RTL Ski Jumping 2007 for PC and PS2 is another installment belonging to an acclaimed franchise of ski jumping simulators (over 1.1 million copies sold) branded and published by the German RTL Group. Similar to the previous installments, the 2007’s edition offers a broad experience based on the incredibly popular winter discipline – from training sessions on smaller jumps, through subsequent World Cup events, to World Championships in ski jumping.

### Mechanics & Game modes

The game offers two basic modes. The player can take on the role of a professional ski jumper in order to compete mainly over the Crystal Globe, visiting 41 faithfully recreated jumps (including all the objects used in the 2006/2007 World Cup). However, if the player gets bored with direct competition, they can assume the role of a trainer whose job is to lead their team to victory through 15 licensed international contests divided into three leagues and differing both in the levels of prestige and contestants’ skills. Players can take part in all significant competitions – regular contests, world championships taking place on the largest jumps, summertime Grand Prix events, the Four Hills Tournament, and team rivalry. Before each contest, the player can take part in the training session of course. As usual, the creators were focused on delivering a comprehensive gaming experience rooted in this winter discipline.

Regular victories both as a contestant and a trainer soon attract rich sponsors who offer lucrative contracts. This is obviously connected to the financial development of the contestant, who can spend their funds on new parts of equipment, which is done through an in-game store. If the player is new to the series and does not wish to get disencouraged too soon by their failures, they can benefit from the game’s tutorial mode, which is helpful in performing one’s first successful jumps. Apart from that, the player can choose from three difficulty levels.

Those fond of realism should not be disappointed – all the in-game events resemble TV broadcasts here. Thus the player listens to a lively, diverse commentary by a professional commentator and a TV coverage. The experience is complemented by an audience that reacts to what is happening, creating an atmosphere of a great sport spectacle.

### Technical aspects

RTL Ski Jumping 2007 for PC and PS2 offers well-made, modern-day visuals that represent both the weather effects and contestants themselves (each of them was made of over 10 thousand polygons) in a spectacular way. What is also worth noticing, is that the in-game physics of player’s crashes were improved as well.

RTL Ski Jumping 2007