Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 is Probably My Game of the Year (Review) 

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it is so, so, so, so, SO good

Glad to hear this one isn't a disappointment, given what I've observed about Pro Skater 5 especially. I can really feel your passion bleeding through when you talk about these skateboarding games. Though I don't have AS much history with it, hearing you talk about these games so fondly brings me back to playing American Wasteland with my buddy in elementary school. If my time with THUGPRO has been anything to go by, I'm pretty excited to pick this one up.

I just rewatched this video because it captures my feelings so well I love it, caught that you gave me a shout for the gameboy footage! cheers :)

i am blown away by how good this game is. within 12 hours of receiving my copy i had blisters on my thumb for the first time for any game since probably THUG2. luckily the analog controls are pretty good so i was able to keep playing while it healed! i nearly cried when i first played the hangar level, brought back memories from christmas morning 2000

This video perfectly encapsulates my feelings for this game, including my issue with holding “A” when restarting a level. I’m glad I’m not the only one!

I’m starting to develop that same wonderful feeling of nostalgia for this channel! Keep up the great work 👍

YOU revitalize my love for the medium!

5:33 I LOVE that they added the "glitchy" aspect thing to bails. Bails no longer ruin all momentum in these games, and while you should be "punished" for failing tricks, it shouldn't be as annoying or time consuming like it was in the original games. One thing I'd like to touch on that review didn't, is the sound design. Lowering the music level + reverb during bails adds to the weight while the remixing glitching sound when fast forwarding bail fixes it. So it doesn't feel as bad like the other games. Also the fact when you have SPECIAL, the music bumps up slightly providing an epic kind of feel. Overall VV got it right. It looks, sounds, and FEELS better than any previous Tony Hawk game.

I'm so glad you brought up the holding down the ollie during loading screens, I think for me that's the one thing I'd want them to fix.

yeah the success of this and the CTR remake make me want a new SSX game (or a remake of one of the PS2-era games, or a remaster of the 2012 one), but it's EA.

I've never played a tony hawk game in my life but your review impressed me so much that i'm going to go pick up a copy asap!! Amazing work man, love the channel keep it up!!

Can we just hand all of our remasters over to Vicarious Visions? Those guys seen like the only ones who don't fuck it up somehow.

Never played a Tony Hawk game before, this just convinced me to buy the game. Thanks!

Your content is an example of excellent writing and analysis, you talk from such a personal perspective and with such character and coherence, that I end up loving your content every time. I'll be eager to see your next video, take care.

It's been ten or so some odd years and the muscle memory returned months ago when I first saw trailers with gameplay, and oh god the wait was long.

They should treat this like Crash Bandicoot, after they do 3+4, they should release an all new THPS 5 and make it actually good this time.

Yeah, long time tony hawk fan, having to start speeding only after loading for me seems like one of the major flaws of this game, which also speaks a lot about it's quality

Thank you for nailing this review!!

thanks for the awesome review. I'm in the same boat - the game is so fucking good that I have literally four complaints about the game, and they're all minor. you covered two of them - the needing to wait to hold X, and some goal items just blending in to all the other high-quality graphics. my other two issues: - the jump into the volcano on Skate Heaven is kinda broken compared to the PSX version of the level. - I started to hate the social menu on the PS4 touchpad and the PS button because I kept hitting those buttons mid-combo, and they both mess you up. social menu takes all control away from you until you close it, and obviously, PS button just takes you to the main menu while pausing your game, but, if you're in multiplayer, it's also effectively the social menu button. the funny thing about the last nitpick is that it reminded me that the d-pad is a perfectly acceptable control input for this game, and, since then, that's all I've used. that's when I realized modern games have trained me to prefer analog input via the thumbsticks. it's funny, because along with eliminating the possibility of accidentally hitting these buttons, I found that switching back to the d-pad actually really pumped up the effectiveness of my overall muscle memory for the series - which I haven't tapped into for fifteen years - and I'm playing better as a result. so, since I switched back to d-pad, I only really have three nitpicks. this game is easily GOTY in my book, and should be in everyone's top 3.

