Screenshots: Tony Hawk Wii
by Blake Snow 
{ May 8th 2006 at 5:00PM }
Click on the above image or follow the link below to first screenshots of Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam for Wii. The depicted images also display individuals controlling the moves via the Wii-mote (spoken like a 3 year-old trying to say "remote").
[Thanks, Paul]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
matt t @ May 8th 2006 5:05PM
:(
looks fun, but im definately underwhelmed by the visuals.
unreal mccoy @ May 8th 2006 5:06PM
those pics are downright ugly.
That game needs major work.
L @ May 8th 2006 5:06PM
SSX on a skateboard. Graphics look a little sub par, even by current gen standards.
Marc @ May 8th 2006 5:07PM
All i gotta say is don't judge a game by it's graphics.
bobeotm @ May 8th 2006 5:07PM
The graphics are quite PS2-ish, but I do find it interesting how they are using the controller sideways.
pr0cs @ May 8th 2006 5:07PM
Sure hope the game is fun because those screenshots make baby jesus cry. I though technology was supposed to go forward not backward, some of the shots look PS1 era.
Michael @ May 8th 2006 5:07PM
Wow, those graphics are pathetic and the downhill sections of Tony Hawk were the worst levels.
soco @ May 8th 2006 5:08PM
joystiq is slooow today. SE just announced a launch title for the Wii at their press conference, according to some other sites. Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors ...
Kaemon @ May 8th 2006 5:08PM
Of course it doesn't look quite good yet, its still probobly extreamly beta, ya know. It probobly has a long way to go before its even close to finished yet. Which it should becasue the Wii won't even launch for months to come, so they have lots of working time.
Corey @ May 8th 2006 5:09PM
I think its safe to say the Tony Hawk Series has deff. jumped the shark. IMO, it did after American Wasteland.
David @ May 8th 2006 5:09PM
Same as another comment I made-
While it's hard to argue they look good visually, I'm sure the gameplay, ie wii-moting, will surely be a new experiance. I'm a little worried that people will only be into the wii as a gimmick or a fad, something completely new and fun that dies down over some time, hopefully they get better looking games.
Oh then again I sort of doubt middle america cares if the game looks really good or not, hell I remember hearing recently that last years best selling title was a pokemon game...
SLy @ May 8th 2006 5:09PM
You guys were a bit slow on this one. Judging from the screenshots, the graphics suck badly but we'll have to wait and see.
Paul @ May 8th 2006 5:10PM
Those are Dreamcast level graphics, honestly. Acclaim should be ashamed. Most Gamecube titles look better than this.
P.S. I'm not the Paul he in thanking in this and other posts, but I've used this name here for a while. Just wanted to say I'm not trying to impersonate anyone. I think I got a negative star once for posting in a thread with the same name as someone else.
haegen @ May 8th 2006 5:11PM
i'm sure it's very far from complete, but yeah so far those graphics aren't so impressive.....the suggested gameplay and locations of the tracks remind me a lot of that espn extreme games racer for the ps1. the graphics weren't so hot, but man were those street luge levels fun! also someone clearly was paying attention to my friend's sister when she was playing mario kart and kept trying to steer with her whole body.
Wiily dissappointed. @ May 8th 2006 5:11PM
Oh yay, a current gen console with a weird controller included free! Even my mom thinks it sounds gimmicky, and she's one of the non-gamers Ninty is targeting with this thing. Sigh.
David @ May 8th 2006 5:11PM
Plus that Dragon Quest game is supposed to be a wii launch game (woop?!)
JRM @ May 8th 2006 5:11PM
I think the graphics look really smooth and fluid--not like the 360's American Wasteland, which looked like they pasted "next gen" graphics over the current gen's.
I also noticed the girl is holding the controller sideways. That's excellent!! I found it kinda stupid having to always point the controller lengthwise at the tv.
Blake @ May 8th 2006 5:11PM
Are you kidding me? That's next gen? Ummm.... wow, cause if that's the case, then Nintendo is in some serious trouble. Look at those textures. They look like something out of an N64 game.
reguy @ May 8th 2006 5:15PM
Hmm those graphics sure look ugly. I know nin said they werent going to compete with the big boys but they show up to e3 with that????
