BMX XXX
Encyclopedia
BMX XXX is a video game published by Acclaim Entertainment
for the Xbox
, Nintendo GameCube
, and PlayStation 2
and developed by Z-Axis. While primarily a BMX
-based action sports title, it earned most of its notoriety for containing nudity
, foul language and adult humor. The game allows the player to create female characters that are fully topless and view live-action video clips of real life stripper
s, also with bare breasts. Consequently, BMX XXX was initially denied classification in Australia
. In North America, while the game is available uncensored on the GameCube and Xbox
, all naked breasts are covered in the PlayStation 2
version. While the adult content garnered a great deal of publicity for the game, it was almost entirely negative, and it was eventually released to dismal reviews and poor sales.
, their previous BMX title featuring and endorsed by professional BMX rider Dave Mirra
. During development of the new game, publisher Acclaim
decided to style the game after a raunchy sex comedy
movie. It is commonly believed that the origins of this decision came when Acclaim saw what was shaping up to be an extremely subpar game, and so in an effort to salvage the time and money already invested in it they decided to add the vulgar humor and naked women in an effort to muster up publicity and hopefully turn that into sales. When Mirra found about the content in the game he refused to endorse the product and took legal action against publisher Acclaim
in order to prevent any further implication of his involvement in the game. He was successful in getting the courts to block Acclaim from using his name in association with the game; the title was then shortened to its final name, BMX XXX.
score of 54% and a GameRankings score of 55.55%.
, Toys R Us, and most major IEMA retailers in the United States declined to carry the game in their stores due to the nudity. Then, Sony Computer Entertainment of America refused to allow the game to be published for the PlayStation 2
until the nudity was censored. In the end, sales were abysmal: under 100,000 copies were sold across all three platforms. The game was not greeted with controversy in Europe, but it also wasn't met with sales success there either. In Australia it was sold with the sexual content removed entirely.BMX XXX, along with several other poorly-performing titles, contributed to Acclaim Entertainment filing for bankruptcy in 2004.
Acclaim Entertainment
Acclaim Entertainment was an American video game developer and publisher. It developed, published, marketed and distributed interactive entertainment software for a variety of hardware platforms, including Sega's Mega Drive/Genesis, Saturn, Dreamcast, and Game Gear, Nintendo's NES, SNES, Nintendo...
for the Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
, and PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
and developed by Z-Axis. While primarily a BMX
BMX
Bicycle motocross or BMX refers to the sport in which the main goal is extreme racing on bicycles in motocross style on tracks with inline start and expressive obstacles, and it is also the term that refers to the bicycle itself that is designed for dirt and motocross cycling.- History :BMX started...
-based action sports title, it earned most of its notoriety for containing nudity
Nudity
Nudity is the state of wearing no clothing. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic. The amount of clothing worn depends on functional considerations and social considerations...
, foul language and adult humor. The game allows the player to create female characters that are fully topless and view live-action video clips of real life stripper
Stripper
A stripper is a professional erotic dancer who performs a contemporary form of striptease at strip club establishments, public exhibitions, and private engagements. Unlike in burlesque, the performer in the modern Americanized form of stripping minimizes the interaction of customer and dancer,...
s, also with bare breasts. Consequently, BMX XXX was initially denied classification in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. In North America, while the game is available uncensored on the GameCube and Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, all naked breasts are covered in the PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
version. While the adult content garnered a great deal of publicity for the game, it was almost entirely negative, and it was eventually released to dismal reviews and poor sales.
Production
BMX XXX builds on the earlier work done by Z-Axis on Dave Mirra Freestyle BMXDave Mirra Freestyle BMX
Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX is a video game released in 2000 featuring Dave Mirra and other professional BMX riders. It was developed by Z-Axis Ltd. and published by Acclaim, and was released on the PlayStation, Dreamcast, Game Boy Color and the Windows PC...
, their previous BMX title featuring and endorsed by professional BMX rider Dave Mirra
Dave Mirra
David Michael "Dave" Mirra is an American BMX athlete, Subaru Rally Team USA driver and business owner. Mirra holds the record for most X-Games medals, standing and has medaled in every X Games since they started in 1995. His current medal count as of July 31, 2009 in the X Games is 24...
. During development of the new game, publisher Acclaim
Acclaim
Acclaim may refer to:positive recognition*Acclaim Entertainment was an American video game developer and publisher*Acclaim Games, an online video game company based in California, USACars:*Plymouth Acclaim, a mid-size sedan...
decided to style the game after a raunchy sex comedy
Sex comedy
Sex comedy is a term for comedy movies with sexual content usually referring to those made in the United Kingdom in the mid 1970s. They may range from comic pornographic films like the Confessions series to relatively innocent comedies that include jokes about sex and other sexual related humour,...
movie. It is commonly believed that the origins of this decision came when Acclaim saw what was shaping up to be an extremely subpar game, and so in an effort to salvage the time and money already invested in it they decided to add the vulgar humor and naked women in an effort to muster up publicity and hopefully turn that into sales. When Mirra found about the content in the game he refused to endorse the product and took legal action against publisher Acclaim
Acclaim
Acclaim may refer to:positive recognition*Acclaim Entertainment was an American video game developer and publisher*Acclaim Games, an online video game company based in California, USACars:*Plymouth Acclaim, a mid-size sedan...
in order to prevent any further implication of his involvement in the game. He was successful in getting the courts to block Acclaim from using his name in association with the game; the title was then shortened to its final name, BMX XXX.
