''The Games: Winter Challenge'' is a

sports video game A sports video game is a video game that simulates the practice of sports. Most sports have been recreated with a game, including team sports, track and field, extreme sports, and combat sports. Some games emphasize actually playing the sport (s ...

developed by Canadian developer Mindspan and published by

Accolade The accolade (also known as dubbing or adoubement) ( la, benedictio militis) was the central act in the rite of passage ceremonies conferring knighthood in the Middle Ages. From about 1852, the term ''accolade'' was used much more generally to ...

for

MS-DOS MS-DOS ( ; acronym for Microsoft Disk Operating System, also known as Microsoft DOS) is an operating system for x86-based personal computers mostly developed by Microsoft. Collectively, MS-DOS, its rebranding as IBM PC DOS, and a few ope ...

compatible operating systems in 1991 and as ''Winter Challenge'' for the

Sega Genesis/Mega Drive The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master System. Sega released it in 1988 in Japan as ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

in 1991 and the United States in 1992. The game portrays eight winter sports events that are competed in during the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

. The game is unlicensed and not endorsed by the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

or similar organisations. Upon release, ''Winter Challenge'' received praise from several publications, with attention directed to the game's variety of events and visual presentation, with some criticism towards the inconsistency and difficulty of events. A sequel to the game based on the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

, ''The Games: Summer Challenge'', was released by Accolade in 1992.

Gameplay

''Winter Challenge'' features two modes. In

Tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

mode, the player can create a competitor and participate with up to ten players, with selectable names, countries and user pictures. Once the players are selected, the game shows an

opening ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly-constructed location or the start of an event.

for the tournament and then takes the player to a tournament screen where they can see their

icons An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The most ...

for the events, as well as four buttons that shows their current standings, starts a new tournament, allows the entering of a

password A password, sometimes called a passcode (for example in Apple devices), is secret data, typically a string of characters, usually used to confirm a user's identity. Traditionally, passwords were expected to be memorized, but the large number of ...

to return to an existing tournament, or return to the main menu. In this mode, computer-generated opponents have a skill level, from 'Amateur' to 'Professional' and 'World Class', affecting their speed and stamina in events. In

Training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or Physical fitness, fitness that relate to specific practicality, useful Competence (human resources), competencies. Training has specific goals of improving on ...

mode, the player can participate in a single event as one player. Several events are simplified for the training mode to allow error, such as being able to miss flags in the giant slalom. Once completed, the player can play again, return to the main menu, or watch an

instant replay Instant replay or action replay is a video reproduction of something that recently occurred which was both shot and broadcast live. The video, having already been shown live, is replayed in order for viewers to see again and analyze what had j ...

of their performance.

Events

''Winter Challenge'' features eight events. Most events use the

directional pad A D-pad (short for directional pad or digital pad; officially referred to by Nintendo as a +Control Pad) is a flat, usually thumb-operated, often digital, four-way directional control with one button on each point, found on nearly all modern vid ...

for steering, and buttons for performing certain functions like shooting, running, braking, or pushing off.

Button mashing This list includes terms used in video games and the video game industry, as well as slang used by players. 0–9 A ...

is necessary for some events, with others focused on timing and accuracy. The

ski jump Ski jumping is a winter sport in which competitors aim to achieve the farthest jump after sliding down on their skis from a specially designed curved ramp. Along with jump length, competitor's aerial style and other factors also affect the final ...

is scored by distance, the

biathlon The biathlon is a winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. It is treated as a race, with contestants skiing through a cross-country trail whose distance is divided into shooting rounds. The shooting rounds are not tim ...

by time and shooting accuracy, and all other events are scored by time. A list of the events are provided below:

Reception

''Winter Challenge'' received positive reviews from gaming publications, with many critics praising the variety and appeal of the game's different activities. Describing the title as a "multi-venued game" that imitated a "full-scale Olympic competition", ''Computer Gaming World'' praised the game as "more exciting" than its predecessors and highlighted the balance of "fast-paced" and "leisurely" game modes. However, some critics noted that the game was inconsistent in its execution. ''Computer Game Review'' observed that "the cross country events are too long and rather dull", and "competing against other than amateur competition is extremely tough." Similarly, whilst ''Mean Machines'' found the game "varied and engrossing", the game had an "inconsistent quality, finding some events "easy to finish", and remarking that "the multi-player mode is where the game is best appreciated." Several reviewers praised the game's graphics and use of perspective to convey the action in the game. ''Sega Pro'' noted the rear view perspective "works successfully and gives a real impression of movement and perspective." Similarly, ''ACE'' praised the perspective for providing a "good view of the action as well as an excellent first-person impression of speed." ''Game Zone'' highlighted the "realistic" reflections and shadows, and noted the graphics were animated "well". ''GamePro'' praised the developers for "doing an excellent job of combining first-person perspective play with realistically-scaling background graphics." However, ''Sega Force'' critiqued the "limited field of vision" for some events, including the slalom, remarking that "degrees of white are difficult to distinguish."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Games Winter Challenge 1991 video games Accolade (company) games Piko Interactive games DOS games Winter Olympic video games Sega Genesis games Skiing video games Multiplayer and single-player video games Video games developed in the United States