1080°

Snowboarding

1080° Snowboarding[a] is a 1998

snowboarding video game developed
by Nintendo EAD and published by
Nintendo. It was released for the
Nintendo 64 and re-released in 2008
for the Wii's Virtual Console. In the
game, the player controls one of five
snowboarders from a third-person
perspective, using a combination of
buttons to jump and perform tricks
over eight levels.
 1080° Snowboarding

North American cover art

Developer(s) Nintendo EAD

Publisher(s) Nintendo

Director(s) Masamichi Abe

Mitsuhiro Takano
Producer(s) Shigeru Miyamoto

Programmer(s) Giles Goddard

Colin Reed
Artist(s) Yoshitaka
Nishikawa
Composer(s) Kenta Nagata
Platform(s) Nintendo 64
Release JP: 28 February
1998
NA: 1 April 1998
PAL: 9 October
1998
Genre(s) Snowboarding

Mode(s) Single-player,
multiplayer

1080° was announced in November

1997 and developed over the course
of nine months; it garnered critical
acclaim and won an Interactive
Achievement Award from the
Academy of Interactive Arts and
Sciences. 1080° sold over two million
units, and a second installment, 1080°
Avalanche, was released for the
Nintendo GameCube in November
2003.

Gameplay

A screenshot from a match race in 1080°

Snowboarding
The player controls a snowboarder in
one of several modes. 1080° has two
trick modes (trick attack and
contest),[1] three race modes (race,
time attack, and 2 players),[2] a
training mode, and an options mode.[3]
The objective of the game is either to
arrive quickly at a level's finish line or
to receive maximum points for trick
combinations.[4]

In 1080°'s two trick modes, trick

attack and contest, players accrue
points from completed tricks.[5] In
contest mode, players perform tricks
and snowboard past flags for points.
Trick attack mode requires players to
perform a series of tricks throughout
a designated level. The game
features 24 tricks and 5 secret tricks,
all of which are performed by using a
combination of circular positions of
the control stick, the R button, the Z
button and the B button; point values
are allocated based on complexity,
combos, and required time.[5] The two
types of tricks are grab tricks, in
which the board is grabbed in a
specific way, or spin tricks, in which
the snowboarder spins the board a
certain number of degrees.[4] The
1080° spin requires nine actions, the
most of any trick in the game.[6]

1080° has three race modes; in these

modes, victory can be achieved by
taking separate routes within a course
and balancing the snowboarder after
a jump to avoid speed loss.[7] Tricks
are scored in race modes, but do not
count toward victory.[7] In match race
mode, the player competes in a series
of races against AI-controlled
snowboarders.[8] The game times the
player throughout the level and
players receive a damage meter
which fills if the snowboarder falls
down or is knocked over. The
difficulty level in match races can be
set to normal, hard, or expert,
adjusting the complexity and number
of races. If the player fails at
defeating an AI competitor, they must
retire. The player is given three
chances to beat the computer before
the game is over.[7][9]

Players may initially choose from five

snowboarding characters: two from
Japan, and one each from Canada, the
United States, and the United
Kingdom. Each snowboarder has
different abilities and is suited for
different levels and modes, since
each has varying statistics in fields
such as technique, speed, and
weight.[10][11] Three additional
snowboarders are unlocked by
completing certain game levels and
modes.[11] Eight snowboards are
initially available for every character,
and one additional snowboard may be
unlocked later in the game. Each
board also excels in different
situations, since each has different
strengths in categories such as
balance and edge control.[11]

Development
1080°'s release was announced on 21
November 1997 at Nintendo's Space
World trade show; the game's
working title was then Vertical Edge
Snowboarding.[12] 1080° was one of
several snowboarding games
released for the Nintendo 64 in 1998,
others being Big Mountain 2000 and
Snowboard Kids.[12] Before the game's
release, journalists were able to play
1080° at the January 1998 Nintendo
Gamers' Summit.[13]

1080° was directed by Masamachi

Abe and Misthuro Tanako,
programmed by Englishmen Giles
Goddard and Colin Reed, developed
and published by Nintendo, and
produced by Shigeru Miyamoto.[14]
Abe had previously directed Tekken 3
for Namco. Goddard had previously
programmed the Mario face in Super
Mario 64,[15] which was released two
years prior to critical acclaim and was
a huge commercial success, while
Reed had programmed Stunt Race
FX. When developing 1080°, Goddard
and Reed used a technique called
"skinning" to eliminate joints between
the polygons composing the
characters. Their programming used a
combination of standard animation
and inverse kinematics, creating
characters whose appearance during
collisions is affected by what object is
hit, what direction the collision occurs
in, and the speed at which the collision
takes place.[16] Tommy Hilfiger outfits
and Lamar snowboards appear
throughout 1080° as product
placement.[4] 1080°'s soundtrack of
"techno and rappy beats" with
"thrashy, foozed-out vocals" was
composed by Kenta Nagata.[4][14]

