Software and Hardware: “Tony Hawk: Ride” (2009)
Skateboarding has appeared in different dedicated games over the years, from 2002’s The Simpsons: Skateboarding to the Skate titles (also published by Electronic Arts). Then of course, there’s the Tony Hawk franchise which has had more entries over the years than any direct rival. To have a game that actually realistically simulates skateboarding with a motion sensing skateboard style controller is certainly intriguing and that’s exactly what publisher Activision wanted with Tony Hawk: Ride. I’m assuming the game’s aim was to blur the line between doing skateboarding for yourself and doing so in the virtual world but not all seemed to go well. Let’s first examine the USP of the game, which is the controller and bit related to motion gaming.
Tony Hawk: Ride’s controller is visually interesting, there’s no doubt about it. Pictures and footage shows that it is skateboard like in size and scale, has no wheels and a nice look to it. Bundled in with the Tony Hawk: Ride software for a premium price when new, it was an item that was key to the gaming experience, like what the guitar controller was to Guitar Hero. You stand on the skateboard controller and can do movements, tricks and gestures to control what’s happening on screen which the motion sensors pick up on. Possible actions include things like leaning, turning and there’s adaptable difficulty settings for gamers of different skill levels and tastes. The game was sold on the experience, which some reviewers were highly critical of. IGN, for example, gave it an unimpressive 5.0 out of 10 and were not pleased with the game’s ability to actually recognise the player’s actions on the board and found the presentation “awful”, among other things. That said, they did like the “good soundtrack” and thought it may appeal to younger gamers. Jason Bradbury of Channel 5’s The Gadget Show was much more positive, stating the graphics were “fantastic”, the game “was as responsive as you’d want it to be” and that it “really delivers”. One extra thing worth mentioning is there is no traditional controller gameplay option here should you want that so it’s a case of using the bundled skateboard style controller for Tony Hawk: Ride or not playing the game at all.
This bit of hardware and software really is quite a novelty and even got a sequel in the form of 2010’s Tony Hawk: Shred. Sales wise, Tony Hawk: Ride sold over half a million units on each major home console of 2010 with the best sales figures being on the Wii version which sold nearly a million units. A number of reasons perhaps caused this unique gaming experience to not achieve full success but it remains an interesting footnote in the world of modern gaming history. The concept was and still is pretty appealing, even if the end result wasn’t seen to have entirely delivered. You can find Tony Hawk: Ride and it’s sequel on the Xbox 360, PS3 and Nintendo Wii consoles should you want to give these games a go. And remember, that distinctive skateboard style controller is required.
Words by James Gillespie
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