Monster Jam: Battlegrounds Trophy Guide & Road Map

Monster Jam: Battlegrounds
Monster Jam: Battlegrounds Trophy Guide

Estimated trophy difficulty: 2-3/10 (Personal Estimate)
Offline trophies: 31 (22, 0, 8, 1)
Online trophies: None
Approximate amount of time to platinum: 4-6 Hours (Personal Estimate)
Minimum number of playthroughs: 1+ Play of each Event
Number of missable trophies: None, all are progression related or can be earned on replay
Glitched trophies: None known
Does difficulty affect trophies?: No, there are no Difficulty Options
Do trophies stack?: There are no known Stacks for this game
Do cheat codes disable trophies?: There are no known Cheat Codes for this game
Additional Info: This is a digital only title, available on PSN for $14.99. It was release in the North American Region on July 14, 2015. There is no European release date or price yet announced.

Monster Jam: Battlegrounds is a bargain priced Monster Truck racing game. It is somewhat similar to Monster Jam: Path of Destruction, but the graphics and controls are definitely reflective of a bargain title. There are 3 main game modes: Skill, Racing and Stunt, spread out across a number of arenas and locations. Most events take no more than a couple of min to complete, so you are looking at a relatively easy platinum, and one of the shortest times to platinum of any available PS3 game.

Step 1 - Complete all Events with 3 Stars

When you start out, you will only have access to the starting Event in each category. As you earn Stars, more Events will unlock. Most Events are very easy and can be 3 starred first try, or with a couple of replays. Since you won't be able to unlock new events without earning Stars, I would suggest trying to 3 Star everything as you go.

With that said, there are a couple of very difficult Stunt Events, both encountered early on - the Precision Jump in Forest, and the Challenge in Urban. These are the only 2 difficult Events in the game, and will require a fully upgraded Truck before you could possibly 3 Star them. I would focus on the Skill and Race Events, and leave the Stunt Events until the end, unless you need more Stars to open additional SKill/Race Events.

Speaking of Trucks, there are 23 different Trucks that you can use. Most are locked, but can be purchased with "points" earned in Events. Getting 1 Star rewards 500 points, 2 Stars 1000 points, and 3 Stars 1500 points. Replaying Events will continue to earn 1500 points every time that you reach the 3 Star target. As some of the early Race and Skill Events take only 15-20 seconds to complete, you can farm points very easily.

I found no appreciable difference in performance across the different Trucks, so stick with your preferred ride, and fully upgrade it. You may want to jump right to either Grave Digger or Max-D, since there is a trophy for unlocking each of them, and then upgrade them as you earn Points through progression.

Almost all of the game's trophies will be earned in this step, as most are progression based - 1 for earning 3 Stars in each Location, for each Event.

Step 2 - Clean up

Realistically you probably will have every trophy by the time you finish Step 1 with 3 stars. Conceivably, you might not have the trophies for losing a Skill/Race/Stunt Event (the game is that easy, you may need to purposely try to lose), and if you did not buy Grave Digger/Max-D, then you should have plenty of Points to do so. Lastly, there may be a couple of Freestyle Tricks to pull off for those specific trophies.

[PST Would Like To Thank diskdocx For This Roadmap]

Monster Jam Elite

Obtained all trophies.
This unlocks once you have earned all other trophies in the game.
Rookie Racer

Earn your first Stadium Events victory.
This should be one of the first trophies that you earn, as soon as you get 3 Stars in any Race Event.
Got Some Skills

Earn your first Skill Driving victory.
This should be one of the first trophies that you earn, as soon as you get 3 Stars in any Skill Event.
No Hands!

Earn your first Stunt Mode victory.
This should be one of the first trophies that you earn, as soon as you get 3 Stars in any Stunt Event.
Left In The Dust

Lose your first Stadium Events race.
This trophy will unlock when you "fail" a Race Event. Note that getting 1 or 2 Stars will not result in a loss. You earn 1 Star for each round, out of 3, that you win. So to get this trophy you will need to lose all 3 rounds. As this is virtually impossible to do naturally, you may want to idle at the starting line for all 3 rounds to lose and earn this trophy.
Skilled Loser

Lose your first Skill Driving race.
(1)
This trophy will unlock when you fail a Stunt Event. Note that getting 1 or 2 Stars will not result in a loss. These Events are timed, so you will need to either wreck your vehicle, have it flip, or fail to reach the finish line before the timer fully runs out. You will likely crash somewhere during your Normal progression, but you could idle at the start of your first Skill Event to get this out of the way early.
No Teeth!

