Skate is back, it’s free, and these are our impressions

The return of the franchise forgets its roots and seeks to establish itself in what was done in the third installment.

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The Skate trilogy, up until now, had its highest point in the third installment for various reasons. Firstly, I believe, mainly because it has been retro-compatible on Xbox for a while now, and secondly, because several YouTubers dedicated themselves to analyzing the title, emphasizing the strange physics it presented.

In a world once again dominated by Tony Hawk and the remasters of four of his games, EA decided to revive Skate, taking a lot from what was seen in that third installment of the saga; which, coincidentally, was the one that strayed the most from the original idea and profiled the franchise towards a more arcade-like side rather than the realism that was originally intended.

Skate Takes a Leap onto the Ramps of a New Opportunity

This new installment of the IP presents different control schemes, one traditional and one modern, both of which feel very good and convey a sense of fun and ease in performing certain tricks with the skateboard by simply executing a simple sequence of commands. The essence of the game is precisely that, going around the city of San Vansterdam, completing various challenges with the skateboard.

The territory where the game takes place is divided into four districts filled with areas featuring obstacles, ramps, and other objects that can be used in different ways with the four-wheeled board. In itself, the city conveys a certain sense of life, not just because of the other players exploring the same place, but also due to the cars and some NPCs that roam the streets. That being said, in all my hours of playtime, I didn’t come across any law enforcement officers who wanted to stop me from scratching all the railings of each staircase, something that might be added when the game finally presents its final version.

The excellent soundtracks are a trademark in these games, and this one is no exception. In Skate, the action vibrates to the rhythm of great tracks from punk, metal, and hip-hop bands performed by renowned artists and more humble bands taking their first steps towards well-deserved fame. In fact, more musical tracks can be incorporated as you find them in different parts of the city.

Graphically, the title presents a very good level of detail, accompanied by an excellent photo mode that demonstrates the confidence the developers have in the product standing out. Additionally, the title can be enjoyed with subtitles and an interface in Spanish with a great localization job, whose only drawback is that it excludes our language in any of its dubbed variants, although it does include German and French.

Solitaries like me will be sad to know that the title does not include any type of single-player campaign, but rather Skate is constantly nourished by the online environment, where different events are created that allow you to gain reputation in specific sectors of the map. These, in turn, transform into points to obtain different cosmetic items for the player’s avatar or for the skateboard itself. The game presents itself as free to play, but it opens the door wide to microtransactions to acquire different elements with real money.

Customizations are the order of the day. Avatars can be personalized in every aspect, and clothing options abound. Strangely, the game allows climbing walls, jumping from great heights without a skateboard, and other particular and strange details that at all times assert that we are not facing a game that has realism as a very forgotten aspect.

With Skate, it’s clear that EA is not targeting the audience from the franchise’s early hours, but rather those who were fascinated by the last installment, a difficult niche with the typical volatility of those seeking something fleeting and momentary, but which might yield results. Otherwise, perhaps the point that appears behind the title’s name will end up becoming the final point in the life of the franchise.