Note: This is actually pretty funny ... when we received nail’d, it came with a little side gift. It is called “White Knuckle Cream” and here is what the label reads: “The intensity of nail’d forces you to grip the controller tighter, causing blood to flow away from the knuckles in fear. This is commonly known as ‘White-Knuckle Syndrome.’ Apply a generous slathering of White Knuckle Cream to your affected knuckle region for higher scores, increased confidence and overall awesomeness.”

Awesome stuff, everyone, just awesome!

nail’d is unlike any game I have played before; it is insanely fast-paced. It was something that burned into my eyeballs, and it truly made me stand on edge sometimes. This day and age, there aren’t really very many companies left doing the ATV-style game, but Deep Silver did a fantastic job on capitalizing on this particular market that does not want to die. Not only is nail’d fun, but it — as it did with me — make you stand on edge.

During the game, you will encounter one thing that really stands out in my mind: the insane jumps. When I say “insane” I really mean #%$&#@! Insane ... but I have to keep it somewhat PG-13. There was a particular moment when I was playing the game that I just had the hardest time with. At first I laughed, and then I got angry, then came denial that it was even happening. There is a level in the game where you have the option to take the high or the low — which is common in nail’d — well I chose the high, and that was a big mistake on my part. It required me to travel over a — from what I remember — crane boom, then jump onto a section of highway. Well, when traversing on this “crane boom,” I kept falling off the edge. It was my mission to go over that “boom” successfully without killing myself — figuratively speaking-. Eventually I got over it successfully, only to run right into the @$$ end of a dump truck.

Graphically, though, nail’d shines. It has beautiful backgrounds, and the foreground never loses its composure when in motion. That was the one thing I tried to focus on was the level themselves — all of which were perfectly done. I have not found a single level in the game in which I was not satisfied with its design. I loved the amount of detail in each of them as well; even the explosions rocked!

One thing nail’d has, which — to my recollection — no other ATV game has is extensive modification. There are plenty of things to modify, including the rider! Although I loved the modifications, I loved the color schemes even more. You have a ton to choose from, providing you unlock them, and all of them are killer designs.

After a while, though, I found myself becoming bored with the standard-issue AI, so I joined a game in multiplayer. Although it took some time to find one, once I did, I was pleasantly happy with how they put it together. The very first game I played in was an eight-player game, while the second was 12. It was really fun joining other players — to the point I was dying laughing when I landed on another player, causing them to explode.

On a final note, nail’d is an extreme game. It is a great amount of fun by yourself or with others! I recommend buying this game if you are into fast-paced, adrenaline-pumping, hair-raising and nail-biting action. It’s a bonus the soundtrack will make you head bang throughout the entire game!