Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2

"You knew it was gonna happen"

Note: This review was written by my point of view with a PS-PC USB Adapter, which means I can use my Playstation controller with any computer game :) I highly recommend that you get one, or at least a gamepad, immediately before you commence playing THPS2 because you will get a serious case of twitchy fingers if you do not. Thank you.

The infamous skateboarding simulation Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater2 finally ported to the computer; you knew it would happen. And praise Activision and Neversoft, it’s even better than the PSX version (yes, that is possible!). Now let’s hope it’s ported to the PS2, and THPS3 is ported to PSX, DC, PS2, and the computer ;)

The Graphics of THPS2-PC look absolutely, positively, breathtakingly stunning. They look almost like real life! There is also virtually zero slowdown on my system, maybe one second of slowdown per six hours of playing. My PC is a 1GHz Athlon, 128MB SDRAM, and 32MB 3D Prophet II MX video card. In English, that means razor-sharp, lightning fast graphics. And THPS2-PC is just that. Everything the PSX version is, only better. Crisp, clear, bright, bold, colorful, and detailed; just how I like my graphics :) The text (like whenever you do a trick) has been improved, and more rounded off. These are even better than the DC THPS2’s graphics!!!!!! Very good job on these graphics, Activision.

What more can I say about the Sound other than awesome? I love punk music in a skateboarding game (especially THPS1 and 2), so I loved the soundtracks of this game. Papa Roach, Dub Pistols, Bad Religion, Naughty by Nature……… this game has it all!!! The sound effects are absolutely exquisite on my system, even with some generic sound card. My only complaint is that like one out of twenty-five times I play a level, the sound does not load. No biggy, restart the level. Nothing else to say other than --excellent-- sound.

About the Control: if you can score 50,000 points in the original, you can score well over 150,000 in the sequel. Same exact setup (on gamepad), therefore same trick system as the original. The picky people even have the option of customizing the controls to their desires, so now they can blame only themselves if they suck :Þ And when I first played without the gamepad, the keyboard (ick) controls were easier than I thought they would have been to use. Given that I can get about 100,000 points with the keyboard setup, it is undoubtedly the best job Activision could have done with a keyboard.

For those of you who have been living under a rock for the past three years, the Gameplay is simple enough for everyone. You are one of a bunch of professional skateboarders and you have to visit about ten huge levels, tricking off whatever objects you can find and earn mega points that way. Es muy fácil. You still need to practice, however; don’t expect 300,000 points on your second go-around. I’ve been playing it since the original came out, and there are people who a lot better than me. Very good gameplay………… yeah.

Last but not least, the Replay value… given my review, the answer is painfully obvious. This one game has more replay value than any other game I’ve ever played. You tired of the skaters? Make your own! Tired of the levels? Make your own! Tired of single player mode? Go online with another player! My only complaint about the LAN multiplayer is that I can never find anyone to play it with online! Nevertheless, like I just stated, the replayability is endless. Plus, Free Skate itself keeps you entertained for months after you buy it. Also, if you go to http://www.planettonyhawk.com/mods/index.html and download the first file, the THPS1 Levels Utility, you can replace all the original Tony Hawk levels with the three they include in the game (Chicago, Warehouse, Downhill Jam), which are genius masterpieces in themselves. Also go to the Tutorials section of that same site and you can import your own music into the game to replace the sixteen songs they include. That is one major advantage the computer version has over any other version; the ability to modify files and download editors.

To Buy or Rent? Why don’t you take a guess? For those of you who aren’t very bright, you should definitely BUY Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2. CompUSA has a deal going; buy the game for the PC and you get a free Wingman USB gamepad (above average gamepad), all for $29.99! Yah, you should definitely buy this game, especially for the computer, if not all three systems (DC, PSX, PC).

Graphics: 100/100
Overall Sound: 91/100
Control: 100/100
Gameplay: 92/100
Replay value: 100/100
Overall Average: 96.6/100
Overall GameFAQs Score: 10/10

Note: I am currently using a modified file on my PC version, where it allows me to play the game without having to insert the annoying CD to play. This is not, I repeat NOT, piracy because you still have to buy the game and install it. It then runs entirely off the hard drive alone, and is better for your system than running the CD all the time. Thank you.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 03/03/01, Updated 05/29/01