Tony Hawk’s American Sk8land Nintendo DS Review

We’ve all played Tony Hawk’s at some point. Haven’t we? I’d be very surprised if there was more than one occasional gamer among us who hasn’t dabbled with one of the many iterations of Tony Hawk’s games over the years. We’ve gone right from Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater to THUG to American Wasteland and these have all been very solid games. What they haven’t done, however, is take much of a risk. Well, apart from the disastrous ‘on foot’ sections which we’d all rather forget. Apart from that, this is a series that has based itself on functional graphics, tight controls and huge, expansive levels with lots of secrets to discover. The gameplay has evolved into a more story based affair, but the basics have remained pretty much untouched.

It was always going to be interesting to see what a new developer for the series, Vicarious Visions, decided to do on a brand new piece of hardware. The Nintendo DS opened up lots of possibilities with its two screens and touch screen control, but also brought a dilemma into how to squeeze the full Hawk experience onto a relatively underpowered handheld.
That they have created one of the best games on the Nintendo DS, and by far the best game yet in the Hawk’s series, is to their eternal credit!

Graphics
It was always going to be a no-go to try and replicate the realistic graphics of the larger consoles on the Nintendo DS, so wisely they developers didn’t even try. Instead, they have brought us a cartoon version of Tony Hawk’s that looks absolutely stunning. This may have set out as a compromise, but in actual fact it has turned into a triumph of design. The stages and the character models look amazing on the DS screens. Everything is clear and easy to make out and you’ll have no trouble navigating through the levels. The game moves along at a rock solid 60 frames per second, which is vital for the intricate timing needed to pull off some of the more complex tricks. The skater models move fluently and realistically and the levels are full of small details that you will notice more and more on repeated plays.

The graphical style of the game is somewhat reminiscent of Sega’s Jet Set Radio series, with a degree of cel-shading implemented to make things stand out. Screenshots do not do this game justice as they are inevitably blown up, but you will be delighted at the quality you see in motion on the small screens of your DS.

The create-a-skater mode is inevitably smaller than its console cousins’, but there are still enough choices to make a boarder look pretty individual. As the game progresses, you can also design custom clothing and boards using the stylus on the touch screen. With a little care, it is possible to make some outstanding looking stuff. What’s more, using the DS wi-fi connection, you can upload your creations to the game’s official website for the world to share.

Gameplay
This is a Tony Hawk’s game and as such, the gameplay doesn’t vary much from its predecessors. In fact, the gameplay translates remarkably well to the DS. The d-pad is used to control your skater, whilst the 4 face buttons and two shoulder buttons are used to perform a variety of tricks. At the beginning of the game, you are offered two different difficulty levels, rookie and pro. Rookie is for those who haven’t played a Hawk’s game before. For those that have, this is far too easy. Plump for Pro and the game expands its goals and is more demanding of precise control input. This is where to start, not only for those who have played a Hawk’s game before, but for anyone who considers themselves any more than an average gamer.

The action takes place on the top screen, with the bottom screen displaying a map showing icons of goals and current goal objectives. This is a great feature and you will never find yourself stuck for knowing what to do next. Touch screen features are implemented beautifully, with instant trick slots being easily accessible to enable you to instantly perform some of the more complex tricks. You also have a focus meter, which fills as you perform successful tricks. Once full, a simple touch of the icon will put the action into slow motion, allowing you to easily pull off combos that would otherwise be unthinkable. The touch screen is also home to the freakout meter. If you bail, you can bring up three flashing bars. Touching each one while it is near the top will recover some of the points you lost in the fall. The best thing about these features is that the icons are plenty big enough to tap with your thumb, meaning there is no need to try and hold a stylus as well.

The story moves along with some fantastically designed cut scenes, which work beautifully in keeping you up to date with what is going on. The story isn’t too deep, but it doesn’t matter, it is merely a frame from which to hang the level design anyway.

The game has the usual array of modes including trick attack, free skate, classic mode and story mode. Best of all, though, is a superbly implemented online mode. This can be played through local wi-fi connection or through the internet if you can take your DS online. The performance here is flawless, with 4 available game types all working with no lag and absolutely no drop in framerate.

Sound
The developers have managed to fit a surprising amount onto the little DS cartridge. There is a good range of typical Tony Hawk’s game songs included, and the sound effects of the actual skating are very well done. There is also a good amount of voice acting included to drive the story along. In a stroke of genius, the developers have also included slots for you to record your own voice to accompany tricks or bails. These will then play during the story mode when you perform the tricks or fall over. It really is a lot of fun to record different things and then hear the game play these to you as you play.

Lifespan
This is a big game on a small format, and the story mode will take you a good 15 – 20 hours to work your way through. This is in Pro mode, Rookie mode will be conquered substantially quicker. You will also come back to levels to perform trick attacks and especially classic mode, which is old school Hawk’s goals such as collecting tapes or letters in a specific order to spell out a word. Add to this the attractions of the online mode, and the ability to play against other players worldwide, and this isn’t a game you will tire of anytime soon.

Overall
This is fabulous, it really is. This is a classic example of a developer successfully reworking a title for a specific format. All of the DS’s unique points have been utilised to the full: the touch screen, the microphone, the free online play, everything just WORKS. This is the Tony Hawk’s series’ outstanding moment so far. It is the best game in the series, and more than that, it is one of the best games yet released on the DS, or any other format for that matter. If you have even a passing interest in this series, or just love great games, then you owe it to yourself to pick this one up. It has so many good points, and so few flaws, that we simply must score it very highly, and that’s just what I intend to do.

9 out of 10