1080°'s development took place from

April or May 1997 to March 1998.[16]
The game was released on 28
February 1998 in Japan[17] and on 1
April in North America. Nintendo
delayed the game's European release
because they hoped to boost sales
with a winter release;[18] 1080° was
eventually released on 30 November
in Europe and the PAL region.[4]
Reception
Reception
Aggregate score

Aggregator Score

Metacritic 88/100[19]
 Review scores

Publication Score

Edge 8/10[20][21]

EGM 8.375/10[22][b]

Eurogamer (Wii) 8/10[23]

Famitsu 31/40[24]

Game Informer 9.25/10[25]

GameFan 90%[26][c]

GamePro [27][d]
     
GameRevolution B+[7]

GameSpot 8.6/10[28]

(N64) 8.6/10[4]
IGN
(Wii) 8.5/10[29]

N64 Magazine 89%[30][31]

 Next Generation [32]
     
(N64) 8/10[33]
Nintendo Life
(Wii U) 7/10[34]

Nintendo Power 8.5/10[35]

1080° Snowboarding received

"generally favorable reviews", just
two points shy of "universal acclaim",
according to review aggregator
website Metacritic.[19] In Japan,
Famitsu gave it a score of 31 out of
40.[24] Nintendo Power gave the
Japanese import a favorable review,
over a month before it was released
Stateside.[35] It was called "one of the
best values in both sports and racing
gaming" by Josh Smith of
GameSpot.[28] 1080° Snowboarding has
been perceived to be a leader among
snowboarding titles at the time, with
IGN 's Levi Buchanan stating: "Every
single snowboarding game that
followed 1080 borrows from
Nintendo's formula".[36] Edge hailed it
as the "most convincing video game
emulation of the snowboarding
experience so far" with an
"atmosphere of sobriety" unlike any
other Nintendo game at the time.[20]
The game's graphics were of the
highest quality for the Nintendo 64 at
the time.[20][37] Smith praised general
aspects of the game's graphics such
as their crispness, detail, smoothness,
and lack of polygon dropout.[28]
Reviewers praised the game's
camera use, the game's "very solid"
physics model,[28] the impression of
racers' speed, and the game's snow
effects (sun reflected in the snow as
appropriate, and fluffy snow and
packed snow appeared and behaved
differently).[4] Graphical faults
included occasional pop-up, misplaced
shadows, and lag when racers passed
through on-track trees;[4] these
problems were generally identified as
minor.[28]

Although writing a positive review,

Edge found faults in the game's AI,
saying the game suffered from
"cheating" CPU opponents.[20] They
criticized the AI's simplicity and ability
to quickly catch up to the player near
the end of a race; they also noted the
AI's "limited series of predetermined
routes" and the possibility of a player
learning where and when an AI falls
over, "offering an opportunity to pass
[the computer], but conveying little
satisfaction with it".[20] Edge also said
the PAL release delay "is frankly
ludicrous".[21] They believed that, due
to Nintendo's slump of noteworthy
releases, "any quality title is likely to
top the charts with little difficulty".[21]

Next Generation said: "With 1080°

Snowboarding, Nintendo delivers
another system seller and once again
sets the standard for an entire
genre".[32] Kevin Cheung of Hyper
gave the game 90%: "There is little
else more to say save that 1080
captures the true essence of the thrill
of snowbaording. [...] Just as
Waverace [sic] brought a new
dimension to water-based racing, 1080
brings N64 owners an equally
innovative game".[38]

Writing for AllGame, Shawn

Sackenheim considered the "highly
technical" control scheme of 1080°
Snowboarding one of the game's
strengths despite its initial
difficulty.[39] Alex Huhtala of
Computer and Video Games positively
reviewed the control scheme, but
disagreed on its difficulty, noting "the
controls have been implemented so
brilliantly that you're able to play
perfectly well with just one hand on
the stick and Z button".[37] GameSpot
called the game's control "thoroughly
involving" and said that "[t]he crouch
move alone – which makes for
supertight turns – makes this fun to
play".[28] The music was also
generally praised, with Matt
Casamassina of IGN calling it "a
shining example of what can be
achieved on the format"[4] and
Sackenheim calling it "one of the best
N64 soundtracks to date".[39]
Sackenheim also praised the game's
sound effects.[39]

