Despite
strong
sales
of

Tony
Hawk’s
Pro
Skater
1+2,
it
seemed
like
a
sequel
was
never
going
to
happen.
After
all,
Vicarious
Visions’
reward
for
treating
the
iconic
Tony
Hawk’s
games
was
to
be
absorbed
into
Blizzard
where
they
now
act
as
a
support
team
under
a
different
name.
But
then
a
miracle!
Although
the
original
developers
had
been
disbanded,
Tony
Hawk’s
Pro
Skater
3+4
was
happening.
Here
we
are,
a
full
five
years
after
the
first
remake.
Was
it
worth
the
wait?

For
Tony
Hawk’s
Pro
Skater
3+4,
Iron
Galaxy
was
handed
the
board
and
told
to
get
on
with
it.
And
in
a
bid
to
make
this
second
collection
their
own,
Iron
Galaxy
has
made
some…choices.
Admittedly,
it
was
always
going
to
be
a
tough
task
attempting
to
remake
two
games
when
one
of
them
is
structurally
so
different,
so
perhaps
Iron
Galaxy
was
up
against
it
from
the
start.
And
then
there
was
the
problem
that
Vicarious
Visions
had
already
established
the
template
in
the
first
remake
package,
a
template
that
Iron
Galaxy
deviates
from.

Available
On:
Xbox
One,
Xbox
Series
S/X,
PS4,
PS5,
PC,
Switch,
Switch
2
Reviewed
On:
PS5,
PC
Developed
By:
Iron
Galaxy
Published
By:
Activision

Review
code
provided
for
review
purposes.

The
intro
certainly
grabs
the
old
dangling
nostalgia
balls
and
gives
them
a
good
tug
thanks
to
Motorhead’s
Ace
of
Spades
once
again
blasting
from
the
speakers.
I
admit
that
my
own
connection
to
the
series
is
far
more
rooted
in
the
first
two
games,
and
then
later
in
Underground
and
American
Wasteland.
I
played
a
fair
bit
of
Pro
Skater
3,
and
less
of
Pro
Skater
4.
Even
so,
hearing
Ace
of
Spades
again
while
rolling
into
Foundry
gave
my
heart
a
little
jolt.

Broadly
speaking,
this
release
is
more
of
what
we
got
in
Tony
Hawk’s
Pro
Skater
1+2,
and
for
that,
I’m
eternally
grateful
because
the
gameplay
is
stupendously
entertaining.
The
sequel
collects
both
Tony
Hawk’s
Pro
Skater
3
(2001)
and
Tony
Hawk’s
pro
Skater
4
(2002)
and
once
again
rebuilds
them
both
in
Unreal
Engine
5.
That
means,
while
the
level
layouts
are
largely
identical,
every
location
now
boasts
beautiful
lighting
and
heaps
of
new
details.

Most
importantly,
the
actual
skating
has
barely
been
touched,
and
that
means
it’s
fucking
excellent.
Stringing
together
grinds,
grabs,
manuals,
reverts,
transfers,
and
flip
tricks
is
sublimely
satisfying,
a
feeling
offset
by
the
agony
of
screwing
up
an
epic
combo
worth
potentially
millions
of
points
because
you
just
had
to
go
and
try
to
fit
in
that
extra
trick,
didn’t
you?

Once
again,
the
career
mode
is
exactly
what
you’d
expect:
a
series
of
levels,
each
boasting
goals
you
need
to
complete
to
unlock
the
next
area.
Collect
the
S-K-A-T-E
letters,
beat
the
high
scores,
do
specific
tricks,
find
the
hidden
tapes
and
so
on.
All
of
these
goals
are
crammed
into
a
2-minute
time
limit,
although,
of
course,
completed
goals
stay
completed
from
run
to
run.

