Tony Hawk's Pro Skater

"The first of two and the most forgotten..."

Skateboarding games come few and far between these days that live up to the real adrenaline pumping action that comes from watching the real thing in competition or on ESPN. Sega Dreamcast faithfully recreates the game that started out on the PSX, and gives it a cleaner, crisper view that PSX fans will recognize immediately. Without really changing anything from the PSX version of the game, there isn’t anything here that will impress or surprise anyone and this version is basically a show of what the Dreamcast can recreate when there is nothing better to do. Aside from this, you’ll find that everything that you loved about the PSX version is back and looks better than ever, but those who are looking for improvements and otherwise might as well look elsewhere!

Skateboarding action at it's best. It's pretty straightforward, make the goals of each level in the main 1 player mode, and keep up with it. Bust tricks to gain points, and earn tapes to open up new levels. Two-player mode offers a couple of modes, including Horse; a mimic your opponent's point values game and Graffiti; a two player mark your ramps with giant tricks. Both are great, and can start alot of competition. Opening new levels is the key however; you'll spend alot of time playing the Career mode with each skater, as the game doesn't open up everyone at once when you play through with one skater! Most have attributes that differ from the others.

Nothing new has been added to the Dreamcast version of the game, so if you've played Tony Hawk Pro Skater on the Playstation, you're still playing the same game that you played on that system. Dreamcast owners won't be disappointed if they've never played the game with all of the modes, but be well aware that the learning curve of the game is steep in the amount of tricks that you have to learn and perform. Some of the best features that Tony Hawk has to offer is the multi-player games in which you can play several games that really bring out the competitive spirit such as Horse and Graffiti. Probably the best of the multi-player games is graffiti, because you have to really hone your trick pulling skills in order to get the points and keep your area tagged from your opponent!

When it comes down to using the Dreamcast controller to successfully pull off tricks this is where it can get a little hazy. Busting some of the tricks can be difficult, you'll try to do a grind, and end up doing a method. Angling yourself on the ramps is very hard, you may not land right, and you'll end up smashing into the pavement, losing both your trick, your points, and your self respect, yelling that you did the trick! Using the Dreamcast analog stick can become quite confusing at times, and using a combination of the analog stick and the control pad can make for some pretty sharp or pretty tricky combination in game! While the game does recreate the same set ups, you may have a problem using the analog stick and then the buttons simply because the Dreamcast controller is so wide! Once you have the hang of it though, there is nothing that you can perform or pull off and with enough practice even the most difficult tricks can be simple to do.

The visuals in Tony Hawk Pro Skater are definitely a good mix of color and detail. The tricks look clean, although some of them move a little faster than you would expect. The levels are huge and detailed, with jumps all over. A little added bonus is the blood that flies when your face connects with the concrete, and the sparks your trucks make when rail sliding on a concrete divider, or a steel guardrail. Alot of thought and detail went into this, you can tell by the levels, the lighting, and the way your skater moves. Unfortunately, Dreamcast only gives you a sharper image of the game, and doesn't add any new and interesting visuals or effect to look at, so you're basically looking at a cleaned up version of Tony Hawk that you can find on the Playstation! Without the extra visual improvements that you would hope to expect, you’ll find that if you own the PSX version already, wasting money on this one isn’t worth it.

Great soundtrack. Skater music all the way and it keeps you up beat and jumping along. You won't get tired of hearing it, right down to the scrap of the rails, and the soft thump of the body when you bail out on a trick. Alot of the time, you'll rock out to the music, and not even know what you're doing, just going with the flow of the music while playing! Again, you're still hearing the same soundtrack that is on the PSX version, and doesn't offer up anything new to listen to in terms of new music from skater-based rock bands that you'd hope to hear. A little disappointing but it can be overlooked if you're a Dreamcast owner playing this game for the first time.

I gave it an 8 for a reason. Some of the levels are just plain difficult. Trying to get the tapes can be hard, especially in the later levels, however, if you don't gather these, you can't unlock anything else. The soundtrack will keep you rocking through the game, as will the amazing tricks and spins that you end up doing! This is a great game, in a simple phrase: Totally Gnarly. You'll enjoy it, and enjoy playing it over and over again. It has alot of replay value, and it does keep your interests with the two-player mode, trying to top your friends. A recommended addition to any Dreamcast owners video game library. Playstation owners will find this game to be the same as they've played on the PSX, but only with a slightly different and cleaner look then that version. This won't sway most PSX owners to own this version of Tony Hawk, but it will keep Sega fans, and Dreamcast owners grinding away until the midnight hours. With the addition of Pro Skater 2 though, most will probably overlook this gem and play the more modern counterpart in favor of what really started the series on the Dreamcast console!

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 04/27/01, Updated 11/21/01