Lose your first Stunt Mode race.
This trophy will unlock when you fail a Stunt Event. Note that getting 1 or 2 Stars will not result in a loss. These Events have several different formats, so the criteria for failure will vary depending upon the type. This will likely be earned when you crash or flip your Truck, so it should not be necessary to go out of your way to attempt to fail.
Racing With The Angels

Complete Angel Stadium with all stars collected.
See Always Bet On Me!
Jackson Would Be Proud

Complete Everbank Field with all stars collected.
See Always Bet On Me!
Went Beyond Georgia Dome

Complete Georgia Dome with all stars collected.
See Always Bet On Me!
No Problem Houston!

Complete NRG Stadium with all stars collected.
See Always Bet On Me!
Always Bet On Me!

Complete Sam Boyd Stadium with all stars collected.
There are a total of 5 different Race Event venues. Each has the same format - 2 Races, each consisting of 3 rounds of short Versus Races, and a final Freestyle Event.

The Races are extremely easy. The AI moves incredibly slowly, and you can complete these Events easily by driving around the jumps and obstacles. You will fail if you drive too far off course, but most of the tracks are very wide so you can safely navigate around the dirt mounds.

If you decide to follow the track, I would advise that you take corners and jumps very slowly. It is quite easy to flip or spin out due to the poor controls, and since the AI is so slow, you are far more likely to fail due to crashing that due to being beaten.

I would recommend keeping Advanced Controls ON during this, as ironically you have far more control of your vehicle than when this is OFF.

You will earn 1 Star in a Race Event for each round that you win, so you will need to win all 3 to get 3 Stars. If you do fail or crash, you will need to restart the Event from the beginning.

The third Event in each Race Arena is a Freestyle Event. If you played the previous Monster Jam game, this will be quite familiar - you will have a limited amount of time to rack up as high a score as possible. Stunts are rated with a score of 1-3 Stars, although the game does not explain how the scoring works.

Honestly, the controls are so bad, just driving around will cause Stunts to activate without any rhyme nor reason. This is further aided by keeping Advanced Controls ON, as your Truck is much more unstable.

I was easily able to get a perfect 10/10 on each Freestyle Event just by hitting ramps and bouncing around. Other than by sitting immobile at the start line, I do not believe it is possible to fail these Events.

Upon completion of both Race Events and the Freestyle Event in each Arena, you will earn 1 trophy.
Lost In The Woods

Complete Skill Driving – Forest with all stars collected.
See Want To Build A Snowman?
City Cruiser

Complete Skill Driving – Urban with all stars collected.
See Want To Build A Snowman?
Who Needs Spice?

Complete Skill Driving – Desert with all stars collected.
See Want To Build A Snowman?
Crop Circle Maker

Complete Skill Driving – Farm with all stars collected.
See Want To Build A Snowman?
Want To Build A Snowman?

Complete Skill Driving – Frozen with all stars collected.
Skill Events are side scrolling, time based challenges. Each venue has 5 Events, rated: Very Easy, Easy, Medium, Hard, and Extreme. Don't let that scare you though, they are really all very easy.

The key to these events is to navigate the hills and jumps without crashing. Often it is best to try to avoid going airborne, and if you must, try to keep the jump as short as possible. On the Hard and Extreme maps, you may need to be a bit more aggressive, as there are often obstacles or large pits that you must clear. It may also take a couple of tries to plan a route, figuring out which ramps to boost off, and which to avoid or go slowly.

The time requirements are extremely liberal. Like with the Races, you are most likely to fail by crashing or flipping, not by going to slow, so taking your time is usually safe. If you miss the time target, you will drop from 3 to 2 Stars. You will not fail the Event unless you miss all 3 time targets.

There is a "rewind" option available by clicking , but while this will rewind your Truck to flip you back over or retry a jump, it does NOT rewind or even pause the timer, so it isn't very helpful in this Event type.

As with the Race Events, there is 1 trophy awarded for completing all 5 Skill Events with 3 Stars in each location.
Dangerous LumberJack

Complete Stunt Mode – Forest with all stars collected.
See Stuntman!
Wrecked The City

Complete Stunt Mode – Urban with all stars collected.
See Stuntman!
Covered In Dust

Complete Stunt Mode – Desert with all stars collected.
See Stuntman!
Scared The Cows

Complete Stunt Mode – Farm with all stars collected.
See Stuntman!
Stuntman!

