Latest news with #THPS
RTÉ News
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater gets an upgrade: the latest games reviewed
From gripping stories and action-adventure, brainteasers to sports and more, games have always had the power to bring you out of your living room, past the controller and screen, to experience things you might otherwise miss out on. The proof of this is the return of the world's favourite skateboarder, Tony Hawk, whose catalogue of video games has converted legions of fans into die-hard skaters. But that's not all - other games to check out this week include charming puzzlers and platformers, and a return to form for branch-narrative adventure-seekers... Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 I'm a seasoned skateboarder, despite never having technically hopped on a board in my life. This is thanks to one man, Tony Hawk, whose string of legendary video games over the last two decades has utterly transformed the video game landscape. We've all grown up and fallen in love with each and every one of his releases. Well, Hawk and company are back to modernise and revolutionise skating once more, this time revisiting two massive hits from the early 00s, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 and 4. Repackaging them into one ambitious remake, the result is a balance between pure nostalgia and modern magic. Jumping straight into a level without first refreshing your muscle memory in a tutorial is unwise. Though you might remember doing an endless array of ollies, kick flips, vert tricks, and other manoeuvres, remembering how to do them is another story entirely. Like a fighting game, entering commands randomly into your controller yields…interesting results. An endless library of tricks will keep creativity rolling Once you get humbled in the tutorials and start re-learning how to skate, jumping into the Career Modes sends you flying back into familiar challenge levels, with 2 minutes on the clock to tick off objectives. Levels in THPS are a playground for you to pull off your wildest tricks imaginable, as virtually everything you see can be interacted with in some way. Whether it's gliding through the pristine airport, flipping across a cruise ship, or just getting your bearings in the foundry, these levels burst with visual eye-candy. Though two decades have passed since these games were first released, they feel as fresh and inviting as ever. Trust that you're almost always beside a rail to grind, or there's a makeshift ramp within sight that catapults you sky-high, eager to keep you racking up a high score. Trying to string all of your newly learned moves together in a successful combo, while balancing on your skateboard, keeping your eyes on what's ahead, and also landing in one piece, is a Herculean task. This is the basis of THPS, a blend of extreme difficulty of your own making and also downright luck. No matter how simple or complex your routine, or how often you wipe out, you'll have a blast. A variety of multiplayer modes rekindle your childhood memories of the original, only this time you're battling it out online with people from around the world. An expanded skater roster, combined with originals like Bam Margera (whom many thought was cut), pays equal tribute to the new and old heroes of the sport. One thing seasoned skaters will notice (and may be disappointed by) is the change made to the Career mode in THPS 4, which reverts back to time-based challenges. That game laid the foundations for the story modes we loved in subsequent Hawk games, such as Underground, so the omissions may vex gamers who were looking forward to revisiting that form of gameplay. You might also notice a reduced soundtrack from the originals, which I'll hedge my bets and blame on possible copyright issues. That said, it could well be that this new Tony Hawk game aims to introduce new music to legions of fans, just as its predecessors did. The likes of Fontaines D.C. are now included, whom Hawk reportedly selected himself, so give the tunes a chance, as this new soundtrack may well become as iconic as its predecessor. I'm still holding out hope that either a brand new game or a story-based remaster could be on the horizon - the world certainly has an appetite for it. But until that fabled day, THPS 3+4 is as close to modern magic as you can get on a skateboard. It's fun, inventive, but still has that signature style that only Tony Hawk could pull off. Just try to stick the landing, and you'll be grand. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 is available to play on PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC, and Nintendo Switch/2 Tempopo Gamers on the lookout for challenging brainteasers with an inescapable soundtrack, your search has ended. From the creators of Unpacking comes a brand new, psychedelic soundscape puzzler game, Tempopo. The story is simple: Hana's garden of musical flowers has been scattered across the sky. She enlists the help of pink blobs known as Tempopo to trek through the lands, gathering them back for her. Across 60-plus levels, you'll need to direct these strange pink allies across unique 3D maps, each of which contains all manner of obstacles, including thorns, gaps, and snapping skeletons. The start of the game (combined with its cutesy graphics) does give you a somewhat false sense of security. Directing one or two little blobs around to collect flowers is pretty manageable. But after the first world or so, the level grows in complexity. Uh-oh. Soon, you'll need to manage four or five different routes at the same time, planning when and where each Tempopo interact and intersects with one another across the landscape. The flowers in question are often placed in awkward positions, forcing you to think outside the box about how to collect them safely and direct the Tempopo to the end tile. Add in a limited supply of ability tiles, and you have all the ingredients for an inventive puzzler that is easy to pick up and play in both small and long bursts. Despite the difficulty of some levels, the game never punishes you for making a mistake or taking your time. An abundance of accessibility options, including Puzzle and Adventure mode settings, opens up the joy of the game to younger players in particular, while also making it equally enjoyable for older gamers in the room. Tempopo is available to play on Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC and Nintendo Switch Ruffy and the Riverside Ruffy is one of the quirkiest platformer games you'll get to play, promising unique gameplay in a retro-like world bursting with colour. While your overarching mission is to restore the village of Riverside by collecting letters, the true goal is to enjoy yourself in this game's distinct gameplay mechanics. Controlling the titular Ruffy, players wield powerful 'Swap' magic that lets them copy and paste textures around them. And this is where the inventiveness and creativity are unleashed. From turning a waterfall into climbable vines, or swapping unbreakable concrete with wood, you can overcome all manner of obstacles laid before you. The world of Ruffy is also a mesmerising delight, blending 2D and 3D elements throughout. As such, you'll always be on the hunt to explore your environment for new textures to adopt and throw at objects. With buckets of charm and originality, its style is as much a tribute to classic platforms, but mechanics promise players something entirely new to experience and experiment with. Ruffy and the Riverside is available to play on PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC and Nintendo Switch Lost Records: Blooms & Rage From the creators of Life is Strange comes a new, coming-of-age narrative game brimming with both 90s nostalgia and supernatural mystery - Lost Records. And now that both parts of this episodic game have been released, it's the perfect time to dip in for the complete 12-hour storyline experience. Lost Records follows four teenage friends, Swann, Nora, Autumn and Kat, who, unhappy with the quiet life in Velvet Cove, aim to make their summer vacation one to remember together. However, life is rarely that simple, and a reunion 27 years later proves that buried secrets from their teenage years never truly disappear... Set across both 1995 and 2022, players take control of aspiring photographer Swann, helping her document her time and shaping relationships with those around her. 90s gamers will be impressed by the wall-to-wall nostalgia of the era, while the 'modern-day' timeline still has the aftereffects of a worldwide pandemic. This helps complement the stark changes we see in the cast between both periods, beckoning players to piece together the reasons why four best friends swore never to speak to each other again. Lost Records pushes branch narrative gaming into interesting, new territory. Narrative choices you make can change depending on who you're looking at, or how much of a conversation you listen to. And the dual-timeline story means that you can essentially rewrite Swann's history to your fancy. Mix in a sprinkling of heart-warming and heart-breaking narrative scenes, beautifully rendered visuals, and a healthy dose of unexplained paranormal antics, and this winner reaffirms studio DON'T NOD as leaders in branching narrative gaming.