Really,
the
Pro
Skater
3
section
is
pretty
much
flawless.
It’s
when
we
get
to
Tony
Hawk’s
Pro
Skater
4
that
things
get
more
complicated.
You
see,
the
first
three
Pro
Skater
games
were
all
built
on
the
same
formula
–
2-minute
runs
through
packed
levels.
Pro
Skater
4
decided
to
go
goofy
for
its
career,
though,
bailing
the
2-minute
runs
for
bigger,
open
levels
with
no
time
limit
and
skaters
standing
around
who
doled
out
challenges,
like
racing
a
shopping
cart
down
Alcatraz.
It
was
a
huge
departure
for
the
series,
but
is
also
what
made
Pro
Skater
4
so
distinct.
It
heralded
the
arrival
of
a
whole
new
era
of
Tony
Hawk
games.

For
the
remake,
that
distinctiveness
has
been
abandoned
in
favour
of
a
more
cohesive
experience.
Iron
Galaxy
have
applied
the
2-minute
timer
to
the
Pro
Skater
4
levels
and
stripped
out
the
quest-givers,
replacing
them
with
the
list
of
goals
just
like
you
see
in
the
first
three
games.
Some
of
the
zanier
stuff
from
Pro
Skater
4
can
still
be
found
in
the
new
Pro
Goals,
which
unlock
after
you
complete
all
the
regular
goals.
These
Pro
Goals
also
apply
to
the
Pro
Skater
3
levels,
adding
a
chunk
of
new
challenges.
But
there’s
no
getting
around
the
fact
that
a
lot
Pro
Skater
4’s
uniqueness
has
been
lost
by
making
it
fit
in
more
with
the
original
trilogy.
Does
it
make
for
a
more
cohesive
package?
Sure.
It
now
feels
like
one
big
campaign.
Was
it
worth
it,
though?
No.

To
Iron
Galaxy’s
credit,
though,
they
have
included
an
option
to
extend
the
time
limit
to
10
minutes
or
even
to
a
full
hour.
There’s
no
penalty
for
doing
it,
either,
and
even
as
a
veteran
of
the
series,
I
ended
up
ditching
the
2-minute
limit.
Of
course,
this
doesn’t
fully
restore
what
was
lost
in
Pro
Skater
4,
but
it
helps
a
little.
I’d
love
it
if
Pro
Skater
1+2
could
have
this
feature
added
in.

And
it
has
to
be
said
that
while
I
don’t
agree
with
the
decision
to
decimate
Pro
Skater
4’s
structure,
Iron
Galaxy
does
at
least
do
a
decent
job
at
transplanting
the
Pro
Skater
1,
2
and
3
formula
into
the
levels.
Well,
as
decent
a
job
as
they
could
possibly
do
given
the
levels
were
never
built
to
handle
it.
You
can
definately
feel
it
as
you
skate
around,
a
sense
that
the
2-minute
timer
is
too
restrictive
for
the
bigger
levels.
In
was
in
Pro
Skater
4
that
I
found
myself
using
the
extended
timer
before
swapping
to
it
entirely.

Some
of
the
missing
goals
actually
make
an
appearance
in
the
Pro
Goals,
which
only
unlock
once
you’ve
managed
to
beat
every
other
goal
in
the
game.
Manage
to
beat
all
those,
and
you
get
access
to
the
Solo
Tours
for
each
skater
as
well.
On
top
of
that,
there
are
hundreds
of
challenges
to
complete
if
you
fancy
chasing
down
the
Platinum
Trophy
or
100%
the
game.
It
won’t
be
quite
as
much
of
a
grind
as
Pro
Skater
1+2,
but
it’ll
still
be
quite
the
arduous
task.

But
even
though
some
of
the
goals
do
appear
later,
a
lot
of
them
don’t,
and
most
of
them
are
the
zanier,
weirder
stuff.
Playing
tennis
with
your
skateboard?
Yeah,
that’s
gone.
The
skater-specific
stuff
like
racing
a
trolley
down
Alcatraz
as
Bam
Margera?
Gone
as
well.

Three
brand-new
levels
designed
by
Iron
Galaxy
have
been
added
into
the
game
with
mixed
results.
Waterpark
is,
by
far,
the
best
of
the
bunch.
It
sticks
you
into
an
abandoned
waterpark
full
of
slides
to
play
around
on.
It’s
a
good-sized
level,
fits
the
2-minute
template
nicely
and
has
a
lot
of
potentially
awesome
lines
that
players
far
more
talented
than
I
will
undoubtedly
shred
into
oblivion.

