Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4

"A wipeout at the park."

This game to me was a disappointment, to the Tony Hawk games. Before you go out and buy this game, make sure to read this review. In my opinion, (and if you are smart) you will buy this game for the much better playstation 2 version. Here is my opinion on the game, and you buying it:

Graphics: 5/10

The graphics in this game are right there with the other Tony Hawk games except for one small difference, which is that there is not to much color in the game. Speaking with a serious tone, it is pretty hard to make out different, objects, poles, people, and buildings. (Ouch) Even though most of the objects you see (including you), are small you can still make out what they mainly are, and stand for the players, and the skateboard, are probably the best part in the graphics, because they are both semi-realistic, and easy to see. So basically the graphics are average, great, and tedious all in one.

Game Play; 6/10

This game is like every other Tony Hawk game; the game play is a little above average and the game gives you basically no limits to the tricks, grinding and all around fun factor you can have. This game is a fun game to play, but has one big flaw, and that is that's this game is unbelievably easy and short. It took me 3 days to beat it, even though it had some parts I really liked about it. This is the biggest part of the game that restricts it from being a 10/10 game.

Controls; 6/10
The controls in this game unlike other Tony Hawk games have a different control set-up. It seems like every control is reversed from the other games. For example, you would think to use the a button to jump and b to grind but its actually b to jump and a to grind. Even though the controls are basically reversed you will have no problem getting the hang off it. So a few different controls, and other things set this game apart from all other Tony Hawk games, and I bet we have all learned that uniqueness makes a game great.

Music/Sound; 5/10
This game does not have very good music, but the sound affects are amazing! Every grind, fall, and bails sound very realistic. Although the sound and music are a little above average, it doesn't come close to matching the other Tony Hawk games.

Overall; 6/10
This game is a good, solid Tony Hawk game. The reasons I gave it a 6/10 were, 1. Had great graphics that made this game realistic. 2. Average game play brought the game down to an average level, which restricted me to give this game above a 7/10. 3. Some basic controls that were reversed from other Tony Hawk games, which gave the game some uniqueness but still weren't fantastic.

Music: 4/10
Wow. The music in this game is horrible. All the music is are random notes, while playing the game. There is no organization of songs, or even a variety. The music is the biggest disappointment to the game.

Sound: 8/10
The sound is a very well done part of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4. Every time you grind, you hear the rusting of the pole, and everything else associated with skate boring. The same thing goes for doing tricks completing (mainly boring) tasks. The sound is the greatest part of the game: Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4.

Buy or Rent
You should rent this game. It is not a game worth buying because of its fun factor. But of course the sound and sound affects make up for that so it is basically your choice.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 01/28/04, Updated 08/07/04