Also, im no genius here but it looks like that fancy remote is being used like its always been used, in no shot are they pointing it at the screen, maybe the nin fanboys will finally see that the wii is a scam...
im not here to fight, but cmon (guys & girls) u see the same things i see
jay @ May 8th 2006 5:15PM
No offence, but either your "mom" is an idiot or thats a downright lie. How can a non-gamer use a regular controller for so long and then say this new way of playing is a gimmick? It's only a gimmick if you've used something else for an extended length of time.
You disappoint me as a human, I'm sorry.
Game looks bad, will probably play very well. because of that nobody will get it. if it's fun i'll buy.
had2comment @ May 8th 2006 5:16PM
The graphics look like crap. It is going to be very interesting to see whether the Wii's remote makes up for and essentially overcomes the lackluster visuals.
Also, if I *ever* play any game like this guy does, I will promptly hurl myself through the nearest window:
http://www.e3insider.com/_media/?type=image&format=fullSize&source=gp_Manuevering_in_San_Francisco.jpg
Paul Gale @ May 8th 2006 5:16PM
These first Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam screenshots for Wii certainly don't look "next-gen". Even though the environmental design looks nice, the polygon count seems on the low side. Hopefully the game'll look better in 6 months when it's released, and that it looks good in video when we play it this Wednesday.
Paul Gale
1up.com
http://Paul_Gale.1up.com
vidGuy @ May 8th 2006 5:18PM
I'm not going to judge Wii's graphical abilities on leaked screens of a Tony Hawk game, which is traditionally sub-par graphics-wise. That's like looking at a GTA game and saying that is all the system is capable of.
Player1 @ May 8th 2006 5:19PM
Does every Wii screen now have to include a pic of
someone using the controller?
Chris @ May 8th 2006 5:19PM
don't start sucking each other off just yet it's only a picture.
sepll cehck @ May 8th 2006 5:21PM
One thing to keep in mind people - these images are compressed and may not truly depict how the graphics truly look.
Also - sometimes a single frame can conceal the true resolution of an images - sometimes - movement cannot be captured without some distortion.
Art Guy @ May 8th 2006 5:21PM
I thought the Wii could pump out graphics just as good as the Xbox 360/PS3 because it didn't have to run on HDTVs?
jon again @ May 8th 2006 5:22PM
I agree this looks terrible. The Wii can't produce PS3 level graphics, everyone knows that. However, that's no excuse for the devs making a game that looks like this. I hope devs don't start thinking they can skimp on productions values because it's a Wii title. Come on, Tony Hawk at lauch for the GC looked twice as good as this junk. The Wii has more horespower than the Cube not less. Ack-Lame!
Don Jose @ May 8th 2006 5:23PM
So, if I use that controller, am I going to make strange faces too?
One thing that's standing out as a problem for me is that that controller looks to be about the size of a candy bar (and I'm not talking King-Size). I have rather large hands. Unless that guy in the pictures has hands bigger than mine, I personally foresee a hell of a lot of hand cramps, which will necessitate much shorter game sessions. Not cool.
Can we see the shell now, please?
Stu L Tissimus @ May 8th 2006 5:23PM
Hey, uh, guys? Something I just noticed. Aren't these screenies in 16:9 format instead of 4:3?
Perhaps it will have HD support?
thatguy @ May 8th 2006 5:23PM
Ummmm well, those graphics wouldent be to bad if this was stil 1998.
gameclu @ May 8th 2006 5:26PM
I think using Tony Hawk as the litmus test for the Wii's graphical capabilities is a big mistake. As those games are some of the worse games I've had the displeasure of playing. They are as cookie cutter as Madden.
jon @ May 8th 2006 5:27PM
Wow the Wii is as lame as I thought it would be.
Gaspacho @ May 8th 2006 5:29PM
Man honestly, it's hard to judge at this point, I mean, for all we know that game moves at like 600 frames a second, hence the porr graphics. I imagine the response from the controller to the games has to be as fluid as possible seeing as how the remote is supposed to be super sensitive. And I'm no Nintendo fanboy, just of fan of games in general, seeing things with optimism.
Paul @ May 8th 2006 5:32PM
Here's a news flash jon, Tony Hawk graphics always, ALWAYS suck hard. Take a look at the 360 Tony Hawk game that came out at launch. It's graphics were also last gen.
seamus @ May 8th 2006 5:32PM
ok ok... I know that graphics dont make a game and all but... these graphics are worse than gamecube! Even if they are not looking towards suped up graphics they could atleast make it better then last gen...not worse.
