Thrasher Presents: Skate and Destroy

"A Great Skatboarding Simulation"

Thrasher: Skate and Destroy is a Skateboarding Sim developed Z-Axis for the Sony Playstation game console. Many People compare it with Tony Hawk. But this is like comparing apples with oranges. Thrasher is more of a Simulation and has a higher learning curve. Both are great games in thier own right but I perfer Thrasher.

Gameplay (8/10)
This is the best part about Thrasher. The point of the game is to become a famous skater. You have to do all the tricks you can within a 2 minute period. Each stage has a set score that you must accomplish to pass. If you don't get enough points and exit the level within 2 minutes a cop(or mugger or dog on some levels) will chase you. If caught you have to start over,even if you had enough points to pass the stage. After you complete a few stages in a location you go to a competition. For the competitions the rules are somewhat different. You still have 2 minutes but there are no cops and falls deduct 500 points. Which brings me to another part of the gameplay. Falls. The falls in this game are very comical. You do have a damage meter so don't fall just to see the funny animations. Don't worry too much about the damage meter though because unless you are really bad you won't lose because of it. There is a huge variety of tricks in this game. All of them look great and are easy to pull off. Trick points are multiplyed depending on the danger of the situation. Doing a trick in front of a cop will gain you 3 times as many points then doing it normally.
The stages in this game are quite big and very detailed. You can grind on chess boards,rails,benches,wires and even parked cars! There are even moving vehicals. Watch out for the train in the subway stage. There are 6 skaters to choose from. Each have different strenghs and weakness'. The difficulty is perfect. Not too hard and not too easy. On expert dificulty level a new element is added to the game. Now you must press a button before you land. If not you will lose your balance and precious time. This increases the dificulty a little but once you get used to it,it becomes second nature. The multi playe mode is also quite fun. While you can not have two skates on screen at one time there is a lot of different ways to play.

Control (7/10)
The control in this game for the most part is great. Certain tasks however are hard to accomplish. In some tricks you must hold the D-pad diagonl up and press a button. The hard part is while you are holding diagonal up the skater is moving in the direction being held. I have not tried the analog control so I can't comment on that. The vibration function is implemeted very well though.

Sound/Music (9/10)
The sound FX are great. Not much else to say about them. The music is great if you like rap. I personally do not but I've heard from people who like rap that the soundtrack is great. There are a few songs that aren't that bad.

Graphics (7/10)
The least important part of any game in my opinion. The graphics are a little above average. The skater designs are great. The in game graphics are drk and edgy. They fit the mood of the game well. There is very little Slowdown. The tricks are pretty detailed. You can for the most part see what a trick is just by looking at it.

Replay Value (6/10)
The replay value,for the most part,depends on you. You can unlock the courses and get new sponsers but that is about it. I am still playing the game now and I beat it monthes ago. If you have fun just skating and trying to get a high score the replay value is high. If not then it is average.

Rent or Buy?
Again this decision is entirerly up to the gamer. I feel it is definitely worth the $40 that I payed for it. If you have patience and enjoy skateboarding games then buy it. If you are expecting an easy to get into arcade experience rent it.

Overall (8/10)
Overall this is a very good skatboarding simulation. It has a somewhat high learning curve. This is the type of game that you either love or hate. I love it. Please keep in mind it is a simulation. That means if you fall 80 feet you are going to take some damage and fall right off your board.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/26/00, Updated 01/26/00