Complete Stunt Mode – Frozen with all stars collected.
(1)
The final Event type is Stunt. These are side scrolling Events like Skill, but instead of being time based, they have specific goals, depending on the Stunt Event.

Each venue has 4 Stunt Events - Jump, Precision, Destruction and Challenge.

Jump Events require you to navigate a short section, usually full of hills, then hit a large ramp and clear a specific distance. The 1 Star distance is shown at take-off, and once cleared the 2 Star distance shows, then the 3 Star distance. At first, you will NOT be able to succeed in this Event type until you have an upgraded Truck. At the minimum, you will need a couple of bars of Boost, and 1 Superjump before you can clear the 3 Star distance (please refer to Back From The Grave for upgrade information). Once you are upgraded to at least Level 4, clearing the distance will be very easy. As these Events are not time, do not hesitate to progress slowly until you reach the main ramp, then back up to a sufficient distance. Approach the ramp, hitting several Boosts (), then hold down and activate Superjump () just before you leave the ramp.

Precision Events are similar to Jump Events, except that you will need to land in a specific target zone. The mechanics are similar to Jump, and usually the 3 Star target is the farthest from the ramp. In a few cases, the 3 Star target is tucked in a pit between the 1 and 2 Star targets, so you may need to adjust your ramp speed accordingly. These are mostly easy, although the Forest Precision Event (the second Stunt Event unlocked) is most definitely the hardest 3 Star in the game. For this Event, you will need to start on the top of the hill leading up to the ramp, slowly go over the crest then boost 4 times in quick succession as you go down the hill and approach the ramp. Hold Superjump and release at take off. Unfortunately, most of the time you will spin out as you boost down the hill. Do not hesitate to use to rewind, as this Event is not timed. Repeat the descent over and over until you get max speed (170-180mph) on the ramp. Anything slower and you won't get the height/distance to reach the 3 Star target.

For the above event, here is an alternate solution that may be more successful:

I admit I did it by accident trying like hell to nail that impossible forest jump. I meant to hit 4 boosts while on my decent. I hit 3 boosts - triangle - boost. It sends our truck sky high. I easily cleared the jump. I cleared the bitch Urban challenge my first attempt with this method!

Again during the decent do 3 boosts hit the triangle (super jump) and another boost and you will start soaring sky high. I noticed I was close to the ramp (not on it) when I hit the super jump.

If this works for others it can be added to the guide.

Happy Hunting!!

UPDATE. I think it works as I nailed it again in one try using this method! Also did the Forest Precision in one jump again. I can also confirm to doing all button mashing prior to hitting the jump ramp. Works great.

Destruction Events are fortunately much easier. You simply have to navigate the side scrolling track, and drive over the target amount of vehicles. A couple of these events will require you to take an alternate route to find enough vehicles, but none are overly taxing. This Event is timed, but extremely leniently, so don't go too fast (vehicles are often just over hills or ramps, and are easy to jump over), and feel free to reverse back over a vehicle if you have missed one.

Challenge Events are a combination of all 3 of the above Events. In each run, you will have to destroy a certain number of vehicles, do a big jump of a specific distance, and hit a Target. Most have several extra vehicles over the required number, and the jump distance is quite a bit less than for the Jump Events. Again, use the same strategies as noted above and you should be fine. The Targets are mostly one the path, although some will require a specific jump trajectory to reach. will again be your friend, as these Events are not timed, so you can rewind to retry a tricky jump. The hardest of these is definitely the Urban Challenge. Like the Forest Precision, this one has a miserable jump at the end. The Target in this level is located on a building roof at the very end. The distance jump is in the same location, but you can easily clear that distance without coming anywhere near the Target marker. You will also need to use the same technique as Forest Jump to get enough speed and height to reach the marker. As long as you don't touch the ground or building, you can use repeatedly until you get an ideal launch trajectory.
Perfectionist

Complete the game with all stars collected.
This trophy will unlock when you have earned all 3 Stars in every Race, Skill and Stunt Event. Oddly, this is only a bronze trophy, whereas some of the trophies for 3 Stars in 1 region are gold value. This will likely be the final trophy earned before your platinum.
What Does This Button Do?

Activate 25 Jump power-ups.
(1)
A "Superjump" is a special power unlocked by upgrading your Truck. You will need to upgrade to at least level 4 to have 1 Superjump available, and level 6 to have both. Once you are upgraded, Superjump is activated by holding down , then releasing to get an upward thrust.

