Challenge in games seems to be a well and truly dissolving convention. Sure, you've got the optional choices to ramp up the enemy hit points or make yourself a veritable pushover; but gone seem the hair-pulling skill that was required in previous consoles history. Trials HD makes a claim for these bygone eras - showing that games can be hard, but still oh-so-much fun.

The situation: You and your bike. Trials HD places you on a two-dimensional plane, as you follow a path, manoeuvring obstacles and explosives (amongst other contraptions) in a race against the clock to the finish line. Now, let me get this clear from the get-go. This is no racing game. You'll find yourself scratching your head at times, in the same vain as you would a puzzle game. But how can I game with a motorbike not have racing elements? You ask. Well - surely enough, it does.

One of the greatest and ill forgotten features in games today are leaderboards. Retail games are now judged on replayability as much as they are gameplay, so games with an absence of multiplayer often find themselves struggling to interest a gamers wallet, or if they do, only manage a rental or return. Extract the possibility of returns or rentals and you have yourself a unique platform to experiment with a potential match-winner. This means that leaderboards as a feature has been pushed to the wayside in favour of levelling as a projection of your ability. But Trials HD does away with this trend, creating a competitive spirit sorely missing amongst the gaming community. The thrill of passing a friends score or reaching the top of your list's leaderboard is one of true joy.

For the three minutes that you manage to stay there.

Yes, don't be surprised to find yourself see-sawing between positions in the pursuit of completing that elusive perfect run. A score you thought was un-beatable could be obliterated by the next morning. Though at first you might feel like there is nothing that you can do to one-up  your competitor, take a look at the infinitely helpful replays. Accessed through the leaderboards, you're able to view the world's best as well as the elite on your friends list. If you're finding a certain part of a level infuriatingly difficult - look at the replay. I'll bet you the entire TAGS treasury that you'll be able to chop off seconds off your previous times, which is important if you're wishing to parade your glory upon the forum. Essentially the game can still be perceived as a racing game, but not in any way you'd normally expect it to be. The element of racing is against your friends in a sort of non-contact, indirect way. But with the implementation of party chat, as you hear the pain of your compatriots missing the final jump over and over, you'd think they were right there with you. And of course, hilarity ensues.

Will he make it? Stay tuned!

There is no real story to the game, and frankly, any story would've been completely arbitrary. The focus should be and is on gameplay. Split into three individual sections, you have the aforementioned 'race' mode which makes up the bulk of the experience. Other additions include the 'skill games'. These ingenious modes will test your ability in more ways than one. The amount of variety is fantastic, with a large selection that is sure to keep you coming back. The equation remains the same, just you and your oily friend, but the tasks become much more obscure. For instance, in one of these games you are to see how far you can travel down a hill. Sound easy? What about if you were inside a giant metal ball (of death!)... that's what I thought. Another seeing you fling yourself carelessly from your bike down and into conveniently placed stairs and objects in order to break as many bones as possible. The final mode included is the amazingly robust level editor. What you see in the race mode of the game can be made using the level editor. Whilst it can be a little finicky at first, you'll soon be making complex levels. The reward of creating a successful track is well, not as much as I'd hoped. Sure you get an achievement, but it leads me to my main issue. You're not able to share with players on a global scale. You can only share with other people on your friends list, and likewise with uploading tracks. So if you're hoping to try out a megaton of created tracks it might be best to search the forums for Trials HD players with that creative itch.

I prefer to call it... incentive.

Graphically speaking, Trials earns its suffix. The game looks incredibly good for an arcade game, with no noticeable slow-down. Apart from the gameplay, the menus feature almost no loading time, so beware of the "just one more go" mentality as you could find yourself playing for more than just five more minutes.

A drawback for the casual gamer is the steep learning curve. Controlling your bike can take quite a while to get a grasp of the nuances of shifting your weight and using the accelerator. Starting off relatively simple, once the game reaches the extreme levels, you might want to cash in your gaming credibility, as it's freakin' hard. You might not even complete all of them (if any), depending on how well you've rolled with the punches up to this point. The last level in the game (titled Inferno II - gaming hell, if you like), is a real ego destroyer. Don't even bother about time the first time, just try and get through it if you can.

The nature of an arcade game is the lower price point, allowing for a less risky or guilt inducing purchase. This usually results in a sloppy port or unimaginative re-make. But I assure you, you will get more than your money's worth out of this game. It has depth beyond some retail games and is a worthy addition to any gamers library.

If this is the future of arcade games - sign me up.