Surfing H3O, known in Japan as Surfroid: Densetsu no Surfer (サーフロイド 伝説のサーファー, Sāfuroido Densetsu no Sāfā, lit. "Surfroid: The Legendary Surfer"), is a surfing video game developed by Opus and published by ASCII Entertainment in Japan and Rockstar Games internationally for the PlayStation 2.

Surfing H3O
Developer(s)Opus
Publisher(s)
Platform(s)PlayStation 2
Release
  • JP: August 10, 2000
  • NA: October 27, 2000[1]
  • EU: January 5, 2001
Genre(s)Sports
Mode(s)Single-player, Multi-player

Gameplay

edit

There are two play modes that can be chosen from the main menu: Tournament which contains a collection of levels with different conditions, and Vs. Mode that is designed as same as the Tournament, only for two players. The latter is not played simultaneously but the players will alternate their turns instead.[2] The goal is to travel through the waves that are moving in a certain direction while picking up the buoys scattered around and doing specific tricks, before the time limit expires.[3] Each course requires the players to collect a certain number of points before progressing to the next one. They can be obtained by collecting markers or performing tricks.[4]

In the Tournament mode, each series consists of six stages. Once a single series is completed, the next competition starts with the same amount of levels and with progressively more difficult conditions.[5] At the beginning, only two difficulty levels are unlocked, easy and intermediate. As each of these are completed, new ones are opening, such as pro or semi pro.[6] The players can choose from eleven different characters, like Kelly Sunset or Mark Mavericks. Each of them have slightly different stats.[7]

Development

edit

Surfing H3O is a reworked version of Surfroid. As a result, the plot that revolved around aliens and the planetary doomsday was cut off from this version.[8]

Reception

edit

The game received "generally unfavorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[9] Daniel Erickson of NextGen said that the game was "One cute gimmick away from absolute crap."[18] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 30 out of 40.[15] Four-Eyed Dragon of GamePro said, "Don't expect any Maverick thrills in this disappointing surfer. While it looks like the perfect wave and has an innovative way of controlling your boarder with a miniature surfboard that attaches to both analog sticks, Surfing H30 [sic] fails to stay afloat with fun gameplay."[20][a]

Notes

edit
  1. ^ GamePro gave the game 4.5/5 for graphics, 3.5/5 for sound, and two 2.5/5 scores for control and fun factor.

References

edit
  1. ^ IGN staff (November 13, 2000). "Games of November". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on May 21, 2023. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  2. ^ Daguinot, Jean-Charles (January 26, 2001). "Surfing H30 [sic] : le jeu qui fait la planche". Gamekult (in French). TF1 Group. Archived from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  3. ^ Grandio, Pablo (August 22, 2019). "Análisis de Surfing H3O (PS2)". El Español (in Spanish). El León de El Español Publicaciones S.A. Archived from the original on May 29, 2023. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  4. ^ Chatterton, Sally (February 12, 2001). "Games: Surfing H30 [sic]; Spawn; Ms Pac Man's Maze Madness". The Independent. Independent Digital News & Media Ltd. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  5. ^ a b Davis, Ryan (October 27, 2000). "Surfing H3O Review [date mislabeled as "November 3, 2000"]". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on December 3, 2000. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  6. ^ a b Perry, Douglass C. (November 3, 2000). "Surfing H30 [sic]". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on December 26, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  7. ^ a b Dr. Moo (February 2001). "Surfing H30 [sic] Review". GameRevolution. CraveOnline. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
  8. ^ a b Tsotsos, Alex (November 21, 2000). "Surfing H3O". SportPlanet. IGN Entertainment. Archived from the original on February 9, 2008. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  9. ^ a b "Surfing H3O". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on January 6, 2024. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  10. ^ Thompson, Jon. "Surfing H3O - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 15, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  11. ^ Saltzman, Marc (January 25, 2001). "Surfing H3O". Gamecenter. CNET. Archived from the original on February 15, 2001. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  12. ^ Edge staff (November 2000). "Surfroid" (PDF). Edge. No. 90. Future Publishing. p. 101. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 9, 2023. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  13. ^ Dudlak, Jonathan (January 2001). "Surfing H3O". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 138. Ziff Davis. p. 212. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
  14. ^ Steinberg, Scott (December 4, 2000). "Surfing H3O". The Electric Playground. Greedy Productions Ltd. Archived from the original on June 22, 2002. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  15. ^ a b "サーフロイド 伝説のサーファー [PS2]". Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Archived from the original on July 26, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  16. ^ Helgeson, Matt (January 2001). "Surfing H3O". Game Informer. No. 93. FuncoLand. p. 95. Archived from the original on January 30, 2008. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
  17. ^ pliou (January 31, 2001). "Test: Surfing H3O". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Webedia. Archived from the original on May 2, 2021. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  18. ^ a b Erickson, Daniel (February 2001). "Surfing H3O". NextGen. No. 74. Imagine Media. p. 73. Retrieved August 30, 2020.
  19. ^ Kennedy, Sam (January 2001). "Surfing H3O". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 40. Ziff Davis. p. 133. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  20. ^ Four-Eyed Dragon (January 2001). "Surfing H30 [sic]" (PDF). GamePro. No. 148. IDG. p. 78. Archived from the original on April 5, 2005. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
edit