Aspyr Adrenaline Sports Pack for the Mac

Holy crap!!! Did you watch the X-Games? Man, they were doing some sick stuff. Makes me want to do some xtreme sports, except I’m afraid of getting hurt. Trying to grind down a handrail on a skateboard could be a testicle-crushing experience or I could drown trying to surf ten-foot waves.

Growing up I used to be big on jumping ramps with my BMX bike. (Note: Never jump with rubber slippers. You might end up with scars on the top of your feet.) I tried to jump as high as I could and on occasion take a foot or arm off. I remember this one jump when I tried to do a no-footer. As I gained altitude, I quickly pulled my feet off of the pedals and spread them outward. Unfortunately, as I brought my feet back, I missed the pedals and my love nuggets got crushed. Fortunately, for my future children, every thing was all right.

Thank gonads, for the Adrenaline Sports Pack (ASP) by Aspyr, which allows me to participate in xtreme sports from the comfort and safety of my computer. The ASP consists of three best-selling games: Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4, Kelly Slater’s Pro Surfer, and Wakeboarding Unleashed Featuring Shaun Murray. Individually, each game sells for $20-$30, however the ASP costs only $19.99 for the full versions of each game. Although I purchased the Mac version, there’s also a Windows version available.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4 is by far the best game out of the three. I guess when you’re up to the fourth game in the series you’re going to know what you’re doing. It can be a very frustrating game if you play in the career mode, because some of the goals seem almost impossible.

As for Kelly Slater’s Pro Surfer and Wakeboarding Unleashed…Um…I didn’t really get to play with them yet because I’m still trying to beat Pro Skater 4 and I guess that’s why I said it’s by far the best game out of the three. It really is a frustrating game. I would’ve waited to write this review until I spent some significant time with all three games, but I really, really, really needed a review for today and this was the only one closest to being done. Also I don’t play a new game until I beat the game I’m playing.

One thing to note about the ASP is the high system requirements for Macs, which consist of at least a 733 Mhz G4/G5 processor with 256MB of RAM and 32MB of Video RAM. For Windows, you’re going to need at least an 800Mhz Pentium 3 with 256MB of RAM and 32MB of Video RAM, which seems pretty modest.

Also to make the game easier, it would be wise to purchase a game controller. For my Mac, I bought a $13 USB to Playstation adapter from a national electronics store chain that uses B-List celebrities in their commercials and a $10 Playstation 2 controller from a national computer store chain that’s slowly moving away from computers to be more like its competitors.

If you’re looking for some xtreme action without the possibility of broken bones or you wrapped around a park bench, try the Adrenaline Sports Pack.

But then again a wise man once said, “Pain heals, chicks dig scars, and glory lasts forever.”

Item: Aspyr Adrenaline Sports Pack for the Mac
Purchase Price: $19.99
Rating: 4 out of 5
Pros: Great price for all three games. Ability to experience xtreme sports without the hassles of emergency rooms and doctors. Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4 is an xtremely fun game and as for the others, maybe I’ll let you know later.
Cons: High Mac system requirements. You can control games with your keyboard, but buying a controller would make it easier.