Skateboarding and video games have always had a close relationship, offering a unique way to experience the thrill of riding even when you can’t hit the streets or the park. Whether you’re a seasoned skater or just enjoy the culture, there’s a skateboard video game that can transport you to a virtual world of ollies, grinds, and epic lines. This guide will take you through the most influential and groundbreaking titles in the history of skateboard gaming, from the early days of pixelated parks to today’s ultra-realistic simulations.
720°
A screenshot of the 720° skateboarding video game, showing a pixelated skater performing a trick in an arcade setting.
Released by Atari in 1986, 720° is often credited as the first skateboarding video game. Initially an arcade hit, it later made its way to consoles and PCs. This game, despite its simple graphics, was revolutionary for its time. Players navigate an open-world environment, collecting money to buy gear and access different skateparks, each with its own unique challenges like vert ramps, downhill courses, slaloms, and jump sections. 720° provided surprisingly smooth gameplay, considering its age, and laid the foundation for many games to follow.
Skate or Die
A retro screenshot of the Skate or Die video game, displaying 8-bit graphics of skaters competing on a ramp.
If you owned an NES, chances are you played Skate or Die. This game offered three main modes: Ramp, which involved tricks and big air on a vert ramp; Downhill, a mode with both street and skatepark downhill tracks; and Pool Joust, where players tried to knock each other off their boards in a pool. The 8-bit graphics were standard for the time, and mastering the ramp mode was a challenge. However, the downhill and joust modes provided many hours of fun, even if it was rough around the edges.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater
In 1999, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater exploded onto the scene and completely changed the landscape of skateboarding video games, creating an entirely new genre. This title allowed players to skate as pros like Tony Hawk, Bob Burnquist, and Elissa Steamer. While levels were timed and required players to complete challenges, the game felt incredibly open, offering a sense of freedom to explore. You could grind rails, jump off buildings, and pull off impossible tricks, all at high speeds. The special meter added another layer of depth, allowing players to perform signature tricks like Tony Hawk’s 900 or Geoff Rowley’s Darkslide once the meter was full. The videos unlocked after beating the game with each pro, and a fully licensed punk and ska soundtrack, made this game a classic.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 took the fantastic gameplay of its predecessor and made it even better. It improved graphics, added more tricks, new levels, and more skaters. While the core structure of the game remained similar, with players completing challenges to advance, THPS2 introduced one crucial element: the Manual. This new move revolutionized gameplay by allowing players to link together combinations of flip tricks, grinds, grabs, and manuals, enabling them to pull off much longer combos and fill their special meters more easily.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 introduced Reverts, which fundamentally changed the way combos could be created. Now you could manual up a transition, air a trick, land, and revert to manual, which allowed for seemingly endless combo possibilities. This game, while retaining the core arcade-style gameplay, enhanced the experience with new levels, music, and skaters. Many fans regard THPS3 as the pinnacle of the series and a truly revolutionary title for skateboarding games.
Thrasher Presents: Skate and Destroy
Following the success of THPS, many companies released their own skateboarding games. Thrasher Presents: Skate and Destroy was not a direct clone. Instead, it aimed to provide a more realistic simulation. This resulted in a steep learning curve that was met with criticism from many reviewers. Players had to master the controls, manage bails, and avoid breaking boards, which set it apart from the arcade feel of THPS. Unlike THPS, the characters were fictional, aiming to get on the cover of Thrasher magazine. While difficult to master, it provided a unique and fun gaming experience.
Tony Hawk’s Underground
Tony Hawk’s Underground (THUG) marked another significant shift in the series, moving away from arcade-style gameplay to a more open-world experience. Players journey through real-world locations, skate as part of a team, and encounter pros along the way. A new feature allowed players to jump off their boards and run around, adding a new dimension to exploring the environment and accessing different areas. Although THUG and its sequel were praised for their compelling stories and challenges, the replay value wasn’t as high compared to previous THPS titles.
EA Skate
If THPS created the genre, EA Skate perfected it. The first in the series, Skate allowed players to create a custom skater and try to earn enough coverage to make it to the X-Games. It featured a vast open-world environment where players can skate on any obstacle they encountered throughout the city. The controls were complex yet intuitive, using the right stick to perform tricks by using different “flick patterns,” while the left stick was used for turning. You could combine the two to rotate, enabling the performance of advanced tricks. Grinds, manuals, and a massive punk and hip-hop soundtrack made the game a hit. The personalities of the pros you encountered felt authentic. EA Skate offered a perfect blend of realistic simulation and creative freedom.
EA Skate 2 and 3
Although the stories of Skate 2 and 3 are different, they shared almost identical gameplay elements. The key difference was the ability to get off your board and jump, allowing access to new areas and enabling tricks like cavemen, acid drops, and bomb drops. Skate 2 added late flips, and Skate 3 brought under-flips. These games offered unlimited replayability. Players could spend hours finding new spots and trying to land difficult tricks, which could be recorded with the game’s video playback feature.
True Skate
True Skate brought realistic skateboarding to mobile platforms, featuring recreations of real-life skate courses, from Street League locations to the Berrics. While you have to pay for courses, they are numerous and offer hours of fun. It features realistic physics, requiring players to carefully time their flicks and catches to execute tricks properly, creating a challenging simulator experience.
Skater
Skater is another mobile simulator, often regarded as the most realistic skateboarding simulator available on a phone. Players can skate legendary spots with officially licensed gear. The gameplay involves using two thumbs to manipulate the board, with the physics closely matching real-world skateboarding. Players must control their back thumb to perform pop shuvits, and slide their front finger like a kickflip to pull off a 360 flip, along with manuals and grinds.
Session
Session, a skateboarding simulation available on Steam and Xbox, controls each leg with an analog stick. Mastering the controls requires patience and practice. Like real skateboarding, you need to practice kickflips to become better, and sliding your wheels too much will slow you down. The game even includes wax to prepare crusty ledges, and it features a filmer mode where you can film your friends, enhancing multiplayer gameplay. Session aims to be a full skateboarding simulation, rather than an arcade-style game.
Skater XL
Skater XL is another simulation game that features each foot being controlled by an analog stick. It features real-life locations in downtown Los Angeles and has four pros in the game. This game focuses on creativity, allowing players to control the speed and style of their tricks. You can flick a heel flip really fast, or execute it slowly, allowing for back foot catches and power slides. Skater XL is not trying to be Skate 4, but rather, a canvas for your creativity.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 (2020)
The 2020 release of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 brought the classic titles into the modern era with updated graphics and an expanded soundtrack. The game retains the original control feel, bringing back the muscle memory for veteran players. It truly brings back memories for anyone who spent hours playing the original games and brings back memories with the classic soundtrack. This has created a new hype for skateboarding and skateboarding games.
In conclusion, the world of skateboarding video games is rich and diverse, offering a range of experiences from the simple, pixelated fun of the past to the ultra-realistic simulations of today. Whether you want to relive the classics or experience cutting-edge gameplay, there’s a game that will satisfy every skater and gaming fan. If you’re inspired to hit the streets after playing, be sure to check out our guide on skateboarder tricks for beginners and our list of the best skateboards to find the perfect setup.
William K
