The basic premise of SSX Blur is the same as all the other games in the franchise. You pick a character, take to the slopes, and try to win all of the tournaments, challenges and races on the mountain. Doing so unlocks more characters, boards and skis, and the game's two other peaks.

SSX Blur adds a leaderboard to track your progress against the other characters in the game. The Groove Meter not only works as a boost, but changes the music of the game: the more you've got it filled up, the more dynamic the music becomes. However, in contrast, the tricks and timing become harder to pull off at higher levels, making for an interesting game experience.

There's also the addition of being able to make snowballs, which you can throw at competitors to knock them down. It's not essential to the game to learn how to throw snowballs, save for a few challenges in the game. The controls are also unique to SSX Blur, but more on that later.

The game's graphics style and art direction seem to reflect the SSX franchise's previous game, SSX: On Tour. Compared to that last-generation game, there doesn't seem to be a huge jump in graphics improvement, but in SSX Blur, it really doesn't matter. The soundtrack is completely created by electronic musician Junkie XL, and while it's okay, it's a disappointment compared to the licensed soundtracks of the other SSX games.

SSX Blur's controls are both a blessing and a gripe. Using the Wii Remote to flip and rotate your character into moves feels incredibly natural, but using the Nunchuk to pull off grabs, carve into turns and both accelerate and slow down feels very, very awkward at first, and doesn't always work as it should. Using the Wii Remote to pull off Ubertricks doesn't feel awkward, but also seems to work about half as often as it should. That's a pity, because it otherwise works well for the Ubertricks.

Going through the tutorials is not only recommended, but it's essentially required to learn the controls. Compared to the pick-up-and-play ability that other Wii games like Elebits and Wii Sports, SSX Blur's controls can be quite challenging and will take a lot of practice to master, but when you do, they feel pretty good. Complaints that the controls are broken have been blown way out of proportion, but there's still some polishing and refinement that could be done by EA for the next SSX game on the Wii.

Even with these control difficulties, there's a ton of replay value in the game. With three separate peaks to conquer, SSX Blur offers many tournaments and challenges to master in a number of different manners. Some are straight-up races, while others are all about big air, riding the half pipe, or pulling off big tricks. Even after you get gold in these events, they're fun enough that you'll want to play through again.

Plus, these courses are scattered with collectibles that you can pick up to unlock more Ubertricks. Doing so requires you to ride a lot of different lines down each course, meaning you'll be going back again and again if you want to unlock everything. The game also contains a split-screen, two-player multiplayer mode and a four player, full-screen one that uses one controller, with players alternating turns.

In the end, SSX Blur is another winner for the Wii developed by EA. Though the controls could use some work, SSX Blur is definitely worth a look as one of the best games out there right now during the Wii's supposed "drought."

SSX Blur is rated E (Everyone) by the ESRB for Comic Mischief.