First video I've watched of yours but I don't think anyone has perfectly explained what I've felt for this game until you. Great stuff

This was interesting and entertaining, great job!

these games have made such a huge impact on my life. from the time spent with friends to the music that it brought to my life, the sheer joy of skating and the challenge of the unlocks. truly one of the greatest pieces of media ever made!!

Never even played the OG Games. Only recently emulating them to see the hype, so I don't have the personal investment, yet the game slaps still. It's just fast, try, repeat, try arcade fun. Feels great, is simple, and satisfying. It's like COD for Skateboarding.

Always great to see a video where you unabashedly enjoy a game

New subscriber, loved the review, can't wait to watch more of your content!

Definitely getting this for Christmas. So many games on my list!

My brother was a big fan of skating when he was about 10 when Tony Hawk 2 came out, so these games became a huge part of his childhood. Now in 2020, his son is 10, and now he gets to sit down and share these games in a brilliantly remade state with him. I'm really looking forward to sitting on the couch sharing controllers around playing the games when my nephew gets it for his birthday next month.

I’m sooooo glad this game came out exactly how I wanted it to. I’ve been playing since ps1 days and it makes me happy they nailed it

Hey when you clearly love a game as much as you clearly do with this game, I don't think it a terrible thing to have a few nitpicks. I only find nitpicks annoying when they are clearly just meant to drag a game down for no other reason than that.

I have never heard you swear, and you just did. Truly shows the love you have for this game

Omg your review is SPOT ON! even down to the level start Ollie button “issue” - I also hold it down during the loading screen 😂

The high praise this remake has received over the past few weeks has made me wonder about 1) how good Neversoft was at their job, even at the time of the releases of the original games 2) why THPS 3 wasn't remade alongside 1+2 3) why more games don't 'feel' like the THPS series (and haven't really tried to, either) I can't even properly imagine a more traditional collect-a-thon game feeling this good to move around in. Imagine Super Mario 64 designed in a way to get you through each world once to get all of the stars in a similar way: time limit; all the stars available from the start; quick restarts. The works. THPS makes the simple act of moving around so enjoyable without really making it a hassle to do so, despite it having a surprisingly difficult movement system overall. I don't think I've ever played a THPS game which felt bad to move in. Much like how KH3 and DMC 5 showed how to make proper character action gameplay as well as amazing cutscene choreography, THPS 1+2 will show how to make a proper arcade-y skateboarding game.

This has been an utter joy to play. I loved every game from Pro Skater 3 all the way to Proving Ground and always wanted to try the first two games but was put off by the slower, floaty physics and lack of certain tricks. Having them playable with the snappiness and trick selection of Pro Skater 4 and Underground (my favourite two in the series) has been a delight

I can't believe how much I've played this. Just wanted a nice casual blast-from-the-past. But have ended up 100%ing both games, doing all create-a-skater challenges, and all challenges for 3 pro skaters and I still want to keep going. Loving the gap combo challenges that restrict what trick types you can do.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who has noticed the weird menu issue

so funny u mentioned the "holding down X when restart" problem - exactly the same for me :D but yeah, this game is absolutely amazing, so so so damn good

HA! didn't know about the glitch effect! Thanks dude! Great analysis btw! Porting something to a new engine and retaining the same feel is less than trivial...

GOTY for me too. I was expecting it to be good, since it's VV and not Robomodo. This blew my expectations. Everything they promised was in the game. The maps play the same way as before and the gameplay is on point. For the first time in a DECADE we finally got a Tony Hawk game. Hopefully this will lead to more TH remasters. I want THUG to be remastered so bad.

Fantastic video mate! THPS3 on Gamecube is one of my earliest and fondest video game memories (been gaming for over 20 years now). I agree wholeheartedly, this remake blew me away! Bring on THPS 3+4 remake!

LMAO THE HOLDING X DURING A RESTART BIT! I WAS POSITIVE NOBODY ELSE NOTICE THAT!

Great video! Though I would argue that getting off your board would be useful for setting up lines and navigating narrow corridors/ stairs.

Commenting to appease the eldritch abomination

The holding down the crouch button as I restart a level I also do and is soo annoying.. hahaha. glad you mentioned it.

