Xboxist

Can Tony Hawk Prove His Ground Against EA's Skate?

Two of the biggest skateboarding games hit the Xbox 360 this fall: Tony Hawk's Proving Ground, which gets released on October 9, and EA's SKATE, which is out now. First, we'll take a look at the upcoming skateboarding game Tony Hawk's Proving Ground.

In THPG, players can choose from three paths: a career skater, a rigger, or a hardcore skater. Career skaters make skating as their full time career and fly around the world as they get their faces on the cover of magazines and TV while earning some decent paychecks along the way. As for a rigger, a rigger is a skater who uses the environment to create obstacles, such as ramps or rails. The hardcore skater path is solely for the purpose of skating for the fun of it, not for the fame or fortune.

This game contains many new features which many fans of the Tony Hawk series will really enjoy. Of course, many of the old features will be in the game, such as walking or running while holding the board, as well as climbing and jumping around, which can be helpful while looking for hidden spots to skate. One of the new features allows players to skate check thugs and people taking over their favorite skate spots. Confused? Picture hockey combined with skateboarding. Get the idea now? Exactly. Players can bust out a power check on people skating on their turf or hassling them and leave those thugs bruised and scarred. If that was not enough, a new trick called the "Aggro Kick" allows players to get more speed while riding on their board. If the "Aggro Kick" is used while doing a skate check, the player is send the thug flying!

Along with the "Nail-the-Trick" feature comes "Nail-the-Manual" and "Nail-the-Grab" features which gives the player full total control of the board and more chances to rack up points and execute bigger combos. THPG will also have feature that will let players modify their environment through a "Rig-A-Kit" which contains tools, ramps, and everything the player needs to create the most epic skate park. In addition, players who are interested in making a video can use the new video editor feature! The game will also have an online feature.

EA's SKATE has been getting some really good reviews and even some reviews claim that it may be on the same level as the Tony Hawk games, or maybe even higher. The game even received a "Best of E3" award. Probably the most noticeable feature of the game is the controls. With the "Flickit" control, players will not have to button mash anymore. With this new feature, players will get to experience how it feels like to really skate in which the flick of the foot (in this case the joystick) is how tricks are truly executed.

The game will also let players create their own style of skating with its animation and physics as well. Also, with the open progression, gamers have the freedom to skate how they want to skate, such as whether they want to become famous and get into the mainstream hype, or become the opposite and outrun security guards. SKATE can be played online as well.

Based on the screenshots, EA's SKATE takes the cake right there. The graphics look smooth and well done. As for controls, EA's SKATE definitely has it down pact. However, the "Flickit" feature may not be amusing to some players and they may want to stick to the traditional controls that the Tony Hawk games have. Overall, these two skateboarding games have their pros and cons and each appeal to certain types of players.

It's only matter of time before we find out if Tony Hawk can prove his ground or have the ground below him be broken by EA's SKATE.

(THPG screenshots courtesy of Activision/Neversoft)

(SKATE screenshots courtesy of EA)