GuyManDude @ May 8th 2006 5:34PM
"Sure hope the game is fun because those screenshots make baby jesus cry."
Well, if his crying annoys, you could always throw him in the nearest river. =)
Paul @ May 8th 2006 5:40PM
Baby Jesus can crawl on water, it wouldn't do any good.
SuiXide @ May 8th 2006 5:41PM
Returning to the THPS2 engine I see.
Ace! @ May 8th 2006 5:42PM
Why does everyone complain about graphics, i would have been fine if all games hadnt advanced past the SNES days. People concentrated more on how fun the games were then rather than how good they looked. Now everyone is moaning that the graphics arent good, i couldnt care less, as long as its fun, and judgin by the peoples faces, it looks pretty fun to me.
Ace!
whee @ May 8th 2006 5:43PM
ONFG you guys!!!
This site offers sucky screens come on, it's in 16:9 in 480p!! It can't possibly look this bad and here's proof:
http://www.e3insider.com/_media/?type=image&format=fullSize&source=gp_XenosagaIII_2.jpg
That's a friekin PS3 game!!! This site just sucks for screens, look at some of the other screens for proof.
Smellslikepie @ May 8th 2006 5:47PM
Paul, you can't compare the Tony Hawks game that came out for the 360 with that of the Wii. The game for the 360 was just a port of the original Xbox game, a bad port aswell :(. Whereas, to my knowledge, the Tony Hawk game for the Wii has been built for that, and isn't a port. Also, I think people should stop complaining about graphics, I admit these are pretty poor but Nintendo's aim is for gameplay. We'll just have to watch how that turns out!
Before anyone claims this is just a rant from a Nintendo Fanboy, you're wrong. I own a 360, and am looking into buying a Wii.
idioteraser @ May 8th 2006 5:50PM
That Tony Hawk version came off development kits back in December. You know when the third parties only had gamecubes with wii controllers on them?
Sorry but the latest version looks far better then that. You can find any game in it's development cycle that when the dev kits weren't finalized doesn't look very well compared to the final version. Especially when the dev kit is missing 99.999 of what is in the final version.
RUSKULL @ May 8th 2006 5:50PM
This can't be what it looks like. Bad, bad, bad.
I wonder if Nintendo was thinking that because Res 4 looked so good, that every developer would be able to take whatever hardware they give em, and make it look just as good for the Wii.
Hey, just because Nintendo thinks differently, doesn't mean they think better. I hope things end up looking better at E3...for their sake. And that includes gameplay.
Charli3 @ May 8th 2006 5:50PM
I hope those aren't anything close to the final visuals. Everybody knows that the Wii isn't going to be a graphical powerhouse but we all (secretly if not out loud) expected better. I can understand why some people would see that as fun but tell me that those guys don't look like complete doofuses. LOL!
Player1 @ May 8th 2006 5:51PM
Ace!,
I have a feeling that they probably wouldn't have posted photos of people playing with dissapointed looks on their faces. Just not good marketing.
peeweejd @ May 8th 2006 5:51PM
"Does every Wii screen now have to include a pic of someone using the controller?"
not only that, they have to showcase old people also to show that even granny likes to game with a wii! Its like video game affirmative action.
idioteraser @ May 8th 2006 5:53PM
The controller isn't a light gun you don't need to point it at the tv. It has always been stated you can tilt it sideways and use it like a steering wheel. It can sense when it is tilted. It has gyroscopes and accelormators.
Amir @ May 8th 2006 5:55PM
I know, I know graphics aren't everything, but those textures are VERY muddy. Pre-Dreamcast muddy (I love my belated Dreamcast too much to compare these screenies to them). Now, these may be early. OK, but so far to me it seems the controller changes position (vertical/horizontal) a lot. Coupled with the teeny Wiimote size, there may be a lot of hand crap. I was about 11/12 when I got my Dreamcast, so I liked the controller, but my friends with larger hands found that too small (and later so did I). Maybe they should pull a reverse-MS and release a beefy "Controller Humongous" for the West.
idioteraser @ May 8th 2006 5:55PM
Player1 get your head out of your rear end. Dozens of people who have talked about playing with the controller have praised it. They said going to play a regular gamepad became boring after trying out the wiimote.
Even nintendo hater and all around graphics whore Tommy Tallarinco was impressed with the wiimote's capabilities. And that was on a spongebob game to boot!!!!