Mastering this power-up will be key to maximizing your jump distance. Note that this power cannot be activated in mid air, but can be pre-loaded by holding down the button as you approach a ramp, and releasing as close to the top of a ramp as possible.

Use this power 25 times to earn the trophy. This should come naturally during play, as you will need to use Superjump to clear the harder Skill and Stunt Events.
Shiny Red Button

Activate 25 Boost power-ups.
(1)
Boost power is basically nitro, and it gives a speed boost. This power is not available on your base Truck, but will be available as you upgrade. There are 4 total Boost Bars, unlocked at upgrade levels 1, 2, 3 and 5.

Boost is activated by pressing . Unlike Superjump, you do not need to hold down to maintain your Boost.

Use this power 25 times to earn the trophy. This should come naturally during play, as you will need to use Boost to clear the harder Skill and Stunt Events.
One Step Back

Perform a full 360’ Back Flip in Freestyle.
Freestyle Events are the final Events in each Race Arena (See Always Bet On Me! for Freestyle details).

Back Flips will be performed when you pull the back as you jump off a ramp. As most ramps are sloped to flip you backwards, this should be very easy to pull off without even trying.
Two Steps Forward

Perform a full 360’ Front Flip in Freestyle.
(6)
Freestyle Events are the final Event in each Race Arena (See Always Bet On Me! for Freestyle details).

This is actually one of the hardest trophies in the game. The controls do you no favors, and the ramps really aren't set up to do Front Flips, as most of them angle you backwards.

I found the best location to be the Angels Stadium Freestyle. This Arena has a series of smaller moguls to the left of your starting position. These are too small to send you airborne for Back Flips, but if you boost at them, your back wheels often get airborne. Pressing up on the while boosting over these seems to be the most predictable way to get a Front Flip.

Again, this will take a number of tries due to the unpredictable controls.

An alternate strategy that may be more predictable is to use the ramp you start on in Angels Stadium, and hit the brake right before you go off the edge. I have not tested this strategy, but it has been reported to result in a front flip quite consistently (credit to snakebit10 for sending me this tip).
Don't Look Down

Get 2 seconds of Air Time in Freestyle.
See Fly To The Moon.
Fly To The Moon

Get 3 seconds of Air Time in Freestyle.
(4)
Freestyle Events are the final Event in each Race Arena (See Always Bet On Me! for Freestyle details).

Getting 2 seconds of air will likely come naturally, but 3 is harder. You may earn this naturally as you complete all the Freestyle Events, but if you did not meet the requirement, then the best location to farm it is in the Georgia Dome Freestyle. This Arena has a large ramp just to the left of your starting point, and it shoots you almost straight up in the air. Line yourself up with the ramp and use Boost as you approach, then Superjump on the ramp and you should easily clear 3 seconds.

It may take a couple of attempts to get the trophy to unlock. You will know if you are getting close if you are earning 3 Stars of Air Time.
Destroyer Maximus

Unlock Max-D.
Max-D is the second to last Truck in the selection menu. It costs 7,500 points to unlock. When you start, all but a few Trucks will be locked. You do NOT need to purchase the Trucks leading up to Max-D. As soon as you have save 7,500 points, you can go directly to Max-D and purchase it, to unlock the trophy.
Back from the grave

Unlock Grave Digger.
This is the last Truck in the selection menu. It costs 10,000 points to unlock. Like with Max-D, you do NOT need to purchase the proceeding Trucks before Grave Digger. As there are no performance differences, I would suggest going right to this Truck when you have the funds, then fully upgrading it. You can then stick with Grave Digger for the duration of the game.

If you want to earn enough points early, you can replay some of the initial Skill Events. They are very easy to 3 Star, taking only about 15-20 seconds, and you earn 1500 points each time. Alternatively, you will also have more than enough points after playing for a short time.

Upgrades must be purchased separately for each Truck, although they all have the same cost and stat awards:
- Level 1 - 1000 Points - Adds 1st Boost Bar and extra Brake and Health power
- Level 2 - 2000 Points - Adds 2nd Boost Bar and extra Brake and Health power
- Level 3 - 3000 Points - Adds 3rd Boost Bar and extra Brake and Health power
- Level 4 - 5000 Points - Adds 1st Superjump Bar and extra Brake and Health power
- Level 5 - 7500 Points - Adds 4th Boost Bar and extra Brake and Health power
- Level 6 - 10000 Points - Adds 2nd Superjump Bar and extra Brake and Health power