PSX Extreme writes: "For whatever reason, these compilation sports games keep coming out for the PS2, and the latest – not surprisingly – focuses on a variety of winter sports. The problem with these titles is always the same: while there's plenty of different events that can appeal to any number of people, the multiple events require multiple gameplay and control mechanics. Now, this is a challenge, even if you have a big budget. But most all these games have small budgets and are only designed to be $20 impulse-buy purchases, which means the developer typically doesn't have the means of generating solid and accessible gameplay for each and every event. The Olympic-based titles have all been awful and Winter Sports 2: The Next Challenge is essentially the same thing, so of course we had our reservations heading into the experience. On the one hand, we can say this is an average, semi-entertaining sports game, but on the other, it falls into the same aforementioned trap, thereby creating frustration for the player. It's not terrible, though, which is better than we expected."
The overall presentation is sub-par, though there's a photo of speed skater Anni Friesinger on the box if that floats your boat. Turn off the commentary as soon as you can because doing so gives you a chance to hear the quite brilliant funk soundtrack – the only real gold medal here.
The nine events it includes are too mixed a bunch with only a handful, like the skeleton bob and curling, being moderately fun while ski jumping, speed skating and others fall spectacularly on their backsides. The control system is too convoluted, demanding you tap random icons, balance balls and steer tricky paths on the touchscreen while somehow keeping an eye on the top screen action, too. It's altogether way too frustrating to play for long.
GamerTM writes: "Although new to the 360, the Winter Sports franchise has been around for a few years now and the developers have produced several other skiing and biathlon themed titles, as well as taking a first foray into warmer climes with Summer Athletics, released last year. You'd think that with this kind of experience they'd be able to knock out a highly polished package, but unfortunately Winter Sports 2009 is largely bereft of original ideas and littered with inconsistencies that can only lead us to believe that after nailing the basic gameplay (and this could have been done years ago) no-one at the studio actually sat down and played the game."
