There are a few iconic franchises in the world of sports video games, and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater is certainly among them. The remake of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 was a huge success, leaving fans eager and excited to see the same happen to games 3 and 4.
Five years later, and a lot of uncertainty in the mix, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 is finally here, to the delight of Skate and video game fans from all across the globe. It brings the two classic games in all their splendor, but with huge graphical improvements, more responsive gameplay, and a soundtrack that combines classic songs from both titles and new entries.
So, is Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 truly magical, and does it mark the return of the golden age of Skate games?
The Paradise of Arcade Gameplay
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 gameplay is fabulous, being very responsive, smooth, and above all, incredibly enjoyable. It’s very similar to the gameplay of the original games, but with small tweaks and additions to make it up to today’s day and age standards.
Mastering it takes time, but once things start clicking, you really feel like a pro skater. The controls and combo layouts remain the same, and the optional tutorial does a fantastic job of teaching new players the ins and outs of all the controls and game mechanics.
Fans of arcade sports titles will love Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4. However, if you are more into simulation-based gameplay, then there will be certain aspects of the game that you will nitpick about.
You may encounter a bug here or there, but I have never experienced one that was truly game-breaking or made me want to stop playing the game. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 gameplay is so addictive and satisfying that it will make you forget about any bugs you experience, making them insignificant in the grand scheme.
It strikes the perfect balance between having controls that are easy to pick up but difficult to master, while also delivering a very responsive gameplay, as you don’t feel any input delay at all.
A Graphically Astonishing Game
As expected, the biggest upgrade Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 introduces is a graphical one. The game looks fantastic, with everything from the characters to the level’s environments looking incredibly detailed.
It’s night and day when compared to the original games, as it should, and it manages to captivate the player. So much so that I found myself just exploring the levels multiple times, as every level is truly unique and is astonishingly detailed.
Graphically, there is nothing negative I can point out about the game. It succeeds at remaking the original levels, maintaining their nostalgic feeling while also adding more excitement to them.
While graphics aren’t the end-all be-all of a video game, especially a sports game, they can make a title more immersive and addictive, and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 graphics succeed at doing so.
Mixing the Classic with the Modern Hits
The Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 soundtrack is a hit or miss. If you are expecting to listen to all the classic songs in the original games, then you will be disappointed to know that many of them are missing.
At the same time, if you wanted a mix of the classics with some modern tunes, then Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 hit it right over the park, just like you will do in some of the levels, quite literally.
Having some of the most iconic songs missing from the soundtrack is a huge letdown. While the new additions are great, the game loses a piece of its soul by not having Ramones' Blitzkrieg Bop, Alien Ant Farm Wish, and Red Hot Chili Peppers Fight like a Brave.
There are only ten songs from the original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 and 4, which is incredibly disappointing. Fans of the original games have gone as far as saying it’s blasphemy, and I don’t really blame them.
A soundtrack is one of the most important aspects of a game, with the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater franchise soundtrack being a legendary one. So, while I understand that injecting new blood was necessary, it was also crucial for Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 not to forget its roots, something it spectacularly failed at.
Questionable changes to an already great Career Mode
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 and 4 offer a plethora of online and offline modes, but it’s Career mode that is the star of the show.
It’s a solid mode, where you can select between free skating, which allows you to explore the levels with no time restrains, single session, where you try to beat your high score on a level, speed run, where you try to complete a level in the fastest way possible, and the traditional Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater tour.
The Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater tour is the main mode, as it’s there that you will experience and unlock all the parks in the game. You have a total of 17 parks in the game, eight from the original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 and nine from 4.
Despite some levels being run-of-the-mill, Career mode still offers a very exciting experience, with the traditional two-minute time limit making things even more interesting. Every level puts your skating skills to the test and will help you master the controls if you are new to the series.
Not having unique missions for different characters is unfortunate, as that was one of the best parts of the original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater tour. Characters would have different objectives, which were tied to their skating style, adding more replayability to the tour and making it more interesting.
The fact that the no-time-limit levels you had in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4 aren’t present is disappointing, as that was one of the main features that separated the game from its predecessors.
You still had your fair share of time limit objectives, but there was a balance between both types of levels. Completely removing free-roaming levels, to streamline the experience to a certain extent, is not a great decision.
But at least Iron Galaxy Studios got it right with the addition of the HAWK mode, a skating version of hide and seek that is quite fun to play. It’s an unexpected but certainly pleasant addition.
