Silicon Fusion >> Reviews >> Tony Hawks Underground 2

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Review:

12th November 2004:
Tony Hawks Underground 2
Take part in the biggest, sleekest and most radical game of 360 to hit the deck yet.
Posted by Chris Snook - PlayStation 2,Xbox,GameCube - UK and Europe

There are some games who surprise those who play them. One such for myself was the original Tony Hawks game when it came out on the original PlayStation. Not because I was a long haired skater geek who was well into grinding and pulling the odd ollie but because the skate park editor was one of the most user friendly and easy to use tools to create personal creative mayhem that had been seen to that date.

Now that Tony Hawk's Underground 2 has hit the streets it is time to put it through its paces.

THUG2 follows the exploits of to teams of ultra skaters, one lead by Bam and one by the titular Mister Hawks and lucky you are one of the elite picked to take part. Unfortunately you're last to be picked in the playground soