YouTuber Leon Massey has released a comprehensive retrospective titled SSX Was a Product that analyzes EA’s legendary snowboarding franchise not just as a beloved gaming series, but as a business venture shaped by corporate strategy, market conditions, and evolving financial priorities. The video examines why SSX, which launched EA Sports BIG and defined arcade snowboarding games for over a decade, has remained dormant since 2012 despite the reboot’s respectable sales performance.
Understanding the Title
The provocative title SSX Was a Product has generated discussion in gaming communities, with some initially interpreting it as anti-EA sentiment. However, as viewers who watched the full analysis note, Massey isn’t simply criticizing EA or suggesting they acted against their own interests. Instead, he examines how SSX functioned within EA’s broader business ecosystem, looking at sales data, market positioning, and corporate priorities to understand why the franchise ultimately faded away.
The retrospective takes a nuanced approach, acknowledging that while financial incentive played a significant role in SSX’s lifecycle, it wasn’t the only factor determining the series’ fate. Massey dives into EA’s financial reports, examining how SSX performed commercially across its various entries and what that meant for the publisher’s willingness to continue investing in the franchise.
The Birth of SSX and EA Sports BIG
SSX launched in October 2000 as one of the PlayStation 2’s North American launch titles, emerging from the creative vision of Steven Rechtschaffner, a former professional skier turned EA producer. Rechtschaffner had pitched the concept around 1994, but EA wasn’t ready to produce it until he had proven himself with work on FIFA 94 and Triple Play baseball games. His previous successes earned him what he called his silver bullet, the opportunity to pursue a passion project.
The original SSX wasn’t breaking entirely new ground. Games like 1080 Snowboarding, Cool Boarders, and Snowboard Kids had already explored the genre. However, SSX distinguished itself through over-the-top trick systems, improbable stunts, and an arcade sensibility that prioritized fun over realism. The game received critical acclaim, winning five awards from the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences including Console Sports Game of the Year and Racing Game of the Year.
Interestingly, despite the critical praise, the original SSX was deemed a commercial failure at launch. However, the positive reception convinced EA that they had something special. Rechtschaffner leveraged his background in marketing and branding from his time at Swatch to propose a new label within EA Sports called EA Sports BIG, specifically for experimental, larger-than-life sports titles. This branding came together just weeks before SSX’s launch and would go on to produce franchises like NBA Street, NFL Street, and Freekstyle.
The Golden Era: Tricky and SSX 3
SSX Tricky arrived just one year after the original in 2001, functioning more as an enhanced edition than a true sequel. It remixed tracks from the first game but introduced the crucial Tricky meter mechanic that became synonymous with the series. The game also featured Run-DMC’s It’s Tricky playing almost non-stop, creating an obnoxiously amazing soundtrack that perfectly captured the game’s silly, bombastic tone. By the 2002 financial report, Tricky had reached the million sales milestone.
SSX 3 launched in 2003 and represented the franchise’s creative and commercial peak. Running on a new graphical engine with 2-8 player online multiplayer, the game featured a massive open mountain that players could explore seamlessly from peak to base. Critics hailed it as one of the best sports games ever made, and it expanded the fanbase tremendously. The game sold over a million copies and cemented SSX as one of EA’s most successful franchises of the PlayStation 2 era.
The Decline Begins
SSX On Tour released in 2005 and marked the beginning of the franchise’s decline. The game shifted focus away from the iconic established characters toward generic character customization, following industry trends of the mid-2000s. More critically, it removed online multiplayer entirely, which many fans saw as a major step backward after SSX 3’s robust online features. The game didn’t make the same splash commercially or critically as its predecessor.
By this point, Steven Rechtschaffner had stepped away from hands-on development of individual titles as his role within EA demanded broader creative oversight. SSX 3 was the last game he directly executive produced under EA Sports BIG, and his absence was felt in the subsequent entries. The franchise had evolved from an experimental passion project into just another product line, losing some of the creative spark that made the early entries special.
The 2012 Reboot and Its Aftermath
After a seven-year hiatus, EA attempted to revive SSX in 2012 with a franchise reboot simply titled SSX. The game aimed to modernize the series while maintaining its arcade sensibility, introducing deadly descent events where environmental hazards like avalanches and crevasses posed lethal threats. The reboot featured a controversial rewind mechanic that allowed players to undo mistakes, though many felt it disrupted the flow and was more punishing than simply respawning on the track.
The 2012 reboot moved away from the over-the-top pipe-filled tracks of earlier games toward more realistic mountain environments. While this grounded approach had its defenders, many fans found the tracks less memorable and felt it easier to lose sight of opponents during races. The game also shifted multiplayer to an online-only asynchronous model, removing the simultaneous local and online multiplayer that had been a franchise staple.
Despite mixed reception from longtime fans, the 2012 SSX performed respectably at launch. It ranked among the top five best-selling games in the United States for March 2012, holding its own against juggernauts like EA’s own Mass Effect 3. By conventional measures, the reboot was successful enough to warrant continued investment. Yet EA never greenlit a follow-up, leaving the franchise dormant for over 13 years and counting.
Why SSX Stayed Dead
Massey’s retrospective explores several factors that contributed to SSX remaining dormant despite the 2012 reboot’s reasonable commercial performance. The gaming market had fundamentally changed since SSX 3’s heyday. By 2012, EA’s focus had shifted toward live service games, multiplayer-focused experiences, and franchises that could sustain ongoing monetization through DLC and microtransactions. Annual sports franchises like FIFA, Madden, and NHL provided reliable revenue streams that arcade sports games couldn’t match.
