Following in the footsteps of the Tony Hawk'sPro Skater series, the player holds the assigned Jump button in preparation of performing a trick, and releases it to jump. When in the air, 'Big Air' tricks can be performed that can also be 'modified' with the aid of the modifier button, or the Big Air button again. For example, the player jumps from a ramp, and performs a Superman. The game also features ragdoll physics that are primarily for use in the 'Wipeout' multiplayer game mode. There are a total of four game modes. The first six levels are all 'challenge-based'. The player must complete specific goals in order to advance to the next. The six, and final levels are 'competition-based' levels, where the player is judged on their performance in a number of timed runs.
Proquest
Proquest is the main mode of the game, and could also be called 'Career mode'. The player chooses one of the riders and seeks to progress through all the levels of the game, in a series of two-minute runs. The first six levels are completed by finishing all the set challenges within them, and the competition levels can only be cleared when the player finishes a run worthy of winning the contest. Once the player finishes each successive level, they will receive new bikes and clothing, and eventually upon completion of the game, videos of Dave Mirra and Ryan Nyquist and special cheat codes.
Session
Any unlocked levels can be played here. The player has the same timed runs as in the Proquest mode, but there are no goals to complete, judges to impress or new items to gain. The only real 'objective' of this mode is to improve upon the player's own high score.
Freeride
A mode where the player can freely ride any level that has been unlocked in the Proquest mode. There is no time limit, so the real aim of the mode is to allow full and unrestricted exploration of the level to find the best spots to score and to practice performing tricks.
2 Player
Note: only the PlayStation and Dreamcast versions have a multiplayer mode. There are several different multiplayer modes available. Unlike many other similar extreme sports video game titles, the game modes are turn based. As with any other mode, any level unlocked can be played.
Best Run - Each player has a two-minute run to get the highest score.
High Five - A series of 30 second runs to see which player can get the highest scoring single trick.
B-M-X - Basically the same as the game mode 'H-O-R-S-E' in the Tony Hawk series. One player does a combination of tricks, and the other player has to gain more score than them. Whenever one player fails, they are assigned each successive letter of B-M-X, until one player has all the letters and the game finishes.
Random Spot - The game chooses five random spots in the level to perform tricks in. Each player has 15 seconds to perform the biggest scoring single trick at the designated area.
Wipeout - Taking advantage of the ragdoll physics is the Wipeout game mode. Each player takes turns in crashing into objects, trying to score the most points.
Longest Grind - The player who performs the longest single grind in one run wins.
Highest Wall Tap - The highest wall tap at any spot in the level wins.
Big Air Contest - When players ride up on verts, the height of their jump is measured. Therefore, the aim of this game mode is to get the highest measured 'air' up a vert.
Furthest Jump - The player who jumps the furthest, wins.
Longest Manual - Jumping, then pressing Down, and holding Down again performs a manual. The player with the longest held manual wins this game mode.
Reception
Garrett Kenyon reviewed the Dreamcast version of the game for Next Generation, rating it three stars out of five, and stated that "This is a bit of a surprise, and an extremely pleasant one." The PlayStation version of Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX received "favorable" reviews, while the Dreamcast and PC versions received "average" reviews, according to video game review aggregator Metacritic.
Maximum Remix
Jeff Lundrigan reviewed the PlayStation version of the game for Next Generation, rating it three stars out of five, and stated that "It ain't bad, but if you own Dave Mirra, there aren't a ton of reasons to buy this." The Maximum Remix version received "average" reviews according to video game review aggregator Metacritic.