I do have some issues; Like the holding down the A/X thing like you said, also I would love an option where your objectives come up as a list on the side of the screen as you play instead of having to pause everytime to look at it. I'd also appreciate if the menu was a little more clear, like the skater challenges for example, I don't even know what I'm looking at there.. But maybe I'm just an idiot lol. I have a few more but again like yours these are pretty minor, mostly this is a great game that captures that feeling of the originals rather than actually BEING the originals. Like i'd actually forgotten that you couldn't do all the extra grind tricks and manuals and all that in the original, I wasn't aware, then jumped right into this assuming you can and then found out that you couldn't in the originals after haha! So somehow it perfectly got the gameplay right in those exact kind of ways. I've played about 10 hours now and I'm addicted to that ranking/competitive mode atm! I'm down to 43 seconds on the speedrun in the warehouse and last night I somehow got ranked 64 in the downtown single session leaderboard! Apparently I'm not too bad at this! Which feels different because I'm not THE BEST gamer hahaha. That all being said I still haven't even touched THPS2 yet, I've just focused on getting everything done in the first one first! (And screwed around a bit on the ol' user created skateparks which is kinda fun) Anyway I dunno, TLDR: It's fun. And this is a good video mate!

Ah memories. I remember finding an infinite air glitch on one of the levels on the original that let you go out of bounds and chain combos for as long as you wanted after the time ran out. It was kind of difficult to come back inbounds and land afterwards but you could rack up millions of points if you pulled it off. I just put a rubber band on the controller and then left for lunch and instant high score.

Loved your words on this. As someone that also grew up on these games, it felt like coming home. I literally booted it up and was able to shred from the getgo. One of the best-controlling games of all time

Oi mate!! just bought this game for Christmas thank you for the video:) cheers! 🍻

When i heard lagwagon may 16 I almost cried. My mind went back into time when I was younger cutting school etc my grandma was alive telling me get off the damn game and read a book. Lol

Was my most anticipated game of this year, by far. These kind of gameplay loops are so addictive.

Was really looking forward to your review before I bought this sucker. I knew you'd talk about the game feel in minutea and I was not disappointed!

I actually really liked being able to get off the board in order to stall your combo and then caveman over to a new set of ramps or rails to extend that combo. It also was really useful for just totally negating a bail if you knew you were going to screw up. It's honestly the only thing I wish they would bring back

The holding down X issue drives me crazy too. It’s a bigger problem than it sounds but easily forgivable given just how good the game is.

8:55 THANK YOU ! I'm going insane at that shit, that and the pipe you can grind at the start of the huge halfpipe in Downhill Jam, you're supposed to grind it easily but idk why everytime i end up doing a wallride !

Couldn't have said it better. Really good video.

I hope they remake the third game someday, one of my favorite games ever.

These seamless combos made so pissed that I'm not able to do that that I'm gonna practice tomorrow.

This for me is what gaming is about. Pure arcade, highscore fun. I just dont get any joy from the current 30+ hour games these days, i just want to get right into a game and have fun. Great video!

I totally agree on the style of remake with you, Hamish. Certain remakes I think really should just recreate the original, but with a series like this, recreating the memory first and foremost, with the enhancements and deductions you talk about, was the smart move. I super jammed that it worked out this well.

I had the exact same two issues as you, that muscle memory to hold X as the level starts has been really hard to shake!

R.I.P. Vicarious Visions.

If they add Pro skater 3 to this combo it will be game of the year for me

Great review, great game!

another nostalgia trip was going back to the D-pad, its feels way more snappier and comfortable for me to use in replace of the analogue.

One of the things that sets the earlier THPS games apart is the passion and enthusiasm that was baked into every aspect of the games. I remember picking up one for the Xbox (American wasteland or thug I forget which) and instead of being dropped into a stage and the game saying "off you go" I was presented with some edgy storyline which was what a bunch of board members imagined younger people would like. Stages were ok, but as you said, there was so much bloat and feature creep in the mechanics it started to lose what made it special. Looking at this remake I can see the passion again. Despite being a skater game there's no attempt at edginess, just passion and earnestness. Will definitely be picking this one up, hell I'd throw down some extra money for THPS 3 maps in future. My thumbs were wanting to hit the button combinations just watching the footage.