Soundtrack
The official BMX XXX in-game music soundtrack includes:- Green DayGreen DayGreen Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
- "Basket Case"
- N.E.R.D. - "Lapdance"
- 311311 (band)311 is an American rock band from Omaha, Nebraska. The band was formed in 1988 by vocalist/rhythm guitarist Nick Hexum, lead guitarist Jim Watson , bassist Aaron "P-Nut" Wills and drummer Chad Sexton...
- "Down"
- SalivaSaliva (band)Saliva is an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee, in September 1996 and currently under Island Records. Saliva released their self-titled debut album on August 26, 1997, under Rocking Chair Records....
- "Click, Click, Boom"
- Alien BreedAlien BreedAlien Breed is the first in a series of science fiction computer games played in the form of a top-down shooter for one or two players. It was released in 1991 by Team17 for the Commodore Amiga and later in 1993 by MicroLeague for MS-DOS.-Gameplay:...
- "Crackling"
- Alien BreedAlien BreedAlien Breed is the first in a series of science fiction computer games played in the form of a top-down shooter for one or two players. It was released in 1991 by Team17 for the Commodore Amiga and later in 1993 by MicroLeague for MS-DOS.-Gameplay:...
- "Evil Twin"
- Taking Back SundayTaking Back SundayTaking Back Sunday is a rock band from Long Island, NY, formed in 1999 by guitarist Eddie Reyes. Current members of the band are Adam Lazzara , John Nolan , Eddie Reyes , Shaun Cooper and Mark O'Connell ....
- "Cute without the E"
- Trust CompanyTrust CompanyTrust Company can refer to:*Trust company, a company acting as a trustee*Trust Company *Trust Company, predecessor to SunTrust Banks...
- "Downfall"
- Motley CrueMötley CrüeMötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...
- "Girls, Girls, Girls"
- Ten Foot PoleTen Foot PoleTen Foot Pole is an American punk rock band, formerly on Epitaph Records.-History:Ten Foot Pole was founded in 1983 as Scared Straight.Scared Straight was a Nardcore Punk band from Simi Valley, California...
- "Plastic"
- Ten Foot PoleTen Foot PoleTen Foot Pole is an American punk rock band, formerly on Epitaph Records.-History:Ten Foot Pole was founded in 1983 as Scared Straight.Scared Straight was a Nardcore Punk band from Simi Valley, California...
- "Giving Gravity a Hand"
- De La SoulDe La SoulDe La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987 on Long Island, New York. The band is best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres...
- "The Magic Number"
- New Found GloryNew Found GloryNew Found Glory is an American rock band from Coral Springs, Florida. Formed in the summer of 1997, founding members were lead vocalist Jordan Pundik, guitarists Chad Gilbert and Steve Klein, bassist Ian Grushka and drummer Joe Marino...
- "My Friends Over You"
- KRS-OneKRS-OneLawrence Krisna Parker , better known by his stage names KRS-One , and Teacha, is an American rapper...
- "Step into a World (Rapture's Delight)"
- Brand New SinBrand New SinBrand New Sin is a Hard rock/Southern rock band from Syracuse, New York. They are well known in the music business and also the sports entertainment field for recording themes for pro wrestlers.-History:...
- "SPP"
- Brand New SinBrand New SinBrand New Sin is a Hard rock/Southern rock band from Syracuse, New York. They are well known in the music business and also the sports entertainment field for recording themes for pro wrestlers.-History:...
- "Judgement Day"
- AudioventAudioventAudiovent was an American alternative rock band from Calabasas, California. Audiovent was formed in the early 1990s under the name Vent, and broke up in 2004.-History:...
- "The Energy"
- Eric B and Rakim - "(Juice) Know the Ledge"
- Large ProfessorLarge ProfessorLarge Professor , also known as Large Pro and Xtra P, is a New York City-based hip hop record producer and emcee. He is also best known as a founding member of the influential underground hip hop group Main Source, and as a frequent collaborator with Nas...
- "Bout that Time"
Reception
Critics were not amused by the humor, the nudity, or the game itself: it earned a MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
score of 54% and a GameRankings score of 55.55%.
Controversy
At the time of BMX XXXs release, sexual humor and nudity weren't wildly explored territories in mainstream video games. As a result, Acclaim's attempt to drum up publicity for the game was a rousing success, although the publicity achieved was of the wrong sort. Television news outlets reported that Wal-MartWal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
, Toys R Us, and most major IEMA retailers in the United States declined to carry the game in their stores due to the nudity. Then, Sony Computer Entertainment of America refused to allow the game to be published for the PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
until the nudity was censored. In the end, sales were abysmal: under 100,000 copies were sold across all three platforms. The game was not greeted with controversy in Europe, but it also wasn't met with sales success there either. In Australia it was sold with the sexual content removed entirely.BMX XXX, along with several other poorly-performing titles, contributed to Acclaim Entertainment filing for bankruptcy in 2004.