Unfortunately, that also means "If we ain't fixin' it ... it's getting a bit stale." There are no big surprises inside of THPG, but they've added a few things to try and make it a bit more appealing and seem fresh. However, the core gameplay remains the same, with a couple of tweaks to the "Nail the Trick" feature from the last game. The graphics look about the same as Tony Hawk's Project 8, and the characters in the game still have that creepy undead zombie look to them. In fact, we've started to think that an undead zombie skating game might be pretty fun.
We've previously mentioned the class system and video editor, both of which are new to this game, and they've also added the ability to edit the landscape anywhere you see fit. You can add ramps, pipes, rails, and pretty much anything else you come across in the game, and can stick a camera right in the heart of your creation to capture the action. We tried this several times in the Rigger mode, and it's pretty easy to build something wacky in just a few seconds. The controls are very intuitive, and you can pick up anything and move it around easily.
Likewise in the Hardcore mode, we gave the "Skate Check" ability to knock the crap out of people walking down the street, minding their own business, and this quickly because the most fun thing to do in the game. Spy an innocent person ambling down the boulevard? WHAMMO! Send 'em flying. It's so hard to resist once you start doing it, and you'll try to send them flying off bridges and into objects. Cruel, but fun.
We actually had a pretty good time playing around with the video editor as well, and it's surprisingly robust. You can add effects, filters, music, and more in a timeline view and preview it before you're done. Think of it as iMovie Extreme Light. You can upload the videos once they're finished and share them with other players. Apparently, if you unlock Tony Hawk or complete his challenge or skate check him off a roof (we keed, we keed) you can also upload the videos to Volcom's site. We're not sure how that will work yet, but it sounds like a potentially cool feature.
We also spent some time playing Tony Hawk's Proving Ground on the Nintendo DS, and we were surprised with how cool it was. Sure, the graphics look like an NES threw up something half-digested, but the gameplay was fun, it has four-player WiFi multiplayer, voice chat, a sound editor, logo editor, build your own skatepark mode, a gesture trick mode that uses the touchscreen, and full-motion video. As far as we know, this is the first time a game on the DS has used full-motion video, correct us if we're wrong ... and we know that you will.
We're not really sure that if it's a good sign that we had more fun playing with the DS version next-gen game, but what can we say? We did. We're hoping that EA's upcoming Skate, which also features a video editor and upload feature, will shake things up and get the Tony Hawk developer's to try some radically new things altogether. Hey Neversoft, here's a freebie -- maybe Tony and crew get hit with a shrinking ray and have skating adventures in the Southern California sewer system while battle evil. Teenage Mutant Ninja Tony? We're just sayin'.
As an added bonus, check out this video we shot of Rodney Mullen and Arto Saari skating around the Neversoft offices. Just another day on the job, y'know.
