Professional skateboarder Tony Hawk has lent his likeness to some incredible video games. Here are the best Tony Hawk games that you really need to play.
Tony Hawk is kick-flipping his way back into the world of video games this September, with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater and Pro Skater 2 undergoing a gorgeous remaster for PS4, Xbox One and PC. Both games will stay true to the originals, which is really all we needed to hear, as it’s been far too long since we pulled off a grind or Ollied over a sleeping tramp (yes, that actual happens in one of the games).
So what’s so special about Tony Hawk? Well, alongside developer Neversoft, Tony Hawk sent skateboarding into the stratosphere back in 1999, as hundreds of kids donned knee pads, wrist guards, and helmets in an attempt to emulate their heroes. With every release, millions more got hooked on Hawk’s brand of trick-centric skateboarding (and discovered some truly amazing punk rock bands in the process).
There’s never been a better time to jump onto your virtual board and hit the half-pipes. So with that in mind, we’ve rounded up the very best Tony Hawk games for you to play.
Oh, and if you’re wondering why entries such as Tony Hawk’s Ride and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 are missing from this list, it’s because they’re firmly where they belong: wallowing in the depths of mediocrity, never to be spoken about again.
The pinnacle of the Pro Skater series, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 tops the list because of one game-changing trick addition: reverts. That solitary word might not seem like much, but reverts completely transformed how a Tony Hawk game worked, as players could now string multiple combos together without ever slowing down.
Previously, players would lose their combo once they landed a set of tricks after coming off a half-pipe. With this change, though, you could perform a revert straight into a manual, and keep your combo chain going for incredibly high scores.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 would go on to draw incredible critical acclaim, earning an average score of 97%. That makes it one of the highest-rated PS2 games of all time, and it still holds up remarkably well today.
