Developer/publisher Ubisoft (Annecy)

Format Luna, PC, PS4, PS5 (tested), Stadia, Xbox One, Xbox Series

Release Out now

They say you never get a second chance to make a first impression; in truth, only professional duty compels us to afford Ubisoft Annecy’s extremesports sandbox that privilege. Riders Republic’s first hour or so feels like an extravagant endurance test, filled as it is with cringe-yourself-rigid dialogue, interruptions so frequent as to induce whiplash, and occasionally both (video calls from characters who look and sound far too old to deliver such painful attempts at yoofspeak are an embarrassing nadir). As it shuttles you between events, unceremoniously whisking you from the slopes to the map screen just so it can vomit ugly markers all over it and generally treating you as if you have the attention span of a hyperactive toddler, you might wonder what you’ve done to deserve such cruel and unusual punishment. Which, fortunately, is when it learns to shut up and sets about earning that second chance.

It does for US national parks what Steep did for the Alps – that is, condenses vast real-world spaces and then invisibly stitches them together into one seamless sprawl, from dusty dirt tracks to thick strips of pillowy snow, with leafy forests and sparse tundra besides. Yet Riders Republic almost seems embarrassed by its predecessor (or at least unsure whether it should be drawing attention to the fact it was made by the same team). It’s telling, for example, that it introduces two control options but neglects to mention the third, based on inputs familiar to Steep players, tucked away within the settings menu. The other options are Racer (where buttons are used for tricks) and Trickster (where stunts are performed using the right stick, at the cost of camera control). Given the sumptuous views are part of the appeal, it’s tempting to stick with the former – but unsurprisingly, the best approach is to switch between the two depending on the event. If you’d rather focus on racing, an auto-land option means you only need worry about having enough air to pull off an extra spin or to jab Triangle again for a second front flip. Yet it’s more satisfying to use manual controls, even if mid-air movement is never quite as responsive as you might hope.