EdTeach's Full Review: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 for Xbox
Why did PS1, PS2 and Gamecube get THPS3, but not XBox? That’s just not fair. Well I’ve been scouring the Internet to find out the scoop. I didn’t get very far, because I really didn’t care much after getting my hands on Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2X.
Graphics
THPS2X is initially a port of THPS2 done by the same guys that ported it to the Dreamcast, Treyarch. THPS2 never made it to the PS2, so the Dreamcast version was the best you could get your hands on, graphically. Treyarch took that, combined with all the XBox tricks they could uncover, and made a truly stunning and fluid Tony Hawk Experience that rivals the newest Tony Hawk for PS2.
They started by improving on the models in the Dreamcast version of THPS2. Resulting it really life-like, high-polygon skaters that blend in with their environments very well. This level of detail was needed, because the environments are spectacular and anything less would have stuck out like a sore thumb. The textures were redone for the XBox, but the real treat is the work they did the levels themselves. Everything about the backdrops seems much higher in detail, as if they reworked the polygons themselves. This is definitely evident in as soon as you start ripping through the grass. It’s no longer a solid texture, but actually slightly oversized blades of grass. I can’t tell if the grass consists of actual polygons, or if they’re an effect done with vertex and pixel shaders.
What Do You Get?
Well this game doesn’t look quite as good as THPS3, but the real joy is that they’ve performed this facelift on top of an already amazing game: THPS2. But in addition to owning a much-improved version of such a great title, you’re getting another entire game’s worth of levels. THPS2X is a compilation of THPS2 and the original THPS. The skate the classic levels from the first title, you’ll need to unlock them, but it’s well worth it for the nostalgia alone. You’ll be very satisfied when you find out you can skate those levels in the same style that you’ve learned in THPS2. For instance, the improved manual revolutionized the street skating aspect of THPS2. Combos became really important, and a big part of those huge combos came from linking together the different sections of the street courses with the new manuals. With this in mind, you skate the old levels from an entirely different perspective. Just in case that wasn’t enough motivation for you to pick up a copy for your XBox, they’ve thrown in 5 new levels.
You’ve got access to your favorite pros again, 12 total. After playing so much THPS3, I was happy to see Bob Burnquist again. But if you get too bored of the pros, there’s a great skater editor which now allows you to create a female skater.
Controlling Your Skater
Controlling your skater is as easy as THPS2 for Dreamcast. You’ll use your four main buttons to ollie, grab, kickflip, and grind as always. Then you’ll want to user your trigger buttons to rotate while in the air. It’s important to get in the habit of rotating with the trigger buttons instead of the left analog stick. The reason is that the camera angle can change, causing your movement on the analog stick to be interpreted as a rotation in the opposite direction. So your skater will start twisting the other way in mid-air.
Multiplayer
XBox has a huge advantage with it’s built in network adapter. It’s really easy to play split screen or link your XBox with another for head to head action in either of the multiplayer games: Graffiti, Trick Attack (Horse), or Free Skate. Unfortunately they didn’t include an internet game browser that would allow you to find internet games, but Gamespy (www.gamespy.com) has stepped in. PC Gamers have used Gamespy for years. Their newest software is called Gamespy Arcade. It’s basically a browser that lets you set up games and list them with Gamespy. Then other people can join you.
Well add that browser to another piece of software that they’ve put out, Gamespy Tunnel. It’s a great piece of software that runs on a PC with an internet connection. What it basically does is looks on your home network to see if you’ve got an XBox connected. Then it works in conjunction with Gamespy Arcade to do the following. When you find a game hosted by someone using Gamespy Arcade, you can join it. Gamespy Tunnel will turn your computer into a virtual extension of the other players XBox. So now your XBox thinks it’s connected to another XBox.
This is a great piece of software, but it’s kind of buggy. When you finally get it working, you’ll enjoy support for every XBox title that supports the System Link play (Halo, Nascar 2002, THPS2X).
Music
The soundtrack rocks as always. There’s nothing like skating to great music. It really gets you pumped in real life, and it works for the virtual realm as well. As good as this soundtrack is, you will get bored of it. Thank you, Microsoft. Their Soundtrack feature lets you rip your CD tracks as MP3s onto the hard drive. Then THPS2X will let you select those songs as you play. Sweet.
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3?
THPS3 for the XBox is right around the corner, so many people are reluctant to pick this title up. But I’m going to recommend picking this title up. THPS2X is really polished. It’s a great way to pick up the best of both the original and the sequel for your XBox. Playstation 2 can’t offer that, because THPS2 was never developed for PS2. But perhaps even better, is THPS2X gives you the opportunity to own all of the original levels but play them with the much improved engine from THPS2.
So maybe THPS3 wasn’t released earlier for XBox because they knew they had THPS2X in the pipe. Whatever reason, I’m not upset with them at all.
The living legend of skateboarding, Tony Hawk, brings you into his world yet again with new features that take advantage of next generation system cap...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
Tony Hawk brings you into his world yet again with all-new features that'll have you high flying through Paris, Tokyo, L.A., Canada, and more. Perform...More at eBay
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