Pinball
is
the
most
visually
impressive
of
the
three
new
levels,
complete
with
a
giant
Tony
Hawk
looming
over
the
whole
place.
It’s
a
crazy
land
of
colour
and
weirdness,
and
has
a
few
neat
pinball
mechanics
as
well
that
help
separate
it
from
the
rest
of
the
levels
on
offer,
like
big
boost
pads
and
a
massive
metal
ball
that
will
occasionally
fuck
up
your
day.
But
as
visually
striking
as
it
is,
I
didn’t
find
it
great
for
the
gameplay.
I
struggled
to
get
a
good
flow
going,
but
that
might
just
be
me,
and
being
randomly
murdered
by
a
death-sphere
that
comes
out
of
nowhere
isn’t
fun.

Film
Studio
is
probably
the
weakest
of
the
bunch,
a
competition
level
that
includes
a
pile
of
nods
to
various
movies.
But
the
setup
feels
too
tight
and
compact
to
be
enjoyable.
I
struggled
to
find
enjoyable
lines
through
the
level,
constantly
smacking
off
of
walls
or
finding
myself
hemmed
in
instead
of
being
able
to
flow
nicely
into
something
else.

These
three
new
levels
come
at
the
cost
of
two
original
levels.
The
biggest
absence
is
Carnival,
an
unlockable
level
in
Pro
Skater
4
featuring
roller
coasters
and
other
rides
to
mess
around
on.
Chicago
is
the
other
one,
a
level
that
was
taken
directly
from
Matt
Hoffman’s
Pro
BMX
and
added
into
Pro
Skater
4.
I’ll
be
honest,
Chicago
being
missing
in
action
doesn’t
bother
me,
purely
because
it
was
a
crap
level
anyway.
However,
it
still
feels
weird
not
to
include
it
since
it
was
in
the
original
game
alongside
Carnival.
They
better
not
release
them
as
paid
DLC
later
on.

Other
changes
feel
odd,
or
simply
not
needed,
while
a
couple
are
fine
or
even
an
improvement.
For
example,
Zoo
is
now
a
competition
level
and
all
the
animals
have
been
moved
out,
so
you
can’t
get
eaten
by
a
lion
anymore,
skitch
behind
an
elephant
or
dodge
monkey
poop
being
hurled
by
irate
primates.
And
the
hidden
aquarium
section
is
also
gone,
since
you
can’t
cause
a
stampede
anymore.
Although
Zoo
was
never
the
best
Tony
Hawk’s
Pro
Skater
level
to
skate
around,
the
changes
that
Iron
Galaxy
have
made
strip
everything
that
made
it
interesting.
It’s
now
a
forgettable
location.

Meanwhile,
the
criminal’s
getaway
car
in
London
has
become
a
rogue
self-driving
car,
which
is
honestly
a
pretty
funny
change.
Suburbia
has
a
new
Halloween
theme,
too,
which
is
an
excellent
change
which
not
only
gives
the
level
some
extra
visual
flair
but
ties
in
nicely
with
the
creepy-looking
house
on
the
corner
and
the
objective
to
smash
pumpkins.
And
quite
a
few
levels
have
had
their
time
of
day
swapped
from
broad
daylight
to
night,
mostly
so
the
remake’s
lighting
can
add
some
extra
depth.

One
change
I
do
appreciate
is
that
the
stat
points
you
can
find
in
every
level
apply
to
every
skater
in
the
roster.
It
speeds
up
progression,
and
stops
the
game
from
feeling
overly
slow
when
you
decide
to
swap
skaters
and
have
to
get
used
to
their
low
stats
again.

There
are
a
massive
number
of
other
changes,
too.
Most
are
purely
graphical,
but
there
are
other
alterations
too
numerous
to
talk
about
here.
Instead,
I’d
highly
recommend

checking
out
this
Youtube
video
which
goes
into
great
detail.

