Monster Energy Supercross 25 - The Official Video Game Review

If you’re a fan of dirt bikes, and why wouldn’t you be, then there is good news: Monster Energy Supercross 25 - The Official Video Game is here as the next title in the series! Now, I have to be honest: I’ve never really played a Supercross game, so will this be the game that’ll convince me to rev my engine, or is it a wipeout?

So, first things first: There is a career mode that lets you race rivals and other competitors across the world. For the most part, Monster Energy Supercross 25’s career is what you expect as you compete in various races to earn levels, which in turn unlock new bike parts plus uniforms. However, there’s a little more to it than that, as you’ll also get to talk to other drivers on occasion to build a relationship with them.

Over time, you’ll start to gain a reputation depending on how you respond to certain people, which will affect how they treat you on social media and in races. Sadly, it’s mostly done through text chains rather than any in-person interactions with the other riders. Meanwhile, the “moral” system of the game isn’t all that complex. The issue is that you’re only given two to three options to respond, and it’s pretty obvious which side of the moral spectrum they fall on. 

While the “social” aspect is nice, it’s not deep, and none of the characters are interacted with in any meaningful way in person. As such, they’re just another figure on the bike, so you never really feel a connection to them as rivals and other racers.

Thankfully, the real meat of Monster Energy Supercross 25 is the racing, and it takes a bit of time to get used to. So, the first thing to note is that Supercross racing is a little different than going around a track in a car. Firstly, you don’t just run laps; instead, you have to keep going around the course for ten minutes before completing two laps. Secondly, the tracks are full of bumps, jumps, and sharp turns. Thankfully, you have a dirt bike, which is the perfect vehicle for this terrain! However, riding the bike takes a little bit of getting used to. 

When you’re on your bike, you can accelerate and brake, as you would expect, but you also have to move your weight around to get the best results. I originally tried to play the game on a keyboard and mouse; it’s next to impossible to get the right level of control when moving. As such, Monster Energy Supercross 25 is a better experience with a controller. When using one you control the bike’s direction with the left stick while shifting your weight with the right. It takes some getting used to, but honestly, it gets much easier the more you do it. With that said, I never got very high on the scoreboard.

My biggest issue was that the bike sometimes has a mind of its own; it can react to your input in weird ways. For instance, on more than one occasion, my rider would decide that now was the perfect time to just do a flip. Also, while you can change how responsive the bike is overall, it’ll still punish you for little mistakes. This is a problem because the AI won’t usually make the same mistakes, and they’ll punish you for losing too much time. 

The second problem is more of a personal one, but I think it’ll be a turn-off for a lot of new users. The issue is that ten minutes going around the same track gets pretty old, and I found that after five, I was more willing to lose than restart when I fell too far behind the other riders. Finally, there’s the problem that all of this has been done to some degree or another before. While Monster Energy Supercross 25 is fun, I can’t recall much of the entire experience. 

Thankfully, the game is beautiful to look at, with the character models showing a real sense of momentum. The maps also look great, and the main menu has a sense of style that helps it avoid being too boring to look at for too long. You also have the option to customise your character's clothes, as well as make your bike a bit more unique. It’s not a necessary feature, but it’s nice to see. 

Monster Energy Supercross 25 is a game that does everything it needs to for fans of the series, but there’s not enough here to bring in a host of new players. The racing genre is by no means a small market, so it’s tough for a game to really stand out, especially a title that feels very by the numbers. With all that said, this title works mechanically, and you can have a lot of fun with it. So, if you are looking to get into a game about dirt biking, this is probably one of the best you can grab.