Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 Review

You can initially choose one of the thirteen available professionals (including the "king" Hawk himself), start building your own character, and then give full attention to the interesting levels. The designers did a great job and gave each of the dozen of levels specific charm. You could hardly say that the levels are too big, but each of them has a lot of space to explore, and look for secret areas and the so-called gaps. There are two basic types of levels: in the first type you'll have to beat your competition in order to receive the medal, and in the other, you'll have to follow level objectives and complete all goals. Each "quest" level will basically require you to gather a certain number of points (high, pro and SICK score), gather sets of hidden objects, find the letters S-K-A-T-E, grind a specific rail or edge, perform some tricks or find the Secret Tape. You did the job well only when you gathered all money icons spread around the level and crossed out all objectives. Each completed objective will increase your account (unlike gathering money icons in game). There are several ways you can spend your money: buy new tricks, improving board stats (landing, air, hang time, speed...) or unlocking new levels.

All that I have said is, of course, about the most interesting, single player career mode. The game also features Single Session mode and Freeskate mode (great for getting to know the tracks as there is no time limit), and the obligatory multiplayer mode with a couple of LAN mods and one split-screen mod.

Music and sound effects are great. All from the characteristic sounds of the board sliding on wooden ramps or grinding on metal surfaces to the breaking of glass. And there also are a couple of level-specific background sounds. For instance, when you ride through the streets of New York, you'll have to suffer angry comments from passing cabbies, and when in Mexico, you'll hear the crowd cheering "Ariba, ariba, andere, andere" (I last heard this when I was watching Speedy Gonzales as a kid :)

And last but not the least: the soundtrack. The 15 featured tracks were written by leading punk/HC/hip-hop groups including Bad Religion (I was overwhelmed when I heard my favorite song "You"), Rage Against the Machine, Anthrax/Chuck D, Dub Pistols, Fu Manchu, Papa Roach, Naughty by Nature, Powerman 5000, Lagwagon, Millencolin (it says Milencoil in all the official press info, and I guess I was never a huge fan of swedish punk bands. Still, my fault...), Swingin' Utters, The High & Mighty, Alley Life featuring Black Planet, Styles of Beyond and Consumed (Werd! That's baaad nigga' Jesus, I'm pathetic at this -Ed). No comment....

And finally, there's the level editor. I wasn't too thrilled about this because it is less than user-friendly. I somehow couldn't get the grip on how to place and rotate objects. Basically all the problems I had with this game appeared in the menus because of the user-hostile interface and feeble mouse control. Anyway, if you manage to overcome these difficulties, you're bound to enjoy some new homemade levels...

So, if you need a relaxing game, something quick and attractive, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 is your ideal solution. If you love skateboarding, kkhhhm, I think you know what to do. And even if you're not into skating, you are sure to love Pro Skater 2. Just don't get too hooked on it... you already are? Well, then just don't try doing some of the tricks in your living room, dammit!