Tom's Guide
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Tom's Guide
I bought a PS5 just to play the new Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3+4 remake — and I have no regrets
Platforms: PC, PS5 (reviewed), PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Nintendo SwitchPrice: $49Release Date: June 11, 2025Genre: Sports The Bird Man is back, with a single-game remake of the classic Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 and 4 games, originally released in 2001 and 2002, respectively. Having put away thousands of hours playing those games in my youth (with no regrets), my expectations for the new THPS 3+4 were sky-high. Thankfully, 2025's Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3+4 largely follows the same formula as the 2020 remake of THPS 1+2, despite being worked on by a different developer. Long story short, if you loved the original THPS games or the COVID-19-era remake, you'll likely find this new version deeply satisfying. The latest installment is available for a wide range of systems and PC, and features the same general game dynamics, objectives, and controls as most THPS games before it. Reworked levels look highly detailed while still feeling deeply nostalgic, new skaters join the OGs crew, the updated soundtrack is a mix of classic tunes and modern bops, and the gameplay is just as addictive as I remember. The first time I played Tony Hawk's Pro Skater was probably in 2001. I was in the seventh grade and got my initial taste for the now quintessential high-energy skateboarding game at a friend's house — shout out to Jon Mindas — because my parents weren't big on gaming at the time. The epic soundtrack, mind-melting trick combos, and objective-oriented single-player 'Career Mode' had me hooked. Some months later, I conspired with my brother to pool our money and buy a secondhand PlayStation 1 off of a friend — shout out to Ryan Monahan — something we kept secret from our parents for a comically long time. This was all to get my THPS fix (though the PS1 game, 2Xtreme, was another favorite). I played countless hours of THPS 2 on that system. However, when the third iteration of the game dropped in late 2001/early 2002, I knew I wanted to play it on the latest/greatest. While I settled for the PS1 version upon the game's launch, Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 was a major reason I ultimately upgraded to a PS2 (my folks were thankfully cool with gaming by this point). Fast-forward roughly twenty years. We're in the middle of the COVID-19 crisis. Life is boring/terrifying, but wait… a shred of good news: A remastered version of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2, approved by the Bird Man himself, was set to launch. And so, I bought a used PS4 from a homie and beat the game in a few nights. I've been playing it on and off ever since. Are you noticing a theme here? Well, with this year's release of the latest THPS remaster, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3+4, I figured it was high time to jump to a PS5... I'm now the proud owner of a Sony-certified model (much to my girlfriend's vexation). In the week since its release, I've logged just over eight hours of gameplay. While I still have a small handful of levels to unlock and objectives to check off, my mind is 100% made up about this game. With that, here's everything you need to know about the new 2025 version of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3+4. For better or for worse — I can't decide — the gameplay in the new THPS 3+4 is essentially unchanged from the original series launched all the way back when. While there are updates to the graphics and refinements to the dynamics, the objective of the latest release remains essentially the same, i.e., rather arcade-y. At the start of each level, you're presented with a list of challenges to check off: A mix of trick and point-based objectives, along with sillier task-based goals. While the developer could've easily expanded on the complexity of tasks like 'tear down the posters,' or 'save the painter,' or 'fix the satellite dish,' — all of which require little more than exploring the level and knocking/grinding over things — they kept these non-trick-based objectives especially simple. That's a good thing for younger gamers who might just be getting into the series. But as an old-fart gamer fueled largely by nostalgia, I'm yearning for a fresh challenge. After all, if I were able to 'find the lost packages' with ease as a 13-year-old, completing essentially the same task 25 years later feels rather uneventful. As always, runs in Career Mode are two minutes long. Need more time to explore the level uninterrupted? Head to the main menu and choose a 'Free Skate.' Of course, you'll need to knock out some of the objectives on each level to unlock additional ones. To improve your skaters' skills, scattered throughout each level are 'Stat Points.' You'll need to collect these, just like in the original game, to upgrade your character's various skill specs like speed, hang time, rail balance, and air. While checking off the various objectives on the level list and unlocking new areas to