Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
| Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 | |
|---|---|
 North American PlayStation cover art | |
| Developer(s) | Neversoft[lower-alpha 1] |
| Publisher(s) | Activision, Activision O2 (N64 and GBA versions) |
| Designer(s) | Manabu Hatada (GBC) |
| Series | Tony Hawk's |
| Platform(s) |
PlayStation Microsoft Windows, Game Boy Color, Dreamcast, Mac OS, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo 64, Xbox, iOS |
| Release date(s) |
PlayStation Windows Game Boy Color Dreamcast Mac OS
Game Boy Advance Nintendo 64 Xbox
iOS
|
| Genre(s) | Extreme sports |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 is a skateboarding video game, the second in the Tony Hawk's series of sports games. It was developed by Neversoft and published by Activision in 2000. It was first released for the PlayStation, with subsequent ports to the Nintendo 64, Dreamcast, Game Boy Advance, Mac OS, Microsoft Windows, and iOS. It also was released for the Xbox on November 15, 2001 as part of the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2x collection featuring the first two Pro Skater games.
Critically acclaimed upon release by critics and fans of the series alike, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 remains one of the highest rated video games of all time, as well as the highest rated sports video game.[1][2][3]
Gameplay
The player, playing as a professional skateboarder (either real-life or created) completes a number of tasks which result in cash rewards. With money gained, the player can then purchase skill improvements and better tricks and skateboards. Pro Skater 2 was also the first game in the series to introduce the manual, a skateboarding trick where the performer balances on two wheels. This improved players' ability to string together high-scoring trick combos. Many new tricks were introduced for the first time, as was the option to edit the combinations for tricks. It was also the first of the Pro Skater games to feature Create-a-Skater and Park Editor features, now staples in the series. Three new professional skaters were introduced to the series on this game: Steve Caballero, Rodney Mullen, and Eric Koston.
Most of the levels in Pro Skater 2 are designed for the player to complete 10 tasks in a two-minute time limit. Such tasks include finding the five letters of the word SKATE, finding 5 of an object specific to the level (hall passes in the school level for example), three tasks related to the score (as opposed to two on the first game), a particular grind, and finding a hidden tape somewhere in the level. Cash is also scattered around the levels in order for players to find, with a bonus once the level is fully cleared. Once a player has enough cash, they can continue on to a new level. The maximum amount of money that can be obtained in a single skater career is $150,000.
The other type of levels are competition levels, which consist of three one-minute sessions, from which the player can only advance once they have won a medal, which also comes with a cash prize depending on which medal was won. At the end of each session, five judges score the round, with only the best three scores counting. The rating by the judges that a player receives in a competition is based on how much they score, variation of tricks, bails, and how much of the level they have used. The lowest score is then taken away at the very end of the competition, leaving the average of the other, higher two scores as the final result. There are three minute-long runs in total. Competition levels also contain hidden cash like the regular levels.
Ports
Nintendo 64
The game was originally scheduled to be released along with the PlayStation version, but delayed to allow further sales of the first THPS for the console. Almost a year later, the game was released by the same company that brought the first Tony Hawk game to Nintendo 64, Edge of Reality. This version includes all of the features from the PlayStation version, including the Create-a-Skater and Park Editor. In addition to visual improvements (less jagged, smooth) like the Nintendo 64 version of the first game, a new level called Bike Headquarters (from Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX) was added. Also added were a few new cheats, such as the 10x Point Multiplier and Max Turbo Mode codes. The number of songs was reduced to six and portions of each one were cut for appropriateness.
Pro Skater 2x
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2x was released on November 15, 2001 (only in the U.S. and Canada) as a launch title for Microsoft's Xbox. The game is an enhanced port of Pro Skater and Pro Skater 2, and includes five new levels, a 4-player split screen and LAN multiplayer feature and the ability to make female characters in Create-a-skater mode. Other new features include redesigned menus and the addition of visible balance meter that appears while grinding, which is absent in the previous versions.
Windows Mobile
Austin-based Aspyr Media ported the game to Windows Mobile Professional devices in 2006. The game offered hardware acceleration for some Dell Axim devices.
iOS
Through his Twitter account, Tony Hawk announced a port of Pro Skater 2 for iOS. It would be developed by Activision and would launch before the end of March 2010. The iOS version of the game was released by Activision in the U.S. App Store on April 1, 2010[4] and subsequently into other regions. Unlike other ports, this game's only playable modes are Career Mode, Single Session, and Free Skate Mode along with options. Create a Skater, Create a Park, and levels Chopper Drop and Skate Heaven were removed in this version of Pro Skater 2. The original soundtrack was also removed and replaced with new music. Slight changes were made to the appearances of some of the pro skaters to account for changes of their sponsors since the original game's release. The game is playable on the iPhone, iPod Touch and also the iPad. In 2014, it was removed from the AppStore.
