How to play BMX Air Master online
- Choose a mode: F11 (the consoleās Select switch) or the arrow keys
- Start a game: F12 (the consoleās Reset switch) or Space
- Pedal: left and right arrow keys, back and forth, to build up speed
- Turn the bike around: Space bar
- Tricks: use the arrow keys while you are in the air
- Two players with one or two joysticks: F9 (the right difficulty switch); player 2 uses T/F/G/H and A
The manual does not say which direction performs which trick, so try them one at a time in practice mode.
Gameplay
There are three events. On the half pipe you have 90 seconds to pull as many tricks as you can; a tone warns you when time is nearly up. The bike cannot leave the ramp while it is going backwards, so you use the button to turn it around. The quarter pipe works the same way, but you only get three attempts. The ramp jump also gives you three tries at a big jump, and landing back on the ramp earns a 500-point bonus.
There are four modes: practice and arcade, each in a standard and an advanced version. Practice lets you pick one event at a time. Arcade runs the events in order until your lives are gone; you earn an extra life after each ramp jump, and each new round starts again on the half pipe at a higher difficulty. Later rounds demand landings at the correct angle, and stronger gravity makes you pedal harder.
Every trick scores, but the first time you do a trick in an event it is worth far more than repeating it: a loop earns 500 points the first time and only 20 after that. The manual lists eight combinations of moves, worth up to 2,000 points each, and every event ends with bonus points for each combination and type of trick you performed.
Tips
- Vary your tricks. Repeating the same loop is nearly worthless after the first time. Try a new trick on every jump, then go for combinations.
- Land wheels first. Leave time to straighten the bike before you come down.
- Aim for the top of the ramp. The manualās hint: as you leave the half or quarter pipe, push up or down to move your rider left or right, which lets you land on top of the ramp.
History
The package promoted the Huffy bicycle brand: the cover shows a Huffy Sonic 6, and the manual included an entry form for a sweepstakes offering five of the bikes. According to AtariAge, Atari bought the rights from TNT at some point and released a small number of cartridges under its own label, which are now very hard to find. The two reviews listed on AtariAge both give it near-perfect scores.
