Published by Ultimate Games and developed by Turborilla, ‘Mad Skills BMX 2: Bike Game’ was originally released in 2017 as a mobile game and is the sequel to 2013’s Mad Skills BMX Blitz. The addictive BMX-themed mobile game now makes its way to Nintendo Switch, simply titled Mad Skills BMX 2.

Mad Skills BMX 2 is a fast side-scrolling racing game for BMX fans and arcade lovers. Race on hand-made tracks, perform tricks and outrace tough bosses. Unlock bikes, customise your rider, and race against friends in local versus mode.

The gameplay may seem simple at first, but it has a surprising amount of depth. The controls are intuitive, responsive and easy to pick up and play, but the game becomes increasingly challenging the more you progress. Players can choose between using the Switch controls or the touchscreen controls that work just like the mobile game. Only a few controls are needed with Pump to gain speed and land, jump to gain extra airtime, Rocket to boost your speed as long as you have any in stock and Backflip to gain more adrenaline.

Each race is a constant push and pull between gaining speed on the ground and soaring through the air, with the track designs forcing you to adapt on the fly. A well-timed jump might give you an edge, but your opponent could easily take the lead, pumping downhill while you’re in the air. Learning each track is the key to success, and you’ll likely be stacking it many times in various tracks.

The Restart button will instantly put you and your opponent back at the beginning to start over and get you back on track, so you can fail as many times as you need. The gameplay mechanics feel technical and satisfying without being overwhelming, as it rewards skill, timing and memorising each track.

There is a nice variety of different modes with Career Mode, Side Challenges and Local Versus Mode. Career Mode is the main single player mode, taking you through various locations such as mountains, forests, scrapyards, streets and more while introducing challenging boss races that keep the progression exciting. Side Challenges include Rocket Races, Backflip Contests and Time Attacks, and each offers some extra challenges to keep you busy while still contributing to your earnings and skill growth.

The Local Versus Mode is a fun addition exclusive to the Switch version, allowing you and a friend to race each other. The mobile version may not have Local Versus Mode, but it does have online multiplayer, matching you against opponents around the world.

Unfortunately, the Switch version completely omits the online multiplayer, but the mobile version is free to download and play for those wanting to take on opponents across the globe, and it performs quite well, too.

The Garage is where you can customise your bike and rider from what you’ve collected so far via game progression. You can equip new bikes, upgrade stats such as speed, pump, and jump, and outfit your rider with fresh gear and your bike with new paint jobs. The Shop also offers rockets for temporary speed boosts, which can be crucial in tough races.

If you don’t want to spend any of your hard-earned cash on rockets, the game will provide you with free rockets every few hours. It can be annoying having a limited number of rockets, and you won’t get them back if you have to restart a race. Thankfully, it is possible to win every race without the need for rockets, which should really only be used as a last resort.

Graphics-wise, the game has a bright and colourful look, with a variety of environments that make each race feel unique despite the single lane track layout. You really do get a sense of speed as you blitz down each track, and flying through the air feels invigorating, even for a 2D side-scrolling game.

It looks just as good in both docked and handheld mode, which may not be saying much since this is a port of a mobile game and there aren’t any enhancements to the graphics, but overall, it’s still a good-looking game.

The soundtrack has an urban feel that fits in well with the BMX-themed game, but you only hear it in the menu screens and get none of it during gameplay. On the flip side, though, the music can get repetitive during the menu screens, so it’s probably not a bad thing, as you’ll be hearing all the sounds of your bike as you ride through each terrain. Even without music, the game still gives you that thrill and excitement you’d expect from a BMX game.

The Switch version thankfully removes all the constant ads and pop-ups persuading you to spend real money to boost your stats and possibly makes this version more ideal for kids to play. The game only costs $15 AUD for Nintendo Switch, which is a good deal for something that’s fun, addictive and easy to play to keep you or the kids busy for a while. The game has a lot of replayability, too, and going back and completing older stages is a good way to earn more in-game currency.

Whether you’re playing this on a Nintendo Switch or on mobile, this is a fantastic, simple game that will keep anyone busy and entertained, whether they just want to kill a few minutes or spend hours perfecting each track and conquering the game. Mad Skills BMX 2 is a pocket-sized adrenaline rush!

Written by: Sammy Hanson