Tony Hawk Pro Skater homeless?
Ars Technica reports that the developer of the THPS series of video games has decided to bail on the franchise, even though it was the their main source of bread and butter for a long time. Strange, considering Tony seemed so stoked on the next version. Must have been sales talk. I wonder how he’s taking the breakup. Is thi s the beginning of the end? Will he be back to parking lot demos in spandex at Six Flags? I doubt it. Does anyone remember the old Thrasher video game Skate and Destroy? It was pretty fun, but apparently never really took off.
– Thanks to Steve B for the tip.
I don’t know if anyone here plays skateboarding video games. but the new EA skate game coming out and the prevous one pretty much shut down Tony Hawk Pro skater (i’m gonna call it THPS for short). To put it simply, THPS started to focus on the unrealistic video game stuff like grinding on telephone wires and EA came out with a great game that gives you the feeling of skateboarding (as much as you can in a video game anyway). its like EA skate is Madden, and THPS is NFL blitz. one is realistic, the other is just a wacky ass skateboarding themed game
best skateboarding video game of all time was 720 for Atari. all you could do was push around and ollie off transitionless banks. ah, the eighties, it was such a simple time.
skate and destroy for the apple IIgs!
aside from 720 though, skate 2 looks awesome. yes, thps was/is too cartoony.
I abandoned THPS and video games in general when I got stuck skitching the elephant. I never could get the hang of that and it broke my spirit.
Winner! Conahan! That zoo level was freakin’ HARD! HA!
THPS isn’t gone. “…but the company has let the Tony Hawk series go to another developer.”
I don’t think Tony is worried about it. I’m sure this isn’t new info to him.
720 was fun as hell. I got the “skate it” for the Wii (for my son of course :)) Its actually pretty fun the way you have to use the controller. cant wait to try it on the fit balance board. THPS was too weird, but ive also never got used to the new school controllers. They should re-release 720 on Wii, it would work hehe.
Fossils showing their age here. While THPS was unrealistic, the Playstation does not have “new school controllers,” they are basically the same as old Nintendo controllers with mini joysticks instead of the clumbsy directional pad. Also, 720 sucked.
Not to outnerd Scooter Libby, but I’m pretty sure you did boneless ones in 720, not ollies; a rad game nonetheless, if only because it was the first attempt at a legit skateboarding game.
As far as the news, maybe Activision kicked the franchise to the curb because Tony wanted to change up the format, he did mention something like that in that Cnet interview Kilwag posted.
I had one of the THPS games and was struggling along with it. Then a younger cousin of my wifes came through on a visit, he was so unbelievably good it was ridiculous. Dude had never skated but was at top competition level at the video game. You have to see that shit to believe it.
skateboards are no longer the hot thing
plastic guitars are
duh!
As a game developer I loved the original THPS but it never really seemed to be about skating, it was more like playing a beat-em-up. I’ve always wanted to create a skating game that’s more about feel, about pumping round transition, conserving momentum, all that old school shit.
Back in 2002 EA had just canceled an attempt to revive Skate or Die (the franchise that I guess eventually came back as Skate) and my old company tried to pitch a more oldschool skate game to them but to be honest I had little hope. Skateparks were full of THPS players, it was all about programming your muscle memory to get those huge combos. The THPS games became about those combos, I watched my son ace every level on one of the later games by stringing a bunch of freestyle moves into a multi-million point combo. Not skating at all…
As an ex-EA employee who left due to ‘artistic differences’ it pains me to say it but Skate is a cool game. Cool bu still not skating as I know it.
I’d still love to see a pumping based game, carving round a fantasy skatepark, weighting/unweighting the board with an accelerometer based controller like the Wii/PS3, I still think it would feel wonderful but also fear it would never sell if you couldn’t string eight tricks together…
Now i’m doing my own thing on the iphone which also has an accelerometer. Maybe some kind of skate game would work on that. In fact, there is a skate game already, it’s called touch grind, you actually place your fingers on the onscreen board and flip/shove/ollie it like a techdeck, fun for a few minutes
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=PSTNBnVIqm4
The skater’s moves in 720 were based on my friend, James. His aunt worked for Atari or something like that.
james eby does do sick beanplants, cold ones!
yeah we have that old Thrasher video game Skate and Destroy. it’s kinda hard to play but a must have of skate games
basicly if you talk to any little kid at a skatepark you will know that THPS needs to die
I concur Will.
Me: (skating the 4 foot tall mini ramp)
12 yr old: Are you Vert?
Me: No.
12 yr old: Ae you Street then?
Me: No man.
12 yr old: You skate like Bam.
Me: Thanks. Sigh…
Oh, I forgot.
12 yr old: You are really good at Vert (notice how vert is somehow a proper noun). Can you teach me to drop in?
Me: Okay. Only if you never call this ramp “vert” again.
I picked up EA’s SKATE 2 today, it’s no wonder THPS is headed to the graveyard