FREE @world-of-nintendo.com E-mail
address!! Sign up here!!
Username:
Password:

Get a FREE iPad or MacBook Air!!!!!!!

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3

Reviewed by Dogg To say the truth, the Tony Hawk series has always lacked that special something to make it successful, on the Game Boy handheld. While Tony's console counterparts are privileged with success, more so with showers of glory, pride, and superiority, however, we have already seen several times that Tony was not and perhaps never meant for the impeccable small system. On the Game Boy Color these games stunk, and the dignified stereotypes that brought out THPS2 for the launching Game Boy Advance also had failed. While many claim that Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 on the Game Boy Advance was good, however, no one ever seems to take down the time to notice how utterly bad (keyword: bad) it was. Glitches everywhere, control problems too frequent, guess it is all in the life of the ineptitude crazy-man Tony Hawk. However, a sequel to that 'bad' game was soon announced. Appropriately called Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3, this game featuring Tony Hawk and his corrupt skateboarding friends actually fixes up the many problems found in the past game, however, that is nowhere to say it is perfect. While to all due respect, this series is to put simply, really popular, but I just wish that they best keep it away from the Game Boy Advance. Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 for the Game Boy Advance mostly utilizes most of the same gameplay elements as the past game. However, this time there are a few differences that should be known about. Not really big differences, but rather subtle ones that need no mention, but I'll mention the more important ones so I can impress the coeds who read this review now, or sometime in the distant future. The new features include an amalgamated create a player mode and some more revamped features of multi-player and single-player modes are featured. Also new moves have been added, as well as new skate parks. Nothing big, however, since half the time your love and hate for this game will all be part of how fast you learn how this game plays and how, most importantly, to finally pass single-player mode with just one of the long list of characters you have. The featured pro skaters in this game includes a bunch of late teenagers and guys who get big bucks to be up in a piece of wood. Anyway here is the list of the predetermined counterbalanced skaters: Tony Hawk, Steve Caballero, Kareem Campbell, Rune Glifberg, Eric Koston, Bucky Lasek, Rodney Mullen, Chad Muska, Andrew Reynolds, Geoff Rowley, Elissa Steamer, Jamie Thomas, and Bam Margera (you know, that Jackass). Each skater is different in his or her very own ways. Each skater has a different style that must be accustomed to, and also each skater has a different set of maneuvers that can either increase or decrease the value of their presence in the game. There are six levels in this game; but one more can be unlocked and further played. The six levels include the Foundry level, Suburbia, Rio, the Airport Ð my favorite level, Los Angeles, and the final level proportionally called 'Tokyo.' Each level is different in size and in objectives that must be done. All the levels, expect for Rio and Tokyo, have you hitting pedestrians while frenetically busting your demeaning ass with the zany and rather clichŽ objectives. Objectives include rather stupid, to rather, as mentioned, crazy stuff. Some force you to collect letters that eventually make up the word 'SKATE', while others have you jumping buildings from buildings just trying to get a secret tape. Some of the objectives will even allow you to interact with the fellow pedestrians roaming in that area Ð including coppers, hobos, grillers, and the ever avenging 'Thin Man.' As you do more and more objectives you will start to progress to the later levels, and soon to the tourneys, where Rio and Tokyo disturbingly take place. In the tourneys you basically just try your best to avoid falling down and by combusting up a nice score. In levels you will also be able to find special items to boost your stats, or your piece of wood, which you call a skateboard. Stuff like stats will be able to boost the way your character's performance will be while the insipid deck figures will give you yet another tapestry in the long-line of selecting which skateboard you want to ride. The biggest thing to be revealed in this game, however, is the new revert maneuver. A revert is a quick 180 degree turn that once linked with other combos will be able to rack up your score to extraordinary new heights. Much like the manual in the last game, the revert is one of the biggest additions added in this game, however, one thing kept killing this move, and the game even and that isÉ It's steep learning curve. Constantly I would bail on my killer trick just because my pace or my movement caused me to lose my balance or fall of a ramp. And this will happen constantlyÉ only rendering the fact that this game is nearly unplayable Ð more so with its aseptic isometric perspective which leads to more trouble. However, my pain was soon finished when I lowered the difficulty, but still I wanted to be enthralled into an awesome game, not a game that takes me over twenty hours to learn and then I simply discover that what I've been doing was all a complete waste. The Game Boy Advance's dark screen also limits the way you will be looking at your environment. Let's say you are going up an uphill ramp. Then you get ready to push the buttons to activate the specific trick. Unfortunately, your small character replica would be hard to see and by the time you actually see yourself high in the air, you will soon fall down making you very dissatisfied with this game. Sure you eventually learn how to keep up with the pace of the game, but isn't the insatiable question that you already should learn how to play and keep up with the game all the way from the beginning? I mean come on, the peeps over at Vicarious Visions had a great idea coming up with this game, but arguably these guys are constantly ruining that idea. Where people, however, will really find the true essence of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 will be with its multi-player modes. Tony Hawk 3 features four different types of multi-player modes. These four modes include: Horse, Tag, King of the Hill, and Trick Attack. In Horse you basically just do tricks and then the game will evaluate who had the best scoring trick. It's fair game, and could be played simultaneously by four players. The second mode, Tag, has you trying to skate your character away from the character who is 'it.' The third mode, King of the Hill, is relatively close to how Tag mode plays, except here you must hit the skater who is king and snuff away his crown. The last mode, Trick Attack, is my favorite one and here you basically have to score more points than the other skaters. Really fun stuff, if you can get past the game's horrid controls. The graphics are also something that are worth looking at. Polished characters, revamped and beautifully remade backgrounds, and good portions of gashing blood flowing down a skater's popped up veins are all sights that should impress those who have the Game Boy Advance system. The graphics are to put in one word: beautiful. The audio is also well composed and well brought up. Featuring small rhythmic guitar tunes and menu sounds straight out of the console version, this game impresses as far as quality goes, just don't expect anything big (like a Papa Roach song being played in the background). But quality won't make up for the game's bothersome flaws. If one can get acquainted with the game's controls and the incommodious perspective, then thank them. But for me, I found a hard time playing this game, but for some reason the multi-player modes kept bringing me back from the troublesome single player mode. I finally felt like I was getting the beat of this game by playing the multi-player modes and by constantly being impressed by the sheer amount of quality in this game. If only more work could have been done on the game's engine, then I am sure that I would have liked this game better, and maybe have given the game a higher score. Who knows?

Overall: 7 out of 10

Want this game? Find it on Amazon.com!!


Tips and codes - Game Endings - Java Games - Reviews - Fun Stuff