Basically the game is a series of street courses that vary in terrain and difficulty. The player skateboards in Los Angeles, in-line skates in Vegas, Mountain bikes in Africa, and Snowboards in Japan. Each country has three different courses for the same 'vehicle'. Players can control the difficulty of each level based on whether or not they want computer players racing with them, which tends to get crowded, and if they choose to turn the fighting option on.

Fighting mode pits one racer against all the rest in a no holds barred race in which he can knock other racers down who are impeding his progress. If this is your choice of settings, the race becomes a wild and confusing melee with fists and bodies flying. In opposition to this , a player can choose to run the course all by themselves and work on getting 'wicked' air and seeing how many 'radical' maneuvers they can pull off. The controls for doing tricks on each of the self-propelled vehicles consist of the same two and three button combinations, but are very difficult to do. After a week and a half at the game, this 'extremist' was still frustrated by the number of tricks I could not do.

The name of this game is speed. On each level and on each vehicle the timing is the key to this speed. Obstacles approach very quickly and are hard to avoid at first, but as you play you get more used to the rapid pace of action on the screen. In the two player mode, you can challenge a friend in a split-screen format which can be distracting but still fun. You can also embark on an 'extreme season' as well where you take part in all four events, three courses each, and determine who among us is the most 'Hard Core'. This is an exciting way to become proficient at each event.

In its concept, this game is strong. It combines reflex and strategy and lets you control a number of variables that can make the game more interesting. However, the fact that they have not included some other events or levels, such as a half-pipe for each vehicle, is too bad. A skills competition is all this game needs to make it great. One where the tricks are the only thing one is rewarded for.

2-Xtreme could have taken some hints from the early Nintendo game, California Games, which featured skills competition. Improved with the graphics, sound and other capabilities of the new systems, a game that included these extra features would be quite enjoyable. Overall this game rates a flat B, because it is fun but it could be even better.