This product is like new. At NexWave Games, like new means:
Additionally, all discs at NexWave Games are carefully inspected and assessed for quality. When discs arrive, we do not accept any that are so badly damaged that they are unlikely to work. We only accept discs with light scratches at most. Discs with scratches are then treated in our professional disc repair machine. By warming the disc and polishing it with soft brushes, these machines can remove a very thin layer from the disc. This removes the layer containing surface scratches and improves the disc’s readability. This ensures the disc works properly, even on consoles with ageing lasers that have difficulty reading games! Great news for the player.
Surf's Up for PlayStation 2
Surf's Up for PlayStation 2 turns the animated film into a surfing competition around Pen Gu Island. You choose a surfer such as Cody, Lani or Chicken Joe and steer past waves, rocks and wooden structures. You leap from the crest, spin through the air and try to land with your board straight. The competition revolves around points and objectives, not simply reaching a finish as quickly as possible.
Ordinary tricks build your Stoke meter. A full meter allows more spectacular moves, but you still need to consider the time remaining before you land. You can also grind along rails and surf through gates. Each course has different objectives, so another attempt can focus on a higher score or a different route. Unlocked surfers and boards give you more choices.
Championship provides the solo progression; the world map lets you choose available surfing spots and challenges. Two players can also surf against each other locally on a split screen. This uses two PS2 controllers; no Multitap is needed. The unlockable Leaf Sliding challenge moves the steering to a leaf in lava tunnels. Choosing a line, jumping and timing remain central while the surface and surroundings change.
Region and language
Our PlayStation 2 games are PAL editions and come with a Dutch or English box, unless stated otherwise. By default, you receive the version for the European market. We note it in the product details if the region is different or the box is in another language. In almost all cases, the game is playable at least in English, and often in the other five common European languages too.
This edition of Surf's Up has a French-language case titled Les Rois de la Glisse.
Manual
Surf's Up for PlayStation 2 includes the manual unless the product title states otherwise. If the booklet is missing, the title says “No Manual”. This lets you see before ordering whether the game comes with a manual.
The manuals included with our games usually contain at least English and often around six European languages. The exact languages vary by edition, so Dutch is not always included. The booklet explains the controls and the main rules. You can use it to check how to control the game, which actions are available and how its different features work.
The history of Surf's Up
Ubisoft released Surf's Up in 2007, the same year as the Sony Pictures Animation film. Ubisoft Montreal developed the console surfing game. The collaboration with Sony followed Open Season and once again placed animated animals in a playable world. This time the story's sport directly supplied the structure: not a long walk through film sets, but short championship courses with their own objectives and scores.
The fictional Reggie Belafonte Big Z Memorial Surf-Off gave the contests a recognisable framework. Tank is the champion trying to keep his position, while Cody from Shiverpool seeks his chance. The game uses different surfing styles and individual boards to distinguish the entrants. The exotic locations offer more than beach scenery: ice, storms and volcanic terrain change the obstacles you watch for during a run.
The arcade-sports adaptation connects the film's humour with repeatable performances. A trick must not only look funny, but fit inside a jump and earn points. The Stoke meter makes that calculation visible by linking earlier actions to a new opportunity. Split screen uses the same surfing idea for a direct duel. The emphasis of this PS2 adaptation therefore rests on learning to ride better, rather than retelling every scene.
Similar games for PlayStation 2
SSX Tricky for PS2 likewise builds a spectacular boardsport around jumps, tricks and a meter for extra possibilities. You descend a snowy mountain and use tricks to collect boost. Surf's Up instead moves you along a wave and also finds room inside a tube. Both reward a cleanly landed move, but a snow course provides a different approach from the edge of the water.
Tony Hawk's Underground 2 for PS2 also involves finding rails, jumps and a good place to finish a trick. The skateboarding game lets you roam urban areas for longer and complete world-tour tasks. Surf's Up takes you through surfing courses with individual score targets. Both involve planning a sequence of moves, but Tony Hawk lets you approach a rail again; here the continuing run determines the next opportunity.
Happy Feet for PS2 also uses penguins, water and sliding from an animated film. Mumble's adventure alternates dance patterns, swimming routes and belly sliding, whereas Surf's Up focuses mainly on surfing tricks and competition scores. Both offer local challenges for two players with two controllers. Happy Feet can divide sliding duties between the players; Surf's Up pits surfers against each other on a split screen for the highest score.
Open Season for PS2 also comes from Ubisoft's collaboration with Sony Pictures Animation. Boog and Elliot use animals and objects to hinder hunters, with a solo adventure and separate local challenges. Surf's Up mainly turns its film world into sporting courses with tricks and unlockable material. Both give film characters distinctive actions, but throwing a skunk at a hunter calls for a different approach from saving energy for a big jump.
Finding Nemo for PS2 shares the sea and obstacle avoidance with Surf's Up, but uses swimming for a story journey with Nemo, Marlin and Dory. Their different abilities help open routes. Surf's Up sends one chosen surfer along a course and measures the run in points, gates and objectives. Both ask you to watch the available space in the water; Nemo seeks passages, while Cody seeks a line for his next trick.
