Funny how something so seemingly innocent as a video game can turn you into a shape-throwing, props-dealing, gnarly dude. Shaun Palmer's Pro Snowboarder on the PS2 will tug at your overlong wallet chain `til you give it maximum respec', man. Enough! What's the game like? Loud, in all senses of the word. The visuals are dazzlingly bright and clear (that'll be the snow) and the soundtrack is teeming with nu-metal scamps such as Alien Ant Farm, Papa Roach and Spineshank, plus some older, but no wiser souls like Pantera and The Supersuckers. Like I said, loud. Single-player modes in SPPS are limited to Career and Free Ride. Career sees you showing off your skills, gaining experience and improving your abilities. The better your performance, access to extra boards and courses is granted. Free Ride is where you get to practice, practice, and practice some more. Choose a level and ride for as long as you like, and discover new riding techniques and tricks. You can choose any level you like, as long as you've managed to unlock it in Career Mode. If you think you need a few pointers on your technique, turn on the tutorial messages option for your own private lesson. There are more play options available in two-player mode. `Freestyle' is your chance to really show off, to see who can ride the best lines, get the biggest air, and rack up the most points. `Palmer X' is your chance to show your friends that speed is the name of your game. Be careful not to count out your opponent just because you appear to be ahead. You have to keep pulling off tricks to earn speed boosts, or you might end up in second place. `Push' is a great idea, and one that we wish we'd have thought of. Two players play in a split-screen mode where the player who pulls off the hotter tricks claims more and more of the screen space until one player pushes the other off the screen. Brilliant! `Horse' is a one-on-one trick contest where you nail tricks and see if anyone can take you out. Your opponent must match or beat your score, or get stuck with a letter. The first player to get all the letters in the word `Horse', or whatever word you choose, doesn't have to know how to spell defeat - if you know what I mean. If, like your author, you're one of those people who would like to strap a plank to your feet and throw yourself off a mountain, but for the desire to stay in one piece, there's more than enough in Shaun Palmer's Pro Snowboarder to keep the virtual nutter in you happy