In a retrospective review by the

Official Nintendo Magazine in 2006,
Steve Jarratt commented that 1080°
Snowboarding "boasted the best
video game representation of snow"
and was complemented by
"swooshy" sound effects. Positive
comments were also made about
handling and the quality of the
multiplayer.[40] In summary, Jarratt
believed "this was a straight-up
snowboarder, stunt-free but fast and
fun".[40] The magazine also ranked it
the 87th best game available on
Nintendo platforms. The staff felt it
was the most realistic snowboarding
game ever made.[41]

The game won the Academy of

Interactive Arts & Sciences' 1999
Console Sports Game of the Year
award.[42]

PC Data, which tracked sales in the

United States, reported that 1080°
Snowboarding sold 817,529 units and
earned $40.9 million in revenues by
the end of 1998. This made it the
country's seventh-best-selling
Nintendo 64 release of the year.[43]
The game ultimately sold 1,230,000
units in the United States, and over
23,000 in Japan.[44] It did not, however,
match the success of the developers'
first game, Wave Race 64 which sold
1,950,000 units in the United States
and 154,000 in Japan.[44] 1080°
Snowboarding was re-released on the
Wii's Virtual Console service in
2008.[45]
Sequel
1080° Avalanche, a sequel to 1080°
Snowboarding, was released for the
GameCube in 2003; the sequel
received a harsher critical reception,
due to "frame rate issues and limited
gameplay".[46]

References

Notes

テン・エイティ ス
a. Japanese:
ノーボーディング, Hepburn:
Ten Eiti Sunōbōdingu
 b. Four critics of Electronic Gaming
Monthly gave the game each a
score of 9.5/10, 8/10, 7.5/10, and
8.5/10.
c. In GameFan's viewpoint of the
game, one critic gave it 91, and
another 88.
d. GamePro gave the game 4/5 for
sound, and three 5/5 scores for
graphics, control, and overall fun
factor.