What
I
will
say,
is
Iron
Galaxy
really
seems
to
have
gone
crazy
on
sanitising
the
games.
The
original
Tony
Hawk’s
Pro
Skaters
were
littered
with
crass
humour,
whether
it
was
Airport’s
bomb
scanning
devices
and
obsession
with
full
cavity
searches,
or
the
many,
many,
maaaaaaaaaany
sexual
jokes
found
across
all
the
levels.
All
those
bikini-clad
women
enjoying
the
pool
on
Cruise
Ship?
Gone.
But
there
were
also
just
heaps
of
daft
little
jokes
to
find
that
were
completely
inoffensive,
and
even
those
have
been
scrubbed.

The
music
selection
is
another…
interesting
design
choice.
While
THPS1+2
kept
18
of
the
original
25
tracks,
THPS3+4
has
only
10
of
the
original
55
bangers.
Most
of
the
45
other
songs
are
from
the
same
artists,
though,
and
that’s
apparently
because
of
Tony
Hawk
himself,
who
said,
“It
was
my
choice
to
pick
some
different
songs
by
the
same
artists
featured
in
THPS3+4
OST.
I’m
hoping
that
discovery
is
half
the
fun,
and
a
big
reason
that
these
soundtracks
resonated
in
the
first
place”.

I
understand
his
thought
process,
and
partially
agree
with
it.
Kind
of.
Because
there’s
also
a
second
part
of
my
brain
that
ones
to
smack
him
with
a
skateboard
for
defiling
the
amazing
soundtrack
of
the
two
games.
In
the
end,
I’m
not
quire
sure
how
I
feel.
It’s
still
a
killer
collection
of
tunes
and,
much
like
I
did
back
in
the
day,
I’ve
discovered
a
few
new
tracks
that
have
been
added
straight
onto
my
playlist.
Those
missing
tracks,
though,
leave
a
smidgen
of
longing
in
my
heart.

As
for
the
roster
of
skaters
looking
to
put
shoes
to
grip
tape,
pretty
much
everyone
has
made
the
cut,
including
Bam
Margera.
Plus,
the
new
crew
introduced
in
Tony
Haw’s
Pro
Skater
1+2
have
ollied
over
as
well,
so
that’s
cool.

In
terms
of
missing
skaters,
the
unlockable
Star
Wars
characters
such
as
Darth
Maul
are
gone,
probably
because
licensing
them
would
cost
too
much.
Former
pornstar
Jenna
Jameson
(Daisy)
is
absent,
too.
Also
MIA
is
Private
Carrera,
presumably
due
to
the
longstanding
rumour
that
she
is
based
on
pornstar
Asia
Carrera.
But
the
most
confusing
absence
is
Mike
Vallely
who
appeared
in
Pro
Skater
4
onwards.

And
finally,
the
multiplayer
portion
of
the
game
requires
an
Activision
account
this
time,
whereas
Pro
Skater
1+2
did
not.
It’s
not
a
massive
problem,
sure,
but
it’s
a
problem
that
didn’t
need
to
exist.
Putting
that
aside,
the
multiplayer
is
heaps
of
fun.

Your
enjoyment
of
Tony
Hawk’s
Pro
Skater
3+4
is
going
to
depend
heavily
upon
how
much
you
love
Pro
Skater
4.
If
the
4th
entry
in
the
series
was
a
massive
part
of
your
childhood,
and
you
were
excited
to
see
it
remastered
and
playable
on
modern
hardware,
you’re
probably
going
to
be
pissed
off.
This
isn’t
Pro
Skater
4,
it’s
more
like
Pro
Skater
3
with
a
Pro
Skater
4
inspired
level-pack
attached
to
it.

If,
like
me,
you
maybe
aren’t
that
attached
to
Pro
Skater
4
or
can
view
this
package
as
something
like
an
expanded
version
of
Pro
Skater
3,
then
it’s
an
absolute
blast.
The
refined
Tony
Hawk
gameplay
we
saw
in
1+2
is
still
phenomenally
fun,
a
masterpiece
of
arcadey
goodness.

In
other
words,
Pro
Skater
3+4
is
a
great
game
on
its
own
merits,
but
a
far
worse
remake
than
1+2
was.
Perhaps
that’s
harsh
since
a
remake
is
allowed
to
make
changes,
but
these
changes
feel
like
the
wrong
ones.