Retro|Spective 076: Tony Hawks Pro Skater

[Neon Ignition]

He was a skater boy, she said see you later boy, he wasn't good enough for her, he was...



Mainline Entry 01 - Tony Hawks Pro Skater
Formats: Playstation, Nintendo 64, Dreamcast, Game Boy Color and N-Gage
Turning 20 years old this year, the original Hawks entry arrived relatively early in 3D gamings years but proved an incredibly successful recreation of the skateboarding experience considering the tech and knowledge at the time. With a time limit against the player, the task was to pull off as many tricks as possible to complete the level and to get as high a score as possible. Activision was ready to move fast on the game with the more lauded sequel entering development at Neversoft before the original was even complete. It was a worthwhile approach as the game was a critical hit and the sequel was ready to land the next year starting its well known annual cycle.



Mainline Entry 02 - Tony Hawks Pro Skater 2
Formats: Playstation, Nintendo 64, Dreamcast and Others
Mainline Entry 03 - Tony Hawks Pro Skater 3
Formats: Playstation 2, Nintendo 64, Xbox and Others
By the third game and the series landing on the next wave of consoles, the franchise was arguably at its peak of both refinement and popularity. The third game introduced the Revert which allowed better chaining of moves and was the first to contain online functionality.



Mainline Entry 04 - Tony Hawks Pro Skater 4
Formats: Playstation 2, Xbox, PC and Others
Mainline Entry 05 - Tony Hawks Underground
Formats: Playstation 2, Xbox, PC and Others
With the latest entry the series began something of a bad habit, rebranding. The fifth entry introduced greater customisation but also the ability to dismount your board and indulge in some immensely cumbersome on foot movement. There were also driveable vehicles and real skaters adding to a greater plot emphasis. The game was another hit for the series though.



Mainline Entry 06 - Tony Hawks Underground 2
Formats: Playstation 2, Xbox, PC and Others
Mainline Entry 07 - Tony Hawks American Wasteland
Formats: Playstation 2, Xbox, PC and Others
The second rebranding of the franchise came due to one significant shift over previous entries, the new entry took place in a single open world which was designed as several levels seamed together in a way such as to mask loading screens. Though the game was well received there was a growing sense of tiredness and cynicism growing against the series and its claims of a bold open world were met with a mixed response with criticism being that it hid that it was levels stitched together poorly.



Spin Off Entry 01 - Tony Hawks Downhill Jam
Formats:Wii, Playstation 2, Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance
The first spin-off was the only entry ever made that emphasised racing, the aim to get downhill against rivals. Gameplay was simplified to make use of a peripheral board, a physical component gimmick that Activision was aggressively pursuing in several ways at the time. Though not entirely rubbished, the game was the weakest received entry to this point, its struggles masked somewhat by arriving alongside the true eighth entry.



Mainline Entry 08 - Tony Hawks Project 8
Formats: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, Playstation Portable and Others
The next mainline entry refreshed the series again as it hit its third generation of machines. This entry had you join an eight skater strong team of Tony's as you worked through and rose up in the city however, despite solid reviews, the series had lost much of its steam by this point and its impact was low.



Mainline Entry 09 - Tony Hawks Proving Grounds
Formats: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, Wii and Others
This was Neversoft's final entry into the series, the game designed to bring the series back to something closer to its earlier years. Three cities were used across nine levels but with interest waning the game received a mixed reaction and development for the series was handed to another developer.



Spin Off Entry 02 - Tony Hawks Motion
Formats:Nintendo DS
Spin Off Entry 03 - Tony Hawks Ride
Formats: Playstation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii
Spin Off Entry 04 - Tony Hawks Shred
Formats: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, Wii and Others
Robomodo had taken over the series and its main contribution was Ride and Shred, two spin off continuations that used expensive peripherals to try and deliver a new type of Hawks game. The games were poorly received however and when Shred saw the complete collapse of the series sales Activision decided that the time had come to retire the series.



Spin Off Entry 05 - Tony Hawks Pro Skater HD
Formats: Playstation 3, Xbox 360 and PC
Two years later, Robomodo came back with this update that refreshed the visuals of the early entries and contained favourite levels from across the first three games. Broadly though, despite being a digital title for a lower price, reviews were once again mixed questioning the handling of some elements of the remake.



Mainline Entry 10 - Tony Hawks Pro Skater 5
Formats: Playstation 4, Xbox One and Others
Robomodo's final entry would be one last attempt to recapture nostalgic gamers interest in the series. It was a move that would implode the series legacy and end the developer's involvement in the franchise whilst, outside of iOS, end the series for good. Named so as to directly tap into the original four games mindset, THPS5 was rushed through development so as to release before Activision lost the licensing on the series. The game featured 10 new levels in total after updates and returned to the series core gameplay approach but was infamously riddled by bugs, glitches, poor graphics and controls. Panned across the board, the series was now dead and Robomodo was soon after closed down ending the once popular brand.



Share your thoughts and memories of Tony Hawks Pro Skater

[endo]

The first was a classic, but I think the second or third games are my favourite out of all of them. I started losing track of them after that, though I did play quite a lot of Project 8. It's a shame the franchise got milked as hard as it did, but purely as a skateboarding game it ended up being totally outclassed by the Skate series, which made the Hawk games look like a novelty.

[speedlolita]

2 was a pretty big part of my childhood I’d say, especially some of the multiplayer modes such as HORSE that’d we’d replace with expletives. These games always had fun bonus characters, tight controls and a killer soundtrack. 2 and 4 are the two I am most fond of, and Underground 2 was the shock to the system that made me realise that the downturn was coming. I didn’t play anything after that.

