Skate (video game)
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| Developer(s) | EA Black Box |
| Publisher(s) | Electronic Arts |
| Designer(s) | Scott Blackwood (executive producer) |
| Platform(s) | Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, mobile phone |
| Release date(s) | Xbox 360
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| Genre(s) | Sports |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer, online multiplayer |
| Distribution | Blu-ray Disc, DVD |
Skate (marketed as skate.) is a skateboarding video game developed by EA Black Box for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. It was released in North America on September 17, 2007 for the Xbox 360 and September 24, 2007 for the PlayStation 3 and in Europe on September 28, 2007 for the Xbox 360 and October 5, 2007 for the PlayStation 3. As of February 1, 2008, Skate has outsold the 2007 skateboarding game Tony Hawk's Proving Ground by a ratio of almost 2 to 1 on seventh generation video game consoles.[3] Two sequels to Skate, Skate 2 and Skate 3 have been released for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, as well as Skate It, a spin-off for the Wii, Nintendo DS, and iOS platforms. The latest installment, Skate 3, was released in May 2010.
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Mobile version[edit]
The mobile version of Skate features two game modes: Thrasher Mode (the main game mode, in which the player completes goals to make the cover of skateboarding magazine Thrasher) and Free Skate (where the player can play on levels previously unlocked in Thrasher Mode). The player plays as a customized skater, who receives tips from pro skaters Chris Cole and Rob Dyrdek, among others, through twelve missions divided in four goals each. Though the game is still set in San Vanelona, there are only three explorable areas: Plaza, Halfpipe and Downtown, aside from linear levels only playable in Thrasher Mode. The mobile version of Skate later won "Cellular Game of the Year" award at the 2008 Interactive Achievement Awards.
Demo[edit]
The demo was scheduled for release on Xbox Live for August 15, 2007[4] but was delayed (as stated by Scott Blackwood on the Skate forum) due to a sudden problem with the demo's Skate Reel (video editing) feature, releasing on August 21, 2007. It was released on PlayStation Network in September 2007. The demo let players skate around the San Vanelona Community Center for thirty minutes and learn how to do various tricks as well as create and edit videos.
Soundtrack[edit]
The soundtrack of Skate consists of many punk rock and hip hop songs, many of which are by independent artists such as The Falcon. Artists, such as Tommy Guerrero, XXXChange, and Z-Trip composed songs exclusive to Skate.
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Agent Orange - No Such Thing Airbourne - Let's Ride Bad Brains - I Against I Band Of Horses - The Funeral Beat Beat Beat - Sinking Slow Black Flag - Six Pack * Booker T & The MG's - Green Onions Challenger - Input The Output Children Of Bodom - Hate Crew Deathroll * David Bowie - Queen Bitch Dead Prez - Hip Hop * Devo - Gut Feeling-Slap Your Mammy Eddie Rap Life - Push Your Wood Eric B & Rakim - Juice (Know The Ledge) * Escalera - Go It Alone Filthy Thieving Bastards - …Lords Of The Avenues * Gang Starr - Now You're Mine * H.I.T. - Drama * Mac Mall - Perfect Poison * Motorhead - We Are Motorhead * Nirvana - Lounge Act * |
Renee Renee - Stand Up Talk Easy * Rick James - Give It To Me Baby Rick Ross - Hustlin' * River City Tanlines - Black Knight S.T.R.E.E.T.S. - Georgia St. Sicker Than Others - Face Away Sister Nancy - Bam Bam The Briefs - Poor And Weird The Coup - Ride The Fence * The Dwarves - Massacre * The Exploding Hearts - Your Shadow The Falcon - Blackout * The Mag Seven - Dick Cemetery The Ramones - Psycho Therapy The Returnables - Teenage Imposter The Sex Pistols - Pretty Vacant The Stars Misplaced - Prophets And Kings The White Stripes - Girl, You Have No Faith In Medicine Trouble Andrew - Chase Money * Valient Thorr - Man Behind The Curtain |
* = Song is censored
Development[edit]
The game's "flick it" control system began development long before any graphics had been implemented: the initial prototype simply read analogue stick motions and displayed a basic text message saying what trick had been performed, along with speed and accuracy ratings.[5] The developers found that in order to receive accurate information from the very fast analogue stick motions used when playing the game, input data from each control pad had to be read at a rate of 120Hz.[5]
The game relies extensively on physics to model the skateboarders' movement. Havok, Endorphin and others were considered, but ultimately a RenderWare package called "Drives" was used to model the joints of the human body.[5]