skate is part of the fun, the real appeal of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater is stringing together impossibly long lines (trick combos) for big, big points. And the newest installment gives you all the tools to do that, including manuals (duh), reverts-to-manual when landing air tricks, wall plants, customizable 'Special Trick' button combos, and more. So far, my highest trick combo in THPS 3+4 — roughly ~200,000 points — was achieved at the Movie Studio, one of several entirely new levels added to the game. Another new level, the Waterpark, is worth mentioning as one of the most visually stunning and enjoyable maps to explore (kudos to Iron Galaxy). That said, my highest-scoring two-minute session to date, ~690,000 points, occurred in the Shipyard level, where the rail tracks are perfectly greased for epic combos. While you'll need to manually select a 'Special Trick' button combination from the menus to perform a 540-flip, each and every trick looks immersive and gorgeous in 4K, even a simple acid drop. Moreover, the gameplay is smooth yet responsive, and load times on PS5 are lightning fast (not the case on PS4). The levels are mostly the same in the new version of the game as they were in the originals, with a few exceptions, but everything has been thoroughly overhauled from its pixelated, spartan state to something much more detailed and immersive with dynamic shadows and realistic textures. Some of the levels, like San Francisco in THPS 4, feel like revisiting a long-lost, yet joy-filled location from my youth. Other levels that similarly felt like stepping into a time machine include the Airport and the College. You never forget how to ride a bike, and you never forget how to do a 360-flip to Rowley Darkslide to nose manual to hardflip crooked grind… You get the point. Having mostly only played Tony Hawk's Pro Skater on the PlayStation system my entire life, I love the fact that the buttons and trick combos remain exactly the same decades later. Of course, to get the most out of THPS 3+4 in Career Mode, you'll want to customize your Special Tricks as noted above — these are the ones you can only perform when your 'Special Bar' hits the max and glows orange — to post the biggest point combinations. The new Tony Hawk game offers no fewer than 31 skaters to choose from. That may sound like a lot, but the reasoning behind the overwhelming selection is sound. In addition to all the OG pros — most of whom are now in their late forties or fifties and long retired — you can also select from a contemporary cast of world-class skaters. From Bam Margera to Rayssa Leal, it's awesome to have such a wide range of shredders to choose from. Of course, my favorite THPS skater always has and always will be Andrew Reynolds. Not only did I own countless pairs of his official Emerica sneakers back in my teenage years, but I still love his oh-so-clean style on the board, both in the game and IRL. The soundtracks from the original Tony Hawk's Pro Skater games have risen to near-mythological levels with folks (including myself) citing them as the springboard to their modern taste in music. (Thank you, Tony, for introducing me to punk rock). Unfortunately, the developers were only able to secure the rights to ten songs from the original games out of roughly 55. Sorry, no Ramones 'Blitzkrieg Bop' for you, though Motorhead's 'Ace of Spades' did make the cut. Still, I commend those behind the updated soundtrack for substituting in songs from a wide range of awesome modern musicians, all of which fit the vibe of the game beautifully. While there are a handful of 'skips' which I'll keep to myself, some of my favorite new tunes featured in the remake include 'yankee and the brave (ep. 4)' from Run the Jewels, Turnstile's 'Realthing,' and 'Gift Horse' by Idols. The 2025 remake of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3+4 is a faithful update to a classic Millennial video game franchise: The graphics are impressive, the original levels have been recreated with stunning detail, the controls are familiar, smooth and responsive, the music slaps, and the gameplay is just as addictive as I remember. However, there's a notable absence of new features and objectives. This is to say, the developers played it safe and kept this remake as true to the original as possible. That's better than botching the whole thing. Ultimately, I can't wait to beat the game — something I anticipate happening within a week or so — and have no doubt that THPS 3+4 will keep me mentally stimulated for months, if not years to come. That said, as I continue playing the latest THPS release, I can't help but think to myself, 'This is nice, but a remake of Tony Hawk's Underground is what I really want.' Less arcade-y and more storyline-based than the four THPS games before it, 2003's 'Underground' was ultimately the most engaging installment in the original series, IMHO. (The first level is also set in suburban New Jersey, something I find all too relatable.) Given past timelines, I reckon I can expect a Tony Hawk's Pro Skater Underground remake to drop sometime around 2030. Notably, this is also when I plan on upgrading to the PS6.