[Asura]

Personally the series was never among my favourites, however, two of the games stuck with me - the GBA version, and Tony Hawk's American Sk8Land for the DS.

Both of them were really impressive titles, technically. The GBA one had huge isometric environments, and used a very low-poly 3D skater to re-create all of the move animations, which was really effective. It was fast, smooth, and very fun. I think it got a sequel, and even a Jet Set Radio game which was effectively a reskin.

The DS one was spectacular though. Someone sold their soul to get that thing to run; I've no idea how they managed it.

[Atticus]

The first one felt like the game I'd waited all my gaming life for. Being a skater I'd always wanted a decent skateboarding game and when this was due out I even took the Friday off work to buy it. As soon as I started playing I loved it straight away ... getting used to the controls in the warehouse was spot on ... before opening more open-world levels to explore while Police Truck by the Dead Kennedys blasted out. I was loving every second. I played it all afternoon and couldn't wait to tell my mates about it that night. I actually put the game in my car to play with the guys later at one of their houses. Because first we were going snowboarding on a dry slope ... so Tony Hawk's was going to have to wait. Only on my last run, and I have stated this here before, I went down and smashed my right thumb into a bunch of pieces; it basically concertinaed and I went to hospital and had a screw put in it and a cast put on. No gaming for nearly six months. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater was a day of a great high and a great low. I always want to go back but fear I may be disappointed. I did enjoy a few of the sequels though ... right up until number 4 iirc ... but it's that first one I remember the most, with it's dirty visuals and rocking soundtrack. It nailed it for me.

[Dogg Thang]

The GBA one had huge isometric environments, and used a very low-poly 3D skater to re-create all of the move animations, which was really effective. It was fast, smooth, and very fun. I think it got a sequel, and even a Jet Set Radio game which was effectively a reskin.

The GBA one is the only Tony Hawk game I have ever played and it was absolutely brilliant. The animation was incredible for the system and it felt really, really good. I loved it.

But just wasn't enough into the skateboarding thing to try its bigger brothers.

[wakka]

This makes me really want to play a Tony Hawk. I really enjoyed the second game on PS1, and also the fourth on the Cube. The GBA game was also genuinely terrific.

Really liked the first Dave Mirra game too, which was pretty much a clone of Tony Hawk's but with BMXs.

People always say Skate was much better, but I never got on with it. There's something appealingly accessible about Tony Hawk. I daresay Skate's analog stick controls are more like real life skateboarding than dialling in the combos with the face buttons, but I just didn't find it as much fun.

It would be really nice to see the series's style resurrected with a new game. The 90s vibe provides a great aesthetic that could be very appealing if done well, too.

[DeathAdder]

Tried the first on PS, couldn't do it at all, took it back to Electronics Boutique for a refund (ah, those were the days, although it sucked when you bought a "new" game which clearly wasn't), and never tried a skateboarding game again.

[teddymeow]

I liked Project 8. Felt more grounded and had Jason Lee in it.

[Cepp]

I only played the first two but what an incredible pair they were. I put a ton of hours into the demo for 2 just on its own.

[Neon Ignition]

It was never a series I was that into yet at the same time I played most of the main entries. The first game was alright as was the second but I think it was the XB version of 2 and the third games that I enjoyed the most. I don't have any real distinct memories of the fourth or Underground 2, Wasteland was the last one I distinctly remember though I did dabble with Project 8. After that I was done, it felt stale though I'll echo about Skate - never saw the popularity with that one, felt like and utter chore in comparison

[Asura]

4 changed a great deal (or was it 3?) when they added the "revert" move. By doing that, you could connect vert tricks to street tricks, which blew open the potential for combos. On the one hand it was a good thing, but on the other, it made the gulf between good and very good enormous.

[ZipZap]

THPS2 on the Dreamcast was the first of the series that I played and I loved it. I completed career mode with every character, unlocked the additional characters and stages, I even got a large amount of the gaps. I then picked up the first game, also on the DC, which I enjoyed a lot as well.

Because I loved THPS2 so much, THPS3 was the title that made be cave-in and buy a PS2. I didn't get quite as hooked, but I still enjoyed it a lot and the reverts were a massive addition.

I'm not sure what happened between 3 and 4 that made me lose interest almost entirely! I do remember playing the fourth game a bit, but I think I only bought it when it got cheap, and I'm not sure I ever finished it.

I think THPS4 was pretty much the end for me.

I do recall quite enjoying the Project 8 demo on the 360, but not enough to go out and buy it.

I also played through THPS2 on my phone, which surprisingly didn't work too badly!

[Neon Ignition]

Clue for 077 - Who Framed Dr Asou?

[QualityChimp]

I played Tony Hawks Pro Skater 2 loooooads on the PC. "Lights out! Guerrilla radio! Turn that *bleep* up!"
I think I enjoyed it more when I unlocked perfect balance and never fell off stuff.
I found it quite therapeutic, just riding around and exploring, trying to get to areas really tricky to reach.

I think that one game sated all my skateboard gaming desires and never felt a need to return to the series.

I bought Skate, but hardly played it.

I also found the THPS games useful to bluff young kids that you know how to skateboard:
"I could totally pull a radical 360 Indy nosebone grind handplant on that railing!"

I think the best thing Tony Hawks ever did though, was The Stutter Rap:
His responses on here are hilarious.

http://www.tony-hawks.com/skateboarding/