Featuring absolutely massive levels and very realistic gameplay, Aggressive Inline is one of the best extreme sports games I've played so far. It takes a very different approach to the genre, in that there's no time limit in Career Mode similar to how Tony Hawk 4 will be when it is released this fall. This is good, as it gives you more time to explore the levels without worrying about the time. Another thing is that the game takes on a sort of RPG approach, meaning you have to build up your statistics over time. Whereas it's easy to level up at first, the more you want to improve on a statistic the harder it becomes. I really like this idea, because it means people actually have to play the game to improve their skater, rather than buy stats or find statistics in the levels.

As mentioned the game features no time limit, but instead relies on a juice meter. When completing a trick the meter will fill based on how well you completed the moves, and will eventually fill up granting you more speed and balance. Just the opposite occurs though when you fall, with the meter decreasing. While this all sounds simple in theory, as mentioned you need to play the game awhile to get 100% on all stats, and as your stats go up, so does the difficulty of your juice meter. Once the meter empties a continue will cost you 100,000 points. While it may seem like a lot, most levels have goals of over a million points accrued, with some having even more then that. It goes without saying some levels will take hours to complete.

Hours you ask? It is hard to put in writing how gigantic these levels are. The first level alone features an outside area that is about 2 city blocks long, a movie lot, a warehouse, graveyard, haunted house, mad scientist laboratory, and a skate park. All of this can be reached seamlessly with no load time or slowdown. To unlock some of the areas you require a key for the level, which must be obtained from another level. Aggressive Inline really focuses on making you a better extreme sports player then anything. This is not a game you can jump on and complete a quick checklist of tasks to complete the game. You must explore, and master each level to accomplish the goals on each level, as they all require components of the other to be successful.

Graphically the game flows at a smooth 60 frames per second with no noticeable slow down to report of. The engine allows for tons of movement of not only your skater, but various NPC's who assign missions, and various aspects of the environment. An example of this is the Boardwalk level which features a ferris wheel, roller coaster, and a host of carnival rides all in motion at the same time. As mentioned before the complexity of this game is amazing. Never before has a extreme sports title been so addicting due to the expansive levels. Overall the games graphics are very colorful, and crisp. With plenty of action going on screen, sometimes it is almost too much.

The sound is not terrific, but it does fit into the game nicely. While the sound effects could have been better, everything in the game features a sound byte. NPC's speak to you about the mission they assign, automobiles have distinct sounds, and every environment has a sound set that makes the game feel fresh at times. As with any extreme sports title Aggressive Inline features a slew of music from punk, to hip-hop.

Aggressive online also features a free skate mode, multiplayer modes, an expansive park editor so you can create your own massive skate park, and also some hidden characters and items. The game's career mode was plenty for me, but there is plenty more to do for those who see fit. The Xbox version features an additional map of the Zoo for those you opt to purchase the Xbox version over the PS2.

Overall Aggressive Inline is one of the best extreme sports titles I have ever played. With a hint of RPG gameplay, mixed with huge levels and plenty of obstacles to trick off, Aggressive Inline is the first inline title, and the head of the extreme sports genre. It is about time the Tony Hawk series had some serious competition, and Aggressive Inline is it!