Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 & 2

For anyone that owned the original PlayStation back in 1999, the name Tony Hawk will bring up nostalgic memories of late 90’s radical, gnarly punk rock tunes and one of the best skateboarding games ever made. The original Tony Hawk Pro Skater was like no other skateboarding game. Featuring the biggest name ever to don the kneepads and dominate the halfpipe, the birdman himself Tony Hawk was joined by the world’s leading skaters in an arcade fueled, point-based trick lead action romp through some of the best skating locales ever put in digital format. It was a game that anyone could pick up and do crazy ollies instantly all while building up a ridiculous score via the systems trick multipliers. Tony Hawk Pro Skater had that magical “just one more go” feel to it and people would stay up all night passing the pad around with their friends trying to beat each other scores. The series would see numerous sequels throughout the decades, but sadly none of them truly captured what made the original so fantastic.

However, 21 years later the first two games in the series make a very welcome return with a complete, from the ground up, remake in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater™ 1 + 2. The remake blends all the original levels, old-school tricks with beautifully recreated levels to provide fans with stunning gameplay experiences. All the original stages are featured in glorious 4K detail from the famous warehouse intro stage to the unofficial alien storage site known as Area 51. Of course, it’s not just the original stages that have made a comeback, all the original skaters are featured as well, from the birdman himself to legends like Kareem Campbell, Bucky Lasek, Elissa Steamer and more. A nice touch to this is that the developers have aged the various skateboarding heroes accordingly, so they all represent their older modern selves. Also making a successful return is the epic soundtrack, featuring all but three of the originals very 90’s punk-influenced background tunes. But a lot has changed in 21 years in the skateboarding music scene and the developers have included 37 brand new tracks featuring modern hits like Machine Gun Kelly’s Bloody Valentine and Alex Lahey’s Misery guts. It’s an eclectic mix of ’90s meets modern and it works incredibly well.

The game will also integrate fan-favorite features from games across the entire original franchise, not just the first two games, including revert, lip tricks, wall plants, and original multiplayer game modes, both online and for local couch play. Create-A-Park, featuring a robust editor to enable new ways of customization, and Create-A-Skater modes are also back with the remaster. Players will be able to share parks online with friends and outfit skaters with customization options.

In the last few years, we have seen a considerable amount of remakes and remasters, some were incredible yet others felt like quick cash grabs. Fortunately Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 falls into the former, it’s a loving recreation of one of the most beloved gaming series ever to grace the consoles and will thrill old and new fans alike.