The natas spin came in handy making big combos in the newer games

Little story: I joined the series with the first Tony Hawk's Underground, in which there's a mission where you have to pull off 3 or 4 combos with progressively less mechanics corresponding to the reverse order of the PS1 games, and the phrase 'No reverts, manuals, or spine transfers' stuck in my head from that point onward precisely because those three mechanics were so crucial to seamless traversal - so fast forward 17 years and when this remaster gets announced, I'm literally thinking 'oh...will they not have reverts, manuals or spine transfers?' and the INSTANT I see you pull them off and talk about them in quick succession here, that's when I decided 'YEP. I HAVE TO BUY THIS AT SOME POINT'.

I haven't had nintendo thumb in 15 years and now I'm playing this game nonstop.

Well done buddy

brooooo, holding down the A button on restart is something I always do and it's super annoying. But other than that this game has blown me away. I feel like this is how I remember the game being, it's exactly like you said they teleported the game forward to a modern game without adding things that would break the important gameplay elements (like being able to get off a board and walk). When I think of THPS 1 and 2 I now thinks of this game more than I do the originals. It's probably one of the best remakes I've ever seen.

Yeah pretty fair of you, it's a fantastic revisit to the 2 games. I share your pain for the hold X on restart issue certainly annoying my biggest gripe is that there just isn't enough to do in 2020 even putting together these two games into one package you can literally do all the fun stuff in well under 10 hours maybe 8 if you really push for it. I know there are additional challenges to do to unlock boards but most challenges are really worth it. £40 sadly just too much for this I'd say wait for it to at least be 50%. Having said that if they come out with remixed levels adding in new goals akin to older ones i.e. why is there no combo goals? I'll definitely be buying it.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2: You Can (Not) Flip Alone

That button thing, when you start the round, IS my only complaint. I do the same thing and you have to wait a sec before you can press the ollie button. Besides that, I feel like I'm a teen back in the 90's when these came out. Those were simpler times. lol.

Glad I’m not the only one that has found the delay needed on holding down Ollie / X on restart behavior annoying. I hope they change that in an update.

Echoes exactly what I think about this remaster, I've just been pouring myself into this game, watching other people play it, listening to the new tracks they added, it's just a fantastic remaster. AND ALSO GOD YES I DON'T KNOW WHY THERE'S THAT LITTLE DEAD PERIOD WHEN YOU RESTART WHERE YOU HAVE TO LET GO OF OLLIE But still it's so fucking good man

I had that same issue with holding down X between runs too lol

Yeah that restart issue (Holding X) is something I thought I was alone on haha. Only other issue I have with the game is that I found the collectables to be a lot more frustrating to complete than I remember. In this game you seem to have to hit them dead on 100% or you'll miss them. Not sure if the originals were as strict in this regard. Be interested to know if anyone shares this view also

i wish they added the ability to get off your board. no challenges or goals associated with it but just so you could reposition yourself off board if u wanted to

Commenting for "engagement." RU-vid stopped recommending me your videos so I'm "engaging" to let the algorithm know to please show content I have purposefully subscribed to.

Getting off your board is a major mechanic tied to drifting. Guess you played every game from Underground onwards and just never bothered to learn new mechanics.

I finally got the Rag's to Riches challenge completed and it felt so great! Like legit love the trial and error style of this game. My only complaint is that character customization could be more robust but even then it is still good!

I still think getting off your board, climbing and walking would have been handy in the remake. THUG Pro is still more fun.