Game Boy Color/Advance
The Game Boy Color version (developed by Natsume) was better received than the first installment on the handheld. In spite of that, it still bore little resemblance to the other versions of the game. The Game Boy Advance version (by Vicarious Visions) received particular acclaim for being an accurate translation of the series, translating the 3D gameplay into isometric format.
PC
A port of the game, based on the PS1 version was also released for Windows on October 24, 2000. Notable about this version is the presence of three levels from the original Tony Hawk's Pro Skater (Warehouse, Chicago Skatepark, and Downhill Jam).
Soundtrack
The following songs are from the original North American PlayStation release.[5] Other versions may vary.
| No. | Title | Artist | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Guerrilla Radio" | Rage Against the Machine | 3:26 |
| 2. | "You" | Bad Religion | 2:05 |
| 3. | "Bring the Noise" | Anthrax featuring Chuck D. of Public Enemy | 3:34 |
| 4. | "When Worlds Collide" | Powerman 5000 | 2:57 |
| 5. | "Pin the Tail on the Donkey" | Naughty by Nature | 3:47 |
| 6. | "Blood Brothers" | Papa Roach | 3:34 |
| 7. | "B-Boy Document 99" | The High and Mighty featuring Mos Def & Mad Skillz | 3:54 |
| 8. | "Heavy Metal Winner" | Consumed | 2:29 |
| 9. | "Cyclone" | Dub Pistols | 3:34 |
| 10. | "Five Lessons Learned" | Swingin' Utters | 1:55 |
| 11. | "Subculture" | Styles of Beyond | 3:31 |
| 12. | "No Cigar" | Millencolin | 2:43 |
| 13. | "Out with the Old" | Alley Life featuring Black Planet | 3:48 |
| 14. | "May 16" | Lagwagon | 2:57 |
| 15. | "Evil Eye" | Fu Manchu | 3:30 |
Reception
Pro Skater 2 was met with critical acclaim and commercial success, greatly surpassing its predecessor. According to GameRankings, as of October 2013, it is one of the highest rated video games of all time and one of the highest ranking video games of fifth generation for PlayStation, holding the score of 94.75%.[1] It also holds a score of 98, making it one of the highest rated video games of all time across all consoles and platforms, on Metacritic, ranked second behind The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.[2][3]
The PlayStation version of the game received a score of 10 out of 10 from the magazine Game Informer, while the versions for other consoles received lower scores. In Japan, Famitsu magazine scored the Game Boy Advance version of the game a 33 out of 40.[6] In the final issue of the Official UK PlayStation Magazine, the game was chosen as the 7th best game of all time.[7] Game Informer named it the fourth best game ever made in 2001. The staff praised the game for its growth over its predecessor and its impact on its genre.[8]
Notes
- ↑ LTI Gray Matter developed the Microsoft Windows version, Natsume developed the Game Boy Color version, Treyarch developed the Dreamcast and Xbox version, Vicarious Visions developed the Game Boy Advance version, Edge of Reality developed the Nintendo 64 version, and Activision developed the iOS version.
References
- 1 2 "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2". Gamerankings. Retrieved 1 July 2014.
- 1 2 "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2". Metacritic. Retrieved 1 July 2014.
- 1 2 "Game Releases by Score". Metacritic. Retrieved 1 July 2014.
- ↑ "Tony Hawk 2 App Store Announcement". 2010-04-01. Retrieved 2011-03-26.
- ↑ "Tony Hawk 2 Soundtrack Lineup". 2010-01-11. Retrieved 2010-05-19.
- ↑ ゲームボーイアドバンス - SK8 トニーホークのプロスケーター2. Weekly Famitsu. No.915 Pt.2. Pg.116. 30 June 2006.
- ↑ Official UK PlayStation Magazine issue 108, page 28, Future Publishing, March 2004
- ↑ Cork, Jeff (2009-11-16). "Game Informer's Top 100 Games of All Time (Circa Issue 100)". Game Informer. Retrieved 2013-12-10.