The extreme sports genre itself had fallen out of fashion. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, once a cultural phenomenon, had crashed spectacularly with poorly received entries in the late 2000s. Skate, EA’s own skateboarding simulation franchise, had concluded with Skate 3 in 2010. The appetite for snowboarding games specifically had diminished, with the genre feeling like a relic of the PlayStation 2 era rather than something modern audiences craved.
Additionally, the 2012 reboot’s design philosophy created an identity crisis. It wasn’t arcade enough to satisfy fans of Tricky and SSX 3’s exaggerated gameplay, but it wasn’t realistic enough to appeal to simulation enthusiasts. The deadly descents that emphasized survival over style felt at odds with what made SSX special in the first place. Without a clear vision for what SSX should be in the modern gaming landscape, EA likely decided the safest move was simply letting the franchise rest.
Massey’s Approach and Reception
Leon Massey’s content has generated mixed reactions in gaming communities. His earlier work focused on fighting games like Guilty Gear, but he’s since expanded to cover a broader range of titles. Some viewers appreciate his engaging presentation style and willingness to dive into financial data and business analysis. Others have criticized certain videos for containing inaccuracies, particularly his fighting game content which received pushback from competitive players.
However, the SSX retrospective has been received more positively than some of his previous work. Commenters note that it offers a more nuanced perspective than typical why isn’t there a sequel videos that plague YouTube. By incorporating EA’s financial reports and acknowledging the limitations of his analysis, Massey demonstrates a more mature approach to understanding why beloved franchises sometimes disappear regardless of fan demand.
The Legacy of EA Sports BIG
SSX’s story is inseparable from the rise and fall of EA Sports BIG itself. The label produced numerous successful franchises beyond SSX, including NBA Street in 2001, which quickly became a huge success, and NFL Street, which brought the same arcade sensibility to football. Freekstyle followed SSX’s formula using motorcycles instead of snowboards. At its peak, EA Sports BIG represented EA’s willingness to take creative risks with sports games rather than just churning out annual simulation updates.
However, as the gaming industry matured and budgets ballooned, EA’s appetite for experimental sports titles diminished. The EA Sports BIG label gradually faded, with its last major releases coming in the mid-2000s. The parent company refocused on safer bets with proven annual revenue streams. SSX became a casualty of this shift in corporate priorities, a reminder that even critically acclaimed, commercially successful franchises can disappear when they no longer align with a publisher’s strategic direction.
FAQs
What is Leon Massey’s SSX retrospective about?
Leon Massey’s video titled SSX Was a Product examines the SSX franchise through a business analysis lens, exploring how financial incentives, market conditions, and EA’s corporate priorities shaped the series and why it’s been dormant for over 13 years despite reasonable sales performance.
When did the last SSX game release?
The most recent SSX game was the 2012 reboot, simply titled SSX. Despite ranking among the top five best-selling games in the United States for March 2012, EA never produced a follow-up, leaving the franchise dormant for over 13 years.
What was EA Sports BIG?
EA Sports BIG was a label within EA Sports created specifically for experimental, over-the-top sports games. Founded alongside the original SSX in 2000, it produced franchises like NBA Street, NFL Street, and Freekstyle before gradually fading in the mid-2000s as EA refocused on more traditional sports simulations.
Who created the original SSX?
SSX was created by Steven Rechtschaffner, a former professional skier who became a producer at Electronic Arts. Rechtschaffner pitched the concept around 1994 but didn’t get approval until after proving himself with work on FIFA 94 and Triple Play baseball games.
Why did EA stop making SSX games?
Multiple factors contributed to SSX’s dormancy, including the decline of the extreme sports genre, shifts in EA’s corporate priorities toward live service games and annual franchises, and the 2012 reboot’s identity crisis between arcade gameplay and realistic design that left it without a clear audience.
What made SSX 3 so successful?
SSX 3 featured a massive seamlessly explorable mountain, 2-8 player online multiplayer, improved graphics, and refined gameplay that perfected the series formula. It received critical acclaim, sold over a million copies, and is widely considered the franchise’s creative and commercial peak.
Will there ever be another SSX game?
EA has not announced any plans for a new SSX game. The franchise has been dormant since 2012, and EA’s current focus on live service games, annual sports franchises, and established IPs makes a revival unlikely without significant changes in corporate strategy or market demand.
What was controversial about the 2012 SSX reboot?
The 2012 reboot received criticism for its rewind mechanic that disrupted gameplay flow, more realistic mountain designs that felt less memorable than earlier games’ fantastical tracks, removal of simultaneous multiplayer in favor of asynchronous online competition, and deadly descent events that emphasized survival over style.
Conclusion
Leon Massey’s SSX retrospective offers valuable perspective on why beloved gaming franchises sometimes disappear regardless of critical acclaim or fan demand. By examining SSX through the lens of business strategy and market forces rather than just nostalgia, the video helps viewers understand the complex factors that determine which games get sequels and which franchises fade into memory. SSX’s journey from PlayStation 2 launch title phenomenon to dormant IP reflects broader changes in the gaming industry, where experimental arcade sports games gave way to live service models and annual franchise releases. While fans continue hoping for a proper SSX revival that captures the magic of Tricky and SSX 3, understanding the business realities that led to the franchise’s dormancy helps temper expectations. SSX wasn’t just a beloved game series, it was a product of its time, shaped by corporate decisions, market conditions, and an industry that ultimately moved in a different direction. For those who spent countless hours carving down impossible mountains and pulling off absurd tricks, Massey’s retrospective serves as both a celebration of what made SSX special and a sobering reminder that creative success doesn’t always guarantee commercial longevity.