Tony Hawk’s American Sk8land Review

It also wouldn’t be a DS game without some kind of touching. The obvious applet is a paint program to make your own graffiti and deck art. Unfortunately, this paint program is very stripped down and glitchy at times. Restricted to only the stylus, there isn’t much chance for precision, and the program periodically scratches an unrelated line across the picture. Basically, you can write “WTF” and move on. But the touch screen is used in-game, also. Special and slow-motion tricks can be pulled off by tapping buttons on the screen. There is also a new Freak Out option which lets you recover some points from a bail by stopping meters on the touch screen with your thumb (or other finger, I suppose). These touch functions don’t always feel responsive, but they are purely optional and offer a little more depth for anyone willing to get grease marks on their system.

Playing Sk8land isn’t without aggravation, however. Seemingly impossible challenges are okay, because it’s something to work towards. What I have a hard time coping with is how difficult it is for your character to turn around. Pulling back will eventually bring your character to a standstill. However, it’s a slow process and not really desired when the clock is ticking. Making wide turns on the skateboard seems like a good alternative. However, the slightest tap against a wall sends your skater in the opposite direction. It’s very frustrating to get stuck bouncing between two walls in some narrow passage. It by no means kills the fun of the game, but it’s a nuance that is hard to overlook.

The Story mode will really only require one pass through, utilizing 1.5 hours of battery life. Classic mode, on the other hand, is much more than that. Because the challenges in Classic mode are harder, they take a lot longer to finally master. Plus, you are encouraged to beat Classic mode with different characters in order to open up Tony Hawk staple cheats. With or without cheats, this is still a fun game to pick up and play whenever time permits. Sk8land also marks the only third party DS game to take advantage of Nintendo’s online service. The final product is actually better implemented than Mario Kart DS but not quite as fun or interesting. The connection between the game and website is really cool, letting you download new challenges or upload high scores and replays. Yet, Tony Hawk is confined to two players. Online, the limitation was probably mandatory, but even locally, only two people can play a game, and each has to have their own copy. Alas, the game modes aren’t even that captivating, mostly revolving around trick attacks. What happened to the more interactive modes like Horse and Graffiti? It’s very disappointing. Random online matches are still fun, though. The game puts you and another player in a free skate level that acts as a lobby until one player requests an actual competition. It’s a really good idea, and I hope in the future there will be better uses for it.

Final Comments

Considering the Game Boy Advance has seen more Tony Hawks than Super Marios, it’s very likely Sk8land will make another appearance in some form within a year from now. If you have the patience, the wait may be worth it. I expect the developers to make the game even better now that they’ve gotten the basics figured out. Regardless, Tony Hawk’s American Sk8land is an impressive DS game and packs all the fun and charm of the skating franchise without resorting to silly gimmicks like on-foot missions or obligatory touch controls. And with a sudden $10 price drop, there is little reason for fans of skateboard combos not to add this one to their collection.