USA Today
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Tony Hawk talks THPS 3 + 4 remake, skateboarding at the Olympics
Tony Hawk had an idea: what if he could bring skateboarding to video games? Hawk had grown up a fan of gaming, he told USA TODAY Sports in a one-on-one interview. He grew up as they rose to prominence with games like "Pong," "Pac-Man" and "Donkey Kong." His first home console was an Intellivision, originally manufactured by Mattel and released in 1979. As he got older, Hawk bought other consoles – he named the Commodore 64, Super NES and PlayStation – and continued playing video games. So by the time the late '90s rolled around and video games were becoming more mainstream, Hawk was ready to capitalize on the moment to make a skateboarding game. But for a while, his idea wasn't going anywhere. "I had been in talks with a few different developers and console manufacturers about doing a possible game, but none of them were agreed upon. None of them were actually green lit," Hawk said. "In fact, it was it was kind of a uphill battle convincing anyone. "I had given up, to be honest, probably sometime in 1997." The birth of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater That's around the time video game publisher Activision called Hawk, saying that they had heard the X Games gold medalist was trying to make a game. When Hawk told them that he had been unable to get anything going, Activision told him they had been working on a game and invited him to see it. "And so I went to Activision," Hawk said. "I saw a very early build of what became THPS (Tony Hawk's Pro Skater) and immediately, I knew this was the game. I could tell instinctively that this would be the most fun, that this would be the best one to be involved with, and with my connections and resources and experience, we could make this something truly authentic." So, on Sept. 29, 1999, the world got its first taste of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, the first of five games in the series and what has gone on to become 21 games in the Tony Hawk's skateboarding video game franchise. The first game released to rave reviews from critics and players alike, winning Game Informer magazine's 1999 Game of the Year award. The legacy of the first game and its three sequels – released in each of the next three years – lives on. Many writers and analysts have credited THPS with pushing skateboarding into the global mainstream and introducing more young people to skateboarding. The soundtrack from the games – full of punk rock and ska punk music – is also celebrated for its influence in spreading those music genres. Hawk is well aware of the lasting impact the games have had on its audience, and he referenced memes that he continues to see on social media platforms. He said, "A lot of them always use our game to explain some of the best times in their lives. And that's something I don't take for granted. I'm very proud of it, and when I get recognized in public, (the THPS games are) usually the first thing people want to talk about." Remastering a classic Flash forward to 2019, 20 years after the release of the original "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater." Hawk wanted to put on a 20th anniversary concert to raise money for his foundation, The Skatepark Project, then known as the Tony Hawk Foundation. Hawk reached out to Activision for permission to use the THPS IP for the event. Bobby Kotick, then-CEO of the publisher, both consented to the use of the IP and had Activision sponsor the fundraiser. That, Hawk says, was the catalyst for the idea to remake the THPS series, upgrading the visuals and technology behind the games to make them suitable for new hardware and potentially bring in a new audience. Kotick told Hawk at the time that he had an idea of which video game development studios would be up to the task of remaking the, at this point, classic games and doing right by their fans. Within a year, Kotick Activision had indeed found the studio – Vicarious Visions, now known as Blizzard Albany – and greenlit the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 remake game. Hawk said when he played the remade versions of the first two iterations of the video game series named after him, he felt similarly to how he did the first time he played the original Tony Hawk's Pro Skater. "I think (I had) even a deeper appreciation for it because it it was utilizing the newest technology and so it looked much more real, it felt much more real," Hawk said. On Sept. 4, 2020, nearly 20 years to the day of the release of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 debuted. It was the first new Tony Hawk's skateboarding game for consoles since 2015's Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5. The game sold one million copies in the first two weeks after release. Its reviews were similarly positive to the original iterations of the series, receiving a 90 score (out of 100) for the PlayStation 5 version on review aggregator site Metacritic. Remaking more sequels Less than five years later – and earlier this month – Activision released the follow-up fans have been waiting for: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4. Like its predecessor, the game combines remakes of two games in the original, four-game THPS series – this time, the latter two games – and received generally favorable reviews from critics, per Metacritic. The newest game includes new music, new levels and new skaters in addition to bringing back old soundtrack hits, original levels in their upgraded format and many of the original skaters as well. Hawk said he had a good amount of say in the songs that were in the updated soundtrack, an important thing to get right given how much of a staple music was in the original games. He said almost every song suggestion he made was included in the new soundtrack. "Including my stepson's band T.C.M.F. with the song 'Result,'" Hawk said. "It totally fits. And if you didn't know I was related to him, you would think, 'Oh yeah, that song belongs there.'" If he had to pick favorites from the new soundtrack, Hawks says they'd be "Damaged Goods" by Gang of Four and "Gift Horse" by Idles. For the new levels, Hawk said