Plat_Ryda's Full Review: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater for PlayStation 1
Yes, I'm writing a review on the PlayStation version of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, even though I already wrote one up on the Nintendo 64 version. Mainly, this will be comparisons between the two, but, included in the comparisons is an actual review on the game. A little confusing, but, you'll get the hang of it.
The original version of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater (THPS, for short) is an amazing game. It has great graphics, excellent sound, excellent gameplay and control, and overall it's very fun. So, how does it stack up against it's almost-twin N64 version? Let's see...
Graphics
Playstation: The graphics look smooth and are very detailed. The characters look realistic, and although their facial expressions don't ever change (not even blinking), it doesn't really matter, because in this type of game the focus really isn't on how a character's face will look. The skate parks and levels look great and are very detailed (in Roxwell there's a Warning sign that you can actually read part of). There is hardly any slow down, and when there is it's only when there are loading times, but I don't really count those. Also, the whole game just looks and feels realistic (your skater will sway sometimes on his/her skateboard, WOOHOO!)Overall, the graphics look great, especially for PlayStation.
Nintendo 64: The graphics were improved upon, but not by an enormous amount. The characters are a little bulkier, and the textures look better (especially on some of the skate parks and levels), but that's about it. Characters' facial expressions don't change, but, the game still keeps its realism (swayin', baby, swayin').
Sound
PlayStation: Excellent. The quality is, as always, like that of a new CD, and it's very clear. The music is great, and although some of the songs are stupid and annoying, most of them are very good and worth listening to. Most of the time I pump the volume up when one of the better songs come on ("Superman," "Cyco Vision," the song that I forgot the name of that goes "I can't wait to tell you all about...", just to name a few). Younger players be cautioned, though: Some of the songs contain profanities and/or explicit sayings or language. The sound effects are extremely realistic, and even the sound of the skateboards' wheels rolling on the ground sounds real.
Nintendo 64: Good. As always, the sound quality isn't as good as the PlayStation's, obviously because Nintendo 64 uses cartridges and PlayStation uses CDs, but, it still sounds better than what you may think. The songs are average, even though they are the same as the PlayStation version's. What am I talking about, you may be asking? Well, in the Nintendo 64 version, the profanities were taken out (and no, I don't mean like Eminem, where it goes "And I don't give a ," actual 10 second or more lines were removed so it sounds KIND OF smooth), and for some strange reason, most of the first 5-15 seconds of every song (usually the intro) were removed. Also, a few of the songs aren't even on the Nintendo 64 version, and one that I noticed was kept but is only in instrumental version. Makes no sense to me, but, the parts-of-songs that were kept in sound good. The sound effects are also realistic and sound very good for a cartridge.
Control
PlayStation: Easy to learn and easy to remember. Exactly what's needed in a game like this. You don't want to constantly look down at your controller and try to remember how a trick goes, do you? I didn't think so. With this set of controls every move is simple, and usually only requires the touch of a directional button and one of the shape buttons. Easy to learn, easy to remember, and best of all, simple.
Nintendo 64: Ditto. The controls use the 4 C-buttons to substitute for the shape buttons on the PlayStation, meaning that they are the exact same controls and you don't have to worry about pressing A or B at the wrong time or anything like that. Easy to learn, easy to remember, and best of all, simple.
Gameplay
PlayStation: Many different modes to play, all of them are fun. There's the career mode, single session, free skate, (and for two players.....)horse, trick attack, and graffiti. They're simple to learn and fun to play. You will really never get tired of this game because of the many different options.
Nintendo 64: Ditto.
Skate Parks and Levels
Since they are the same for both versions, I'm just going to comment on them. The skate parks contain a wide variety of styles, from competitions with mainly half pipes to downtown and street levels with many places for grinding and casual trick. All of them are fun to play, and some of them have a screen that shows the skateboarding music video that goes to the background music playing. Nice touch. All of them are also extremely skateable (a word that I probably made up for the review..heh), meaning you can skate just about anywhere and do tricks on and off just about everything. You can even grind on police cars (Take that!)! This makes the game very realistic. Overall, the skate parks and levels are excellent.
Any Extra Features?
PlayStation: Yes, and I love the one on this version! If you beat the career mode with a certain character, you will earn their skate video. It's a short video of the actual skaters doing some of their best tricks set to some background music, which you can access by going to "View Videos" on the main menu. After that, you can choose from a couple, and also go to the "Cinematics" menu, where you can watch the skate videos you've earned so far. They all are fun to watch, and if you're a skateboarder, you can also pick up some tricks by watching these. I must've watched each one a couple dozen times. I love this stuff!
Nintendo 64: The skate videos obviously hate to be replaced with something else for the Nintendo 64 version (because it uses cartridges). Although I don't like what's on this version as much as the skate videos, it's still a nice touch. This version has a "Trick Tutorials" section, where you can choose a skater and see what all their basic tricks are and how to do them. It also shows how to do their signature moves. Like I said, a nice touch, but, I prefer the skate videos over the tutorials.
Overall
PlayStation: An excellent game, which can only be beaten by its own sequel. A must-buy.
Nintendo 64: Again, an excellent game. Since it's not that new anymore, the price isn't as high as it used to be, which means you have to pick this one up if you own a Nintendo 64. I'm not sure if they'll be releasing the sequel on the N64, but if they do, I'll be the first to pick it up. A must-buy.
So, that about wraps up my excessively long comparison of the two different versions of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater that I own. Maybe if I buy a DreamCast one day, I'll review that version, too, but, I wouldn't promise it. Thanks for your time!
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