Played on:
Xbox 360
Every year we get another Tony Hawk game and every year, skateboard game fans wonder what things might be like if Tony wasn't the only game in town. And now, EA is answering that question with skate, a new title that offers its own take on the skateboarding world. Its hallmarks are a totally new control scheme and at least a bit more of a foundation in reality - not only in the mechanics of skating, but also the moves that today's skaters use as well as what's going on in the culture today.
And while I'm going to try and not just make this whole review a comparison to Tony Hawk, it's got to be pointed out that in the 9 years since the first game in that series has been released, it's gone from a great, realistic yet fun simulation to a circus of ridiculous proportions. It's been great for gamers who don't actually go outside to skate, sure, but it's nothing like what real skaters do. There are no ludicrous five-minute combos going on in real life, and a counterculture against the highest-paid skaters, like Tony Hawk himself, has been gaining steam for a while now. Neversoft and Activision are making a fun game, but EA's skate provides a fresh take and a more realistic depiction of today's skating culture.
Flickit, or something
At the heart of skate is a unique control system that has you moving your body with the left analog stick and your board with the right stick, along with the odd button press or trigger pull to modify your tricks. Pull the right stick down and your skater will crouch down - flick it up and you'll get an ollie. Go up and then down for a Nollie, or a nose ollie. If you pull diagonally to a side when you flick, you'll pull off a heelflip or kickflip, and you can modify these further with various tweaks to your controls. Moving the left stick lets you turn when you're on the ground and allows your body to spin when you're in the air, which can in some cases actually happen independently of what your board is doing. Most of this falls loosely into the realm of realism, although some of the moves you can do and some of the ways your board will move are clearly impossible in real life.
Moving On
Progress in skate is made by completing challenges in a made-up city called San Vanelona. Most of the city is accessible right from the start, but you'll find that the challenges available to you at the beginning mostly reside in the first area, Suburbia. As you progress through these challenges, most of which are pretty realistic and focus on skating skill rather than blowing up chickens or knocking over For Sale signs, you'll open up new areas and unlock some very nice skateparks. One thing that some gamers won't like is how you don't unlock new moves or improve any "stats" as you go - your skill is fully unlocked right from the start. It turns out, though, that at least on your first play through, you'll be skating like a scrub anyway, and only with real practice will you get anywhere. We'll see if this is still an issue when the likely sequel comes out. I also wonder if skate will travel down the dubious path of having to one-up itself every year if it becomes a yearly franchise, as that's exactly what led the Tony Hawk games to the point they're at now.
The challenges you'll complete in career mode involve you completing some rather free-form challenges that don't just make you grind this one rail and then heelflip off, or things like that. Well, if the game's teaching you a new move that's what it'll do, but otherwise you'll often have the freedom to start your challenge anywhere in a large area. You can set a restart point and then return to it when you want, which is a handy feature, but you won't be able to do this in the game's "no skate zones" where security guards will try and knock you over. Since some challenges force you to finish tricks in these areas, it can get frustrating at times. Beyond that, there are some fun challenges like downhill races and a HORSE-style game (aptly using the S.K.A.T.E. letters - a nod or a diss to Tony Hawk? You decide!), all of which are pretty fun and haven't been seen in a single player game in a long time. Completing some challenges will open access to exclusive spots, like the X Games Stadium or other internal areas with some very nice spots. It's nice to have at least a few surprises locked away in an otherwise free-roaming game.
The camera and skate.reel
As you play, the camera that's trailing behind you is actually held by a guy filming you, and the result is that the camera sits fairly low down with a focus on your legs and the board itself. It's a good camera angle that really helps you get some of the trickier moves to land just right, and you're going to need it - it takes quite a bit of practice to do many of the game's tough grinds and move modifiers like grabs and tweaks. Your buddy that films you will make some interesting commentary on your skating, and this whole thing also opens up one of the game's most fun features: the Replay Editor.
At any point in skate you can hit the start button and bring up the Replay Editor to review the last 30 seconds of your skating. You can crop a specific portion of the video to keep, and then set markers with points where you can adjust the speed, camera angle, and toss on a few special effects. But the best part is that you can actually upload these videos to the EA's "skate.reel" site for people to watch with their PCs, Youtube-style - they don't have to own the game or even a game console at all.
