To this day, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 is the second highest rated game on Metacritic. It beats out Breath of the Wild, Red Dead Redemption 2, The Last of Us, and many other critical darlings. In 2020, Pro Skater 2 and its predecessor have returned to contend as one of the year’s best titles via Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2.
This remake of the two legendary skateboarding games taps into something so deeply special. It’s not simply nostalgia because other games have done that and it only carries them so far. This is the purity of the Tony Hawk brand and the bygone era of skateboarding games. While the genre is making a bit of a comeback right now, the Tony Hawk series has been sorely missed for so long.
The Tony Hawk games always had this punk-rock feel synonymous with skate culture. The soundtrack, the rebellious objectives, the goofy secrets, and more all created this very specific ambiance. Somehow developer Vicarious Visions managed to capture the essence of the early 2000s and inject it into 2020 with ease.
The beauty is that, just like its gameplay, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 adapts to the modern era. They merge the classic soundtrack with new songs that match the sound and vibe of the original thanks to artists like Machine Gun Kelly. The in-depth customization features clothing that has a timeless appeal which blends the baggy clothes of the 2000s with the brands of the modern decade.
There’s this refined freedom when playing. I’ve never been able to skateboard in real life because I’m garbage at anything that’s not video games but Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 makes me feel like an elite skateboarder. It offers this precision and level of responsiveness that is undeniably satisfying.
As someone who wasn’t an avid fan of this series, it didn’t feel too hard to pick up and play. It’s not easy and it takes time to finally master but it’s incredibly easy to digest. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 is very accessible because of this. It’s not just for the hardcore fans, it welcomes new players with open arms. You can very quickly get in and start having fun with the most basic skillset.
It’s only when you start experimenting that you start to uncover that sweet serotonin boost from chaining together a difficult combo. This remake succeeds where the last Tony Hawk games have failed. It’s polished, it’s responsive, and it’s strangely comforting. In a time where we’re all stuck inside and missed out on a lot of the fun of summer, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 makes up for that with its ambiance and thrilling gameplay.
The Verdict
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 is like returning to an old friend. It has the same charm that we fell in love with but has adapted to modern sensibilities. It plays like it belongs in 2020 but not as just a game that meets the bare minimum. It’s one that exceeds standards and aligns itself as one of the year’s best.