Citations

1. 1080 Snowboarding Instruction

Booklet. Japan: Nintendo. 1998.
 pp. 15–16.
2. 1080 Snowboarding Instruction
Booklet. Japan: Nintendo. 1998.
pp. 12–15, 17.
3. 1080 Snowboarding Instruction
Booklet. Japan: Nintendo. 1998.
pp. 4–6.
4. Casamassina, Matt (2 April
1998). "1080° Snowboarding
Review (N64)" . IGN. Ziff Davis.
Archived from the original on 4
March 2014. Retrieved 17 April
2007.
5. Marriott, Scott Alan. "1080°
Snowboarding – Overview" .
AllGame. All Media Network.
Archived from the original on 2
January 2010. Retrieved 14 May
2007.
6. Operation Card for 1080°
Snowboarding. Nintendo Co., Ltd.
1998.
7. Dr_Moo (May 1998). "1080
Snowboarding Review" .
GameRevolution. CraveOnline.
Archived from the original on 13
June 1998. Retrieved
20 December 2020.
8. 1080 Snowboarding Instruction
Booklet. Japan: Nintendo. 1998.
p. 12.
9. 1080 Snowboarding Instruction
Booklet. Japan: Nintendo. 1998.
pp. 12–13.
10. "1080 Snowboarding Guide" . G4.
G4 Media. 20 April 1999.
Archived from the original on
29 September 2007. Retrieved
14 May 2007.
11. "1080° Snowboarding Prima
FastTrack Guide" . IGN. Ziff
Davis. 9 December 1999.
Archived from the original on 8
August 2007. Retrieved 3 June
2007.
12. IGN staff (21 November 1997).
"Head for the Slopes" . IGN. Ziff
Davis. Archived from the
original on 15 September 2007.
Retrieved 20 December 2020.
13. IGN staff (30 January 1998).
"1080 Shreds the Competition" .
IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from
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2007. Retrieved 20 December
2020.
14. Nintendo Entertainment
Analysis and Development (1
April 1998). 1080° Snowboarding.
Nintendo of America, Inc. Scene:
staff credits.
15. "1080 Snowboarding" . Rotten
Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived
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2007. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
16. IGN staff (19 March 1998). "1080
Snowboarding Interview" . IGN.
Ziff Davis. Archived from the
original on 25 May 2007.
Retrieved 20 December 2020.
17. "1080° Snowboarding" . Nintendo
Co., Ltd. (in Japanese). Archived
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18. IGN staff (26 March 1998). "1080
Delayed in Europe" . IGN. Ziff
Davis. Archived from the
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Retrieved 20 December 2020.
19. "1080° Snowboarding (n64: 1998):
Reviews" . Metacritic. CNET.
Archived from the original on
24 June 2008. Retrieved
21 August 2010.
20. Edge staff (April 1998). "1080°
Snowboarding (Import)" . Edge.
No. 57. Future Publishing.
pp. 86–88. Retrieved
20 December 2020.
21. Edge staff (September 1998).
"1080° Snowboarding (PAL)" .
Edge. No. 62. Future Publishing.
p. 96. Retrieved 20 December
2020.
22. Smith, Shawn; Ricciardi, John;
Hsu, Dan; Davison, John (June
1998). "1080° Snowboarding" .
Electronic Gaming Monthly.
No. 107. Ziff Davis. p. 115.
Retrieved 20 December 2020.
23. Whitehead, Dan (19 January
2008). "Virtual Console
Roundup" . Eurogamer. Gamer
Network. Retrieved
20 December 2020.
24. "テンエイティ スノーボーデ
ィング [NINTENDO64]" . Famitsu
(in Japanese). Enterbrain.
Retrieved 20 December 2020.
25. McNamara, Andy; Anderson,
Paul; Reiner, Andrew (April
1998). "1080° Snowboarding" .
Game Informer. No. 60.
FuncoLand. Archived from the
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Retrieved 20 December 2020.
26. Higgins, Geoff "El Nino"; Ngo,
George "Eggo" (May 1998). "1080
Snowboarding" . GameFan.
Vol. 6 no. 5. Metropolis Media.
p. 54. Retrieved 20 December
2020.
27. Air Hendrix (May 1998). "1080°
Snowboarding" . GamePro.
No. 116. IDG Entertainment. p. 74.
Archived from the original on 14
November 2004. Retrieved
20 December 2020.
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"1080 Snowboarding Review" .
GameSpot. CBS Interactive.
Archived from the original on 17
May 2007. Retrieved 17 April
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29. Thomas, Lucas M. (29 January
2008). "1080 Snowboarding
Review (Wii)" . IGN. Ziff Davis.
Retrieved 20 December 2020.
30. Ashton, James (April 1998).
"1080° Snowboarding (Import)".
N64 Magazine. No. 14. Future
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31. "1080° Snowboarding". N64
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32. "Daffy (1080° Snowboarding
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Gamer Network. Retrieved
20 December 2020.
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"1080° Snowboarding Review
(Wii U eShop / N64)" . Nintendo
Life. Gamer Network. Retrieved
20 December 2020.
35. "1080° Snowboarding" . Nintendo
Power. Vol. 106. Nintendo of
America, Inc. March 1998. p. 96.
Retrieved 20 December 2020.
36. Buchanan, Levi (1 October 2008).
"Nintendo 64 Week: Day Three" .
IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from
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37. Huhtala, Alex (November 1998).
"1080 Snowboarding" . Computer
and Video Games. No. 204.
EMAP. pp. 46–47. Archived
from the original on 15 March
2008. Retrieved 20 December
2020.
38. Cheung, Kevin (July 1998). "1080
Snowboarding" . Hyper. No. 57.
Next Media Pty Ltd. pp. 40–41.
Retrieved 20 December 2020.
39. Sackenheim, Shawn. "1080°
Snowboarding – Review" .
AllGame. All Media Network.
Archived from the original on 14
November 2014. Retrieved
17 April 2007.
40. Jarratt, Steve (May 2006).
"What do you mean, you've
never played 1080°
Snowboarding". Official Nintendo
Magazine. Future Publishing.
p. 19.
41. East, Tom (17 February 2009).
"Nintendo Feature: 100 Best
Nintendo Games: Part One" .
Official Nintendo Magazine.
Future plc. p. 2. Archived from
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Retrieved 5 December 2013.
42. "Console Sports Game of the
Year" . Academy of Interactive
Arts & Sciences. Archived from
the original on 7 March 2008.
Retrieved 1 June 2011.
43. "High Scores: Top Titles in the
Game Industry" . Feed Magazine.
22 April 1999. Archived from the
original on 8 May 1999.
44. United States sales: "US
Platinum Videogame
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Archived from the original
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17 April 2007.
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 45. "Virtual Console" . Nintendo.
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Interactive. Archived from the
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Retrieved 17 April 2007.

External links
1080° Snowboarding at
Nintendo.com (archives of the
original at the Internet Archive)
 Official website (in Japanese)
1080° Snowboarding at
MobyGames

Retrieved from
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