he didn't have as much of a say, but he has a feeling he knows where at least one of the ideas came from. One of the new levels, "Water Park," draws inspiration from a 2019 video from Thrasher Magazine showing Hawk and other skaters doing tricks around a drained water park. "A few years ago, I did skate a water park and that was well documented, and then suddenly that was an idea for the game," Hawk said. "I'm not saying that that's exactly the chronology, but I think it had a lot to do with it." Another level addition, "Pinball," allows the player to skate through a giant pinball machine that a larger-than-life-sized version of Hawk is playing. When it came to the skaters, Hawk loved being able to include many of the same original skaters from the original games. Said Hawk: "The idea that we had all the same cast of characters – in that 1 + 2 remaster and now in 3 + 4 – and they all still skate! You know what I mean? Like that's an amazing legacy, and we can make them age appropriate. "Someone asked me recently like, 'Is your character your age?' I'm like, 'He is, because I'm still skating!'" There are also plenty of new additions to the roster of skaters in the new game, including two-time street gold medalist Yuto Horigome, two-time street medalist Rayssa Leal and even a few fictional characters: Michelangelo of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the Doom Slayer from the Doom video game series are both playable characters. Hawk says he'll usually play as himself in the games but occasionally branches out to use other skaters to explore their unique tricks. One other skater, in particular, often gets some extra play above the others. "I would say if I'm not playing my character, then I'm playing my son Riley," he said. Tony Hawk on skateboarding at the Olympics Outside of helping in the development of remaking the video games he lent his name to, Hawk has been something of a global ambassador to the sport of skateboarding. He was an early part of the push to get it included in the Olympics in the first place. "I was advocating for it from the get-go when I knew that it was even in the realm of possibility and in conversations with the IOC (International Olympic Committee)," he said. "I attended plenty of meetings. I actually flew to Lausanne (the IOC's home in Switzerland) at one point. I went to the youth games. I was trying everything I could to raise the profile and to show that it would be a great addition. "And then when it finally did get added as as a sport and as a medal category, that's when I backed out honestly. Once I knew it was in, I didn't want to be part of the machine. I just wanted to help it guide it there in the in the early days." The International Olympic Committee (IOC) first voted to include skateboarding in the Summer Olympic Games in the 2020 iteration in Tokyo. Skateboarding was also an event in the 2024 Paris Games and is set to take place once again in 2028 in Los Angeles. In each of the first two editions of Olympic skateboarding, Hawk was there each time not only as a witness, but as a participant. "It's the coolest. It's like the best of all worlds, because I get to go see it, I get to participate," he said. "Like I got to ride the course both in Tokyo and Paris before the skaters. "I get to to watch from the sidelines and I don't have to judge. It's been amazing to see and to see the the amount of interest and growth and hype that it has received." Hawk noted that a large part of that interest and growth has been most noticeable with young women and girl skaters in recent years. He told an anecdote about his own vertical ramp contest – Tony Hawk's Vert Alert – struggling to get girls to sign up to fill up their side of a bracket just for the first iteration of the event four years ago. "It was kind of like, 'Any girl that even could skate ramps at all, you're in,'" Hawk said. "And now the field is huge and we have to hold qualifying way beforehand. "And I mean just in the case of like someone like Arisa Trew, she she did a 900 (Tony Hawk's signature trick consisting of two full, 360-degree rotations with an additional 180) last year. It's amazing. It's amazing that how just in that five years, how exponentially it's grown." In addition to helping bridge the gender divide in skating, Hawk said the Olympics have also been a massive part in bringing the sport to a more global audience. He pointed to countries like China and Uganda, places where skating was not as popular or didn't even really exist in decades past. "There was never skating in China before the Olympics, and now they have training facilities and actual skaters and places where kids can go and learn," Hawk said. "And that's huge." Uganda now has a "thriving skating scene" as well, says Hawk. And even though the country didn't participate in the skating event for the Olympics, there's still more attention on skateboarding there because of the recent iterations of Summer Games. If there's one thing Hawk would change about the Olympic skateboarding events, it's that he wishes they included a vert event: competitions with halfpipes and large, vertical ramps. Hawk specialized in those events during his career – a vert competition at the fifth X Games is where he pulled off the first-ever 900 in 1999. Instead, the only two skateboarding events at the quadrennial Games are "street" and "park" skating, which feature small courses with obstacles for the skaters to use for various tricks. Hawk called himself the "gnat in their (the IOC's) ear" while trying to push for a vert event in the Olympics. Though he understood the reasoning it wasn't included in the original, 2020 Tokyo Games – a lack of vertical ramps worldwide would have made holding qualifying events a challenge – he's still hoping – and pushing – for its inclusion in a future iteration. Hawk said he hasn't been contacted (yet) about helping set up any of the events for the 2028 Games, which will take place in Los Angeles, not far from Hawk's hometown of San Diego. But he has already offered help with setting up a vert event. "I have offered up my ramp and my presence. If they want to put vert in in any context, here's a free vert ramp," he said. "Put it wherever you want and I'll be there."
