Innovative and addicting, Skate is a fun experience for the hardcore gamer and Skateboarding fanatic.
SKATE:
Skateboarding was and never will be an intergrated part of my life, I've never got into the whole idea of breaking your bones over a stupid surfboard on wheels, but I dug the Tony Hawk Franchise, and I love Great videogames, so purchasing this game wasn't a real struggle, even though I didn't know what to expect. Honestly, the game is phenomanal, its a new innovation of the genre, as well as a good start. But its still very flawed, but the experience is no where near broken. In past skateboarding titles, you will spend most of your time mashing buttons. Like seen in the TH series, but those mechanics are thrown out the window and EA has made a control scheme that is innovative and fun, that absorbs you into the experience, and in the role of an actual skater. When you bomb a hill, you'll feel it, when you perform your flips and grabs you'll have to achieve it, and so on. Its not just tapping buttons and performing tricks out the boom, you actually have to get good with it. There is a sense of accomplishment that I felt everytime i landed something. And thats a feeling that is unexpected, the whole game is challenging, but that makes it more of a satisfying achievement. The controls are the most crucial part of the game, as it is also very complex. The right stick is used for your board, and the left stick is used for your body. To perfom ollies you hold down the right stick and flick it straight up, by doing variations of flicking, you perfom various flips. while in the air you rotate your body using the left stick, it takes a ton of practice, and lots of patience cuz the game doesn't let you get off easy. Netting high scores is a combination of both, rotating and the type of flip or flips, you can also enter manuals as you land, by slightly tilting the stick up or down, creating a combo. Grabs are split between your right and left hands, and they are associated with the obvious bumper, you can rotate, and flip using the left stick, and the right stick variates your grab. Grinds are much harder to perform, because of it timing, but everything will fall into place and you'll soon be dishing out comboes and achieving high scores. Just like in real skateboarding, you have to practice to get good. Everything is laid out in the begining with no stat enchancements or new trick aquireing, the only obstacles blocking your sucess is your abilities with the controls, and reality itself.
Career mode is the most best part of the game, and probaly the mode you'll be playing in the long run. Its decently long, and will take up to about 30hrs to fully experience it, but its well worth it. For a skateboarding title. Just like the first TH underground, EA stole the idea, or borrowed the "obvious" idea of what the story is about. You are a low down skater trying to reach fame and fortune, scoring magazine covers,pics, film, events,sponsors along the way. The story kicks off in a hilarious cutscene, leading to reconstructive surgery, and everything ties in to start your journey. The game is thankfully not bound by generic levels, but is in a very big city, it'll take at least 10 minutes to skate from end to end. The world is very detailed, and you'll skate in a wide range of locales and areas, such as bowls. skate parks, etc. while going to different parts of town like the suburbs, the old city, downtown.etc. to get fame and money, you complete events and challenges to get on exposed on either of two magazines. these challenges are fun but they get a tadbit dull and have problems. Some events make you do a specific trick, but it is very hard to due to the likeness of all the tricks motions, its horrible. some might even quit the game entirely. but other events are very cool, such as the X-games and meeting a crapload of pros, and skate jams. Best trick contest and s.k.a.t.e, not so much. You can also purchase clothes, assescories, shoes and the create the look of your skater. Its much more advance than tony hawk,but too bad you cant add your face.
As for the visual and sound department, skate fairs well there too. The game's graphics are unbelieveble comparing them to the Tony Hawk series. The world is well crafted and detailed, and the models and their clothes are very much realstic, you can see the vintage details on the jeans, shoes etc. And everything lights up well too. The camera is a tadbit annoying, but its zoomed in on the lower body, giving a up close and personal look, but its sometimes hard to see the road ahead of you. The music and sound effects are very good too. Artists and bans like nirvana, dr.dre, n.w.a are all in the game, and there is nothing better than the sounds of your board. The voice work is solid, and the framerate is smooth.
Online, Freeskate, and replay modes are all welcome additions, online is solid, not the best but its worth a try. The real worthy extra is the replay editor, find something thats deserves to be displayed to the world? upload it youtube style, and save anything you do, rate videos, watch em, its all possible.
Conclusion: Skate is a must own title for hardcore skateboarding fans, and a good playthrough for gamers. Its one of those games where it doesnt change the industry, but it improves its own genre greatly. Its gonna be hard playing Tony hawk now. But the game is flawed. You cannot get off your board,(yes,really!) the story has no branches, challenges and events are sometimes repetive and plagued, and the controls are too alike to perfom various tricks, i still cant get that 360 flip! but all problems be damned, Skate is a great experience.