This game means a lot to me. I will say from the outset, the only thing I don’t like is the glitch animation removing the blood, but, I’ll get back to that. I’m 26 and these games have meant a lot of things for me. When I was a kid I rented one and two from blockbuster and my dad burned them on a CD. I had a slightly older friend who skated and, by virtue of being slightly older, was immensely cool to me. We would play these games religiously. They so warped my perspective of what actual skateboarding was that by the time I got a skateboard probably in 2001 I was shocked I couldn’t ollie. They also provided me with a sense of danger or rebelliousness, as innocuous as it was being that I was a white kid from a middle class suburb. The fact that the songs had some cursing and the blood (that being why I’m disappointed it’s gone) really made me feel like I was playing something too old for me. Turning it on and hearing guerrilla radio and being almost scared of the power of it, and of course the politics went totally over my head at the time. These games introduced me to punk rock, underground and older (at the time hardly older) hip hop. There was an anti-authority bent to them. There was a lawlessness to them but ironically it was wrapped up in some of the best and most trustworthy mechanics. I don’t think people who didn’t grow up with these games really understand what they meant to people. And I hate that gatekeeping shit and I hope a lot of younger people find these and fall in love with them, but the word nostalgia doesn’t do it justice. I just sent in my last paper for my masters the other day a few days late (at least I think... nvm) and I’ve been pretty nervous although the rational part of me says it will be fine. I bought this game yesterday and it has provided a great comfort. As I sip on a beer as I write this I’ll conclude with some of the more relatable and beautiful and sad and anthemic and metaphorical and whatever else lyrics that I’ve recited while playing this game. Mid 20s skateboarder I hope I don’t get hurt Drinking a six pack of beer Takes away all the fear Mid 20s skateboarder I hope I don’t get hurt. Thanks for the video homie, brilliant as always.

I really hope the developers keep updating the game and add more multiplayer features!

Absolutely not nitpicking on the holding X thing when you retry. The amount of times I've done that and not realized until I hit a ramp and roll off it is crazy.

Fingers crossed for 3 + 4!

i don't think you mentioned what is probably my favourite new mechanic of all: wallplants. where you used to just have to accept your inevitable bail/end of a combo if you found yourself flying at a wall, now you can just mash ollie and BOING! off you go flying in the opposite direction. and yes, i also noticed the thing where you restart a run and have to press the button twice lol

I also 2nd the holding ollie issue, I was hoping an update could fix!

The game itself is amazing, I FINALLY unlocked Skate Heaven last night, my only one minor gripe for this is not having the ability to get off your board. The amount of times I’ve slipped off roofs when I’m trying to collect the tapes is crazy.. but hey that’s a personal choice, all in all it’s fantastic

I am new to the series with this game but I most admit playing it is like "oh this is what I wanted Jet Set Radio to feel like" and while I am still learning I do get zen about it at times too

Thank you for this. I agree, this is the game of the year and the best remake ever. I can take a break for a few days but then when I play it again I'm loving it even more! What an experience. I felt so much nostalgia when seeing the trailer for the game I actually installed THPS3 on my laptop as I couldn't wait. And while the 3rd game was a lot of fun - the remaster is I think my favourite

I fucking love this video, I fucking love this game and I fucking love you

Really looking forward to playing this game, however I will wait until the inevitable THPS3 remake DLC and buy the 'GOTY' version with it already there.

Im late to the party, but I picked the game up on PC a couple months ago and ive sunk 120 hours into it. This game is exactly what it set out to be. Other than limited multiplayer options and that having to tap X upon resrart.. its a 10/10

I think they deserve an opportunity at making their own couple of levels and releasing them as DLC. Give them a blank slate and let them build 3 levels however they want. They deserve it and id buy them 100%. If they are as good as i imagined they would be, give them full power to make Tony Hawks 6

Tbh I loved Underground 1 and 2. I hope they do a proper remake of pro skater 3 and 4 and then follow it up with a remake of Underground 1 and 2. That would be glorious. Pro skater 1 & 2 has been a treat.

Each bell is lit up by a unique-looking white light, so I thought it was easy to pick them out from the environment. I haven't played the game myself yet, so I can't say for sure how it would play out, but I can't see why it would be difficult.

this game is shockingly excellent and easily a top 5 game of the generation for me. one of those rare games that i would recommend to anyone, and that's coming from someone with very limited experience with the series and almost no nostalgia for it besides the general vibe of the era it represents. really hoping that new skate game can be even half as good and revitalizing for its series, cause that was my shit as a kid

Mechanics like the Natas spin were intended to embrace many more aspects of skating, but they did end up getting buried in all the story shenanigans.

Sooooo good! But I can't help but look at the horizon and wonder what updates Activision is going to add after all these reviews are out.