Evidence from different versions of EA's official website for Skate show that the game has been through some major changes in development. For example, one screenshot, dated "04/06/2007", shows that San Vanelona was originally planned to be a coastal city, featuring a football stadium, harbour and cruise liner.[6]
Major changes were also made to the soundtrack. Originally planned to feature "Roadhouse Blues" by The Doors, the soundtrack now focuses more heavily on hip-hop. Some songs appear in both studio and remixed form.[7]
Reception[edit]
IGN gave the Xbox 360 version of skate a 9.0,[8] and the PlayStation 3 version an 8.8.[9] Praise was given to the environments, control scheme, and soundtrack. Criticisms included latency issues with the online multiplayer, odd physics glitches, and the lack of freestyle tricks in both the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of the game (although it is possible to do lip tricks because of the unique grind engine built into the game).[10] However, IGN have since edited their review of Skate, deleting the paragraph to do with complaints of the PS3 version being worse than the 360 version, after sources on the internet led them to believe there is no difference between the two versions of the game, despite user reviews. IGN has not changed the scoring for the PS3 version of Skate. GameSpot gave it a 7.5 for the Xbox 360 version of the game[11] and a 7.0 for the PS3 version.[12] The reviews praised the game for a good start and innovation, but was criticized for the in-game advertising and product placement. . This resulted in its 0.5 lower score. GameSpy gave it a 5 star rating for the 360 version, praising it for the control scheme, presentation, expansive environments, audio, and amount of content. It was criticized for the learning curve, frustrating camera, and the slowdown in online game modes. Gamespy has since given the PS3 version a 5/5 as well. [13]
Sequels[edit]
In February 2008, EA president Frank Gibeau stated in a presentation for industry analysts that the original game posted bigger numbers on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 than rival Tony Hawk's Proving Ground. Because of these numbers, the company had decided to begin work on a sequel.[14] Skate 2 was officially announced in May 2008 [15] and was released at the end of January 2009.[16][17]
In September 2009, EA announced the third installment in the Skate franchise, Skate 3, which was released on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in May 2010. The game is set in a new fictional city called Port Carverton. New gameplay features include the ability to perform dark slides and underflips and Skate 3 has a stronger emphasis on online team play than the previous games.[18]
EA has not yet announced a Skate 4, but instead just recently announced that the company would be closing the official EA Skate forums on May 30th, 2013.[19]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ EA : Skate[dead link]
- ^ Skate (Xbox 360). "Skate at". Game.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
- ^ "Skate outsells Tony Hawk 'nearly' 2 to 1". Joystiq. 2008-01-01. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
- ^ By _Publisher, GameSpotPosted Aug 3, 2007 11:23 am PT (2007-09-14). "EA's Award-winning Skate Video Game Rolls Onto European Retail Shelves in September - Xbox 360 News at GameSpot". Gamespot.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
- ^ a b c "New Tricks: Scott Blackwood Talks Skate And Skate 2". Gamasutra. 17 October 2008. Retrieved 1 December 2008.
- ^ "Screenshots from an early build of Skate". Electronicarts.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
- ^ "Original tracklist". Electronicarts.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
- ^ Hilary Goldstein (2007-09-07). "IGN Xbox 360 Skate review". Xbox360.ign.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
- ^ Hilary Goldstein (2007-09-07). "IGN: Skate Review". Ps3.ign.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ Gerstmann, Jeff (2007-09-14). "Skate for Xbox 360 Review - Xbox 360 Skate Review". Gamespot.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
- ^ Gerstmann, Jeff (2007-09-24). "Skate for PlayStation 3 Review - PlayStation 3 Skate Review". Gamespot.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
- ^ "GameSpy: Skate Review". Xbox360.gamespy.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
- ^ "EA Goes Big in '08, '09". IGN.
- ^ Brudvig, Erik (2008-05-12). "Skate 2 Made Official". IGN. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ^ "IGN Confirm January 2009 Release". IGN. 2008-10-31. Retrieved 2008-10-31.
- ^ "MAXConsole Confirm January 21st/23rd 2009 Release". MAXConsole. 2008-11-25. Retrieved 2008-11-25.
- ^ "CVG: EA unveils Skate 3". Computer and Video Games.
- ^ "The Plea For Skate 4". Den of Geek.
External links[edit]
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