The Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series has been on hiatus for several years — in fact, a “traditional” Tony Hawk game hasn’t released since 2002 — and with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5, Activision and developer Robomodo aim to bring The Birdman back to his simple kickflipping, McTwisting ways. Unfortunately, dated technology might undermine the return to classic skating gameplay.
In a new trailer posted on Activision’s YouTube channel, which you can watch above, Tony Hawk and several other pro skaters (as well as a security guard, for some reason) jump over flames, grind rails, and even perform handstands, but one can’t shake the feeling that this was never meant to release on Xbox One and PlayStation 4. In fact, its low-detail character models barely look like they belong on last-gen consoles. The choice of music, Plague Vendor’s “Black Sap Scriptures,” feels right at home, however.
“It’s been more than 10 years since we got a Pro Skater game,” one YouTube user remarks. “Now the series is back and it doesn’t even look fun.”
“Is this gonna run on Nintendo 64?” another user quips.
Multiple fans, both on YouTube and Reddit, speculate that Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 may have even begun its life as a mobile game, and opine that the HD remake of the original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater actually looks superior. An iOS and Android game called Tony Hawk’s Shred Session was in the works last year, but was cancelled shortly before the announcement of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5. Whether or not this is anything more than baseless speculation is anyone’s guess, but Activision’s decision to continue to support 10-year-old hardware has certainly limited what the new game can do.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 arrives to Xbox One and PlayStation 4 September 29, followed by a last-gen release at an unspecified date.
