OlliOlli (Nintendo 3DS) Review

Those that have already read Cubed3's reviews for the Wii U eShop and Xbox One ports of Roll7's skater will already know that OlliOlli oozes flair while still being a challenging and rich experience, but it's fair to say that some of this is lost in its transition to the smaller screen. The core gameplay remains unchanged, but next to its high definition siblings it's definitely the runt of the litter.

What once was a heart-pounding, bass-heavy soundtrack feels paltry on the handheld. It may be a limitation of the device rather than the game itself, but the experience feels overall less engaging without being able to crank up the volume and lose oneself in OlliOlli's mesmerisingly addictive gameplay. The graphics also lose some of their lustre with the lower resolution, and the smaller screen makes some rails and even the player character a little harder to make out.

It's also disappointing to see that Curve Digital hasn't bothered utilising the 3DS fully in this port. Just as in its handheld version of Titan Attacks!, the stereoscopic 3D function is ignored completely and, while it wouldn't have added much, it would have provided more of an incentive to opt for this edition. At least the touch screen is used for menu navigation, although even this is slightly lacking; for some reason, certain menu options are relegated to the top screen meaning that stylus navigation isn't universal.

That's not to say, of course, that the 3DS version of OlliOlli isn't worthy of standing up next to its big brothers - and those without the other console options will still find plenty to enjoy in its incredibly engaging boarding action. It's just a shame that when style is so integral to the overall experience, it should be lacking in this port.