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Tony Hawk's Recommended Albums and THPS Soundtrack Influences
If you're not up on this great video series from the world-famous Amoeba Records, episode 900 with Tony Hawk is a good place to start. Roll, and kickflip, through the aisles with Tone as he lets us all know which records he grew up listening to, which ones are good start to finish, and which bands he knew he wanted on the Tony Hawk Pro Skater soundtracks. Plug in and tune out: "Skateboarding legend Tony Hawk is our very special guest for our 900th "What's In My Bag?" episode! The king of the 900 himself goes record shopping at Amoeba Music in Hollywood. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 will be available July 11. Check out his picks: The Cars - Shake It Up (LP) The Rezillos - Can't Stand The Rezillos (LP) Penelope Spheeris - The Decline Of Western Civilization (BLU-RAY) Alex Cox - Repo Man (DVD) The Clash - The Clash Hits Back (LP) Pixies - Doolittle (LP) A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory (LP) Public Enemy - It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back (LP) Ministry - The Land Of Rape & Honey (LP) Joe Dante - The Burbs (DVD) David Lynch - Wild At Heart (DVD) Björk - Debut (LP) Nouvelle Vague - Bande A Part (LP) Tom Waits - Mule Variations (LP) 💻🛹 🛹💻Tony Hawk's Recommended Albums and THPS Soundtrack Influences first appeared on Skateboarding on Jun 3, 2025
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
El Rey Theater in Los Angeles to Be Featured in Tony Hawk Video Game
Skaters who have dreamed of nosebone kickflipping the curb in front of the El Rey Theater or landing a 360 Varial McTwist under the venue's iconic marquee can now live out that dream on Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4. Both games are set to drop on July 11, according to game maker Activision Publishing, Inc. and feature several AEG Presents managed and owned venues, including the beloved Art Deco 771-cap theater on Los Angeles' Miracle Mile, who's exterior was digitally recreated to live permanently in the game. More from Billboard Luminate-Epic Games Deal Brings Gaming Music Metrics Into Focus Mike Van Named First CEO of Billboard Can This New Label Break The Next Global Sound? Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 will also feature in game advertising for concert promoter Goldenvoice and the Roxy in West Hollywood on billboards throughout the Los Angeles level of the game. To celebrate the launch of the game, Activision will be hosting the May 8 Tony Hawk Pro Skater Fest and livestream at the El Rey Theatre featuring live performances by Danny Brown, Lupe Fiasco, Adolescents, and Urethane – all of whom are featured on the game's official soundtrack. The evening will be hosted by pro skaters Selema Masekela and Nora Vasconcellos and feature appearances by from the games roster of new and veteran talent including Chloe Covell, Aurélien Giraud, Leo Baker, Kareem Campbell, Geoff Rowley, Tony Hawk and many more. 'THPS Fest is a like a dream come true—it's surreal to see Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 (and the THPS franchise) celebrated on this scale,' Hawk said in a press release sent to Billboard. Zach Zimmerman, vp for marketing partnerships at AEG Presents noted that 'music and skateboarding are at the heart of Southern California culture,' while Jason Finn, senior manager at Activision boasted 'this is just the beginning.' Fans can catch the May 8 THPS Fest live on the official THPS Twitch channel here. The countdown to the livestream kicks off at 5:45 p.m. Pacific, with the broadcast going live at 6:00 p.m. Pacific. Best of Billboard Diddy Judge Rejects Claim That Prosecutors Leaked Surveillance Tape of Cassie Assault Four Decades of 'Madonna': A Look Back at the Queen of Pop's Debut Album on the Charts Chart Rewind: In 1990, Madonna Was in 'Vogue' Atop the Hot 100
