Kickflip To The Brain – Skate 2
Skate 2 is developer Black Box’s second installment in a series that has provided a welcome renaissance for the skating sub-genre. Skating games were massive sellers in the late 90s, but what is surprising is that in an era where the previously unsurpassed Tony Hawks games have been criticised for becoming over-complicated, Skate 2’s counter-intuitive answer is to provide the most detailed and complex skating simulations ever seen! But it definitely delivers.
One of the most unusual aspects of the Skate games is that the control scheme is totally unlocked from the start of the game – the minute you hop onto the board you are technically capable of the very hardest tricks. So the tutorials and challenges that you face, rather than introducing you to ever-harder skills, simply show you the knack of utilising the abilities that you already possess. But this training is absolutely essential, and new players will be amazed at the variety of different tricks that you eventually realise are at your disposal – there’s a real satisfaction to discovering a new tweak that you never actually knew you had. Or more likely you will have a trick explained to you that you could previously only perform by mistake!
But be warned – to really progress in this game is damned hard. That is not to say that it is unwelcoming to beginners, because as soon as you’re through the initial sections of the game you are free to explore a whole fictional city (San Vanelona) at your own pace. But to follow the higher levels of the career path is almost mind-bogglingly hard, but it’s almost commendable that this is the case in an age where many games choose to dumb down the game to suit the most casual players. To pull off a successful trick usually involves an accurate flick from one or both of the sticks, along with a combination of button presses, and that is usually just for the take-off – add in the combos and the quest for the right landing and you have a series of hardcore challenges for your fingers and thumbs.
I have mixed feelings about the modern trends towards open-world exploration in games, but it is perfect for a game like Skate 2. Following the example of Burnout Paradise almost to the letter, the game offers as much freedom as possible – not only is there a multitude of alternatives for what to do (races, competitions, story modes, trick spots, online free play and challenges, character customisation) but also the best alternative is often just to do whatever you want – I’ve rarely played a game where it is so easy to waste an hour grinding the same rail for no particular in-game benefit.
Basically speaking, the control system is so sound and infinitely playable, that the recipe cannot fail. This is not a game that succeeds on the basis of the quality of its creditable voice acting, or fails because of problems with difficulty curves or levels of frustration. Whatever art exists in this game happens in the split second between your actions with the controller and the way your skater pulls them off on-screen – it is totally faithful to its subject, really delivers a respect for the craft of skating to the player, and as a result is a top-notch simulation.
[rating: 4]
