Tony Hawk's Project 8
Neversoft goes back to basics and we go hands-on with the next-gen (read: not PS3) version of skateboarding's killer app.
Published: September 14, 2006
The Tony Hawk series has lost its way. Caught up in the idea of having to link the classic gameplay with a storyline and a cast of wacky characters, Neversoft lost sight of what made the game fun in the first place, and the last couple releases have been fraught with quick sequels and cash-in efforts. At least, this is what the purists would have you believe. In reality, the series has been trying to move closer to duplicating the feeling of making you, the common gamer, a pro skater, something they've been trying to do from the start.
That doesn't mean there isn't a place for the pure skating roots of the series, which is exactly what Neversoft is planning with Project 8. There's a story, sure; Tony is in town looking for some amateur skaters to highlight and possibly turn pro -- eight of them, in fact, hence the title. But really, that's just sort of the backdrop. You'll meet pros, have them talk to you in little cutscenes, but the days of explaining exactly why you have to make an impossible leap over a helicopter are over. In fact, from what we've seen, the days of jumping over floating helicopters period are over.
In their place are days of nothing but pure skating, tricking up a world that loads seamlessly without tunnels or malls to separate different parts. Challenges are now integrated into the world without a need to stop and talk to someone. If you, say, see a chalk marking on a curb, simply grind it and follow a basic line until you see one of three differently colored finishing markers (Am, Pro, and Sick) and stick the landing without bailing. Congrats, you've just pulled off one of the game's new modes.
Curious about another? How about a mode now where the entire goal is to bail as hard as you can, racking up broken bones and a score cleverly disguised as a hospital bill. Though this is a particular challenge, you can force a bail at any time by hitting all four shoulder buttons at the same time. In fact, the shoulder buttons have taken a much later role this time around, with barrel rolls and flips now being used in conjunction with the left analog stick and a shoulder rather than the classic double-tap. Bad news for us old-school d-pad users.
There are still moments where you'll talk to skaters and pedestrians, of course (now they're surrounded by a halo-like glow around their whole body if they have something to say to you), and this is how you'll learn some new tricks from the pros like Nail the Trick Mode, where time slows drastically and you use both analog sticks to kick board around in any direction you feel. So long as you land the trick with the wheels down, you'll rack up huge points. It's also how you'll unlock the eight sets of Classic Mode challenges, where the ultimate finish is nailing all the tricks in a single run, thus giving you a completed Sick challenge.
A new Create-a-Skater mode is as flexible as ever, but now, you can start with some pre-set characters like punks, kids and girls, and tweak things there if you'd like. Create-a-Park mode is gone, but in its place is something infinitely more connected to the game. Now, during certain challenges, you'll have to arrange pieces of a small section of the world in order to complete a challenge. For instance, we arranged a couple busses and some rails to complete an otherwise impossible line from one roof top to a table teetering on a wall far out of reach. We were able to cruise to a spot on the map and try this out in a non-challenge situation too, and it actually helped us find an out-of-the-way bonus item.
That doesn't mean there isn't a place for the pure skating roots of the series, which is exactly what Neversoft is planning with Project 8. There's a story, sure; Tony is in town looking for some amateur skaters to highlight and possibly turn pro -- eight of them, in fact, hence the title. But really, that's just sort of the backdrop. You'll meet pros, have them talk to you in little cutscenes, but the days of explaining exactly why you have to make an impossible leap over a helicopter are over. In fact, from what we've seen, the days of jumping over floating helicopters period are over.
In their place are days of nothing but pure skating, tricking up a world that loads seamlessly without tunnels or malls to separate different parts. Challenges are now integrated into the world without a need to stop and talk to someone. If you, say, see a chalk marking on a curb, simply grind it and follow a basic line until you see one of three differently colored finishing markers (Am, Pro, and Sick) and stick the landing without bailing. Congrats, you've just pulled off one of the game's new modes.
Curious about another? How about a mode now where the entire goal is to bail as hard as you can, racking up broken bones and a score cleverly disguised as a hospital bill. Though this is a particular challenge, you can force a bail at any time by hitting all four shoulder buttons at the same time. In fact, the shoulder buttons have taken a much later role this time around, with barrel rolls and flips now being used in conjunction with the left analog stick and a shoulder rather than the classic double-tap. Bad news for us old-school d-pad users.
There are still moments where you'll talk to skaters and pedestrians, of course (now they're surrounded by a halo-like glow around their whole body if they have something to say to you), and this is how you'll learn some new tricks from the pros like Nail the Trick Mode, where time slows drastically and you use both analog sticks to kick board around in any direction you feel. So long as you land the trick with the wheels down, you'll rack up huge points. It's also how you'll unlock the eight sets of Classic Mode challenges, where the ultimate finish is nailing all the tricks in a single run, thus giving you a completed Sick challenge.
A new Create-a-Skater mode is as flexible as ever, but now, you can start with some pre-set characters like punks, kids and girls, and tweak things there if you'd like. Create-a-Park mode is gone, but in its place is something infinitely more connected to the game. Now, during certain challenges, you'll have to arrange pieces of a small section of the world in order to complete a challenge. For instance, we arranged a couple busses and some rails to complete an otherwise impossible line from one roof top to a table teetering on a wall far out of reach. We were able to cruise to a spot on the map and try this out in a non-challenge situation too, and it actually helped us find an out-of-the-way bonus item.
