It’s been over 10 years since we got the last game in the hit Skate series, and ever since, fans of the series have been asking when EA will finally return to this unique take on the skateboarding genre. First announced in 2020, we’re still waiting to get back on our boards in this reboot of the franchise simply called Skate. That wait is almost over, and we have a good deal of information about this upcoming game. Lace up your shoes and put on a helmet as we grind through all the information we have about Skate.
Release date window
Skate is officially set to receive an early access launch sometime in 2025, though we don’t have a firm date from EA just yet. That’s all the details shared as of now, so we don’t yet know how long the game will be in early access before it formally launches.
Platforms
With no release date, platforms are far from a priority for EA to give any details on. But, based on what we have to assume the game’s timeline is, we think it’s pretty easy to say this game will be on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S consoles, at the very least. PC was initially kind of a wild card since the previous games didn’t show up on that platform. However, the official Skate Twitter account posted a simple video of a live-action skater performing a kickflip over an old computer monitor. The monitor then comes to life with the Skate logo on it. If that wasn’t obvious enough, the text accompanying the video is simply “PC_Confirmation.exe,” meaning this new Skate is confirmed for PC.
One announcement made from the first Board Room video series was that Skate would be launching as a free-to-play title. It will also be fully cross-play and cross-gen, meaning it will be coming to PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC, and even mobile.
Trailer
The first trailer (although they are really stretching the definition of “trailer”) we got was in the summer of 2021. This trailer is titled We’re Working On It and might as well have been a picture of a sign that said just that. There was no gameplay, no cutscenes, not even any bullshots or pre-rendered assets here. What we do see are performers doing stunts, developers telling us how early-on the game is, and reactions to people who have supposedly seen the game. Not us, though — we don’t get to see it yet.
The only natural follow-up to the We’re Working On It trailer is the Still Working On It trailer. This trailer at least shows a lot more progress and actual footage of the game, though it’s still clearly missing a ton of textures and polish.
The trailer is honest in showing plenty of glitches and bugs while stating that they are, in fact, still working on it. They state that they’re listening to feedback and trying to figure out the direction of the game as they go along but emphasize the goal of giving players more tools to express themselves and customize the game.
While not technically a trailer, The Board Room shed some light on a lot about Skate. First, the team was clear that they wanted to make Skate true to what players found fun in the originals, namely the toybox, chaos, physics interactions, and feeling. Somewhat contradictory, however, they made it clear that Skate was not a sequel, reboot, or anything else like that. The intention is to treat this game as a platform they iterate on for years, rather than sending it out and then working on sequels. This means new items, features, events, and content of all kinds will be added regularly.
Skate will take place in a new city called San Vansterdam, which they describe as being a kind of sister city to the setting of the previous games.
Gameplay
Without us getting the chance to see much gameplay, we have to do some detective work and interpretation to put a little picture together of what to expect from Skate. To get the obvious out of the way, yes, this is still going to be a skateboarding game in the style of the original games. What’s different or new? Well, based on some key things the people in the reaction trailer have said, we have a few nuggets to consider. First up, one person remarked that the character would be able to climb. From what we can deduce, that means you will have some ability to get off your board and parkour a bit around the environment to set up big tricks or bomb down ramps from the top of structures.
We also heard someone mention how the open-world looked, making that an easy point to add to the list. Skate 3 had zones that you had to use a menu to travel between, so having one seamless playground to skate your way through feels like a natural, if not overdue, evolution for the series.
The last clue we picked up on was someone commenting that they didn’t want to look like anyone else. To us, that clearly means there will be a robust character creator. Character creators have been a staple in most skateboarding games since the beginning, and we love decking out our skater in cool clothes and accessories and even customizing our boards. How deep the system will go and how many options there will ultimately be remains to be seen, but this tiny tease makes it sound pretty substantial.
The latest trailer also showed off plenty of new ways of movement aside from regular boarding. We see characters luge on their boards, as well as ditch them completely to parkour, swing, and run around the world.
There also may be some sort of level editor system, assuming that isn’t just developer tools, which could greatly increase the game’s longevity.
Preorder
It should come as no surprise that there’s no information on preorders for Skate since it will be free-to-play, though we still don’t know when we will be able to download it. Don’t expect to buy a physical copy until its 1.0 release, though. When it launches in early access in 2025, it’ll likely be a digital release judging by other early access game launches.
