Neversoft made a lot of "crazy promises" in this one, but if only they were fulfilled! Obviously the gameplay and graphics are sweet, but what about their new features. Here's a biggie - NO LOADING. Could that really happen? If it did, I'd snap my copy of THUG in two and rush to snag a copy, but no. When you start up the game, it starts LOADING, yes loading the first level, Hollywood. This time, you don't skate as you. No more face mapping for story mode! Instead, you look like the default THUG2 kid, trying to escape his cranky teacher, cheating girlfriend and downright sad life. But the signs of loading are noticeable enough. To change parts of the city, you go through these long, monotonous tunnels into the next part of town. Remember those free roaming driving games with skips and stutters in the frame rate? That is so in THAW! Yes, the game is LOADING. Sometimes, to make it weirder, you see you from a security camera in slow mo, to get those bits they haven't loaded yet! Another way to get around the city is through buses. To me, though, staring at the inside of a bus for a minute or so seems like a loading screen. The other promise is "the first free roaming TH game ever". That is a big fat porky pie. Remember the THUG days... go out of a level map and it says "THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ON DRUGS" or "OUT OF BOUNDS". You'd think that being free roaming, you should be able to skate or ride your BMX on the highway under Santa Monica or Beverly Hills right? NO. That is OUT OF BOUNDS. And what's with classic mode? On Normal, I was able to finish it is less than an hour. And what makes THAW so rushed is that they recycle old levels, alter them a bit and stick it in THAW. Where did the Oil Rig come from? Yes, the XBOX collectors edition of THPS3. And the casino? The Las Vegas level of the THUG2 remix. But I like the choice of levels in Classic mode, even if it is a bit easy. They got 2 of the 3 secret levels from the PSP remix of THUG2, (finally, I can play those!) and Downtown, Chicago, Mall and Marseilles from THPS1 and 2. The only new classic mode level was The Ruins, a higly modified version of East Los Angeles, which is dirty, trashed, and downright disgusting. Createapark was a major letdown. It was taken word 4 word from THUG2, almost the exact same thing. Also, create-a-goal was scrapped. Bummer. The lack of movies is also a letdown. Again, like THUG, this game was pretty much rushed.
Other Helpful Reviews for Tony Hawk's American Wasteland
When I first Picked up Tony Hawks American Wasteland I Was thinking My Favorite video game series has its best entry yet. I was dead wrong. From The Moment I Put The Game in my PS2 to the time i beat it (which is like 1... Read Full Review
Despite being short as hell, and really easy, THAW is a really fun experience. However, all the innovative and creative ideas from the previous games seem to fade away, or are being reused too much. The graphics look r... Read Full Review
