Snowboard Kids is an action racing series produced by
Atlus and Racjin debuting in 1997 on the Nintendo 64. While it didn't make much of a splash compared to
similar first-party titles, the cute atmosphere and unique character designs were part of what helped it gain enough recognition to spawn two sequels -
Snowboard Kids 2 and
Snowboard Kids Plus (the latter released
only in Japan for the Playstation).
Years of inactivity passed until 2005, when
SBK: Snowboard Kids was announced out of the blue for the Nintendo DS. Unfortunately, this attempt at re-imagining the series to
appeal to teenagers did poorly with both critics and the fanbase. Despite this, Atlus claims they haven't given up on the series yet, but only time will tell...
Examples:
- Big Boos Haunt: The "Haunted House" level in Snowboard Kids 2.
- Everythings Better With Penguins
- Implied Love Interest: A number of fans believe that Slash and Nancy are meant to be together under the assumption that they're the main boy and girl, though most of their interactions involve Nancy bemoaning Slash's reckless behavior. Jam/Linda is another popular pairing in a similar state, except their relations are far less friendly.
- Incredible Shrinking Man: The basis behind the "Wendy's House" level in Snowboard Kids 2, as the eponymous character built a course in her own home.
- In Name Only: For SBK: Snowboard Kids, Atlus USA even tacked on the classic counterparts' surnames for the sake of familiarity. (For the record, they weren't present in the Japanese version.)
- Invisible Wall
- The Libby: Linda and Nicole.
- Lions And Tigers And Humans Oh My: The animal characters are a minority compared to the humans, but it still counts.
- Nintendo Hard
- No Export For You: Snowboard Kids Plus was a Playstation port of the original with three new characters, cutscenes, and character customization. It didn't see a release outside of Japan.
- Rubber Band AI
- Slippy Slidey Ice World: Well... duh.
- Stripperific: Linda and Nicole are the biggest offenders, and Pamela can wear a two-piece bikini. Ruby is the sole male example, with terrifying results. Two Words: Green. Speedo.
- All Of Those &$@! Bosses
- They Changed It Now It Sucks: The DS game, compared to the earlier ones. Justified in that... It really is that bad.
- True to the subjective nature of the above trope, there are a minority who actually do enjoy the game, or at least don't think that Snowboard Kids is Ruined FOREVER because of it.
- The Computer Is A Cheating Bastard: Good lord, where do we start...the first game gets ridiculous by the last few courses due to unfair AI advantages and Shinobin. This is toned down in the second game, but Expert Mode brings back the omniscient AI just to taunt you.
- Ugly Cute: The character designs for the first three games feature comically large noses and beady eyes, but it grew on the fans as being a hallmark of the series. Imagine their disappointment when SBK: Snowboard Kids went down the Generic Cuteness route instead...
- Wacky Racing: Most of the racetracks? They have no snow.
- Yonkoma: The instruction manuals for the first and second games featured these, showing off all the items.
- Younger Than They Look: Taken to ridiculous lengths with Linda, Nicole, Pamela, and Ruby - can you believe they're only ten-to-eleven years old? This is lampshaded with Ruby, who is noted to take offense at being mistaken for a chaperone.
