aren't a ton of reasons to buy this." Jake The Snake of GamePro said of the game, "Even though a better BMX game—Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX—has been released since the first Dave Mirra, the core gameplay of Mirra hasn't been much improved, just expanded. So only huge fans of the original and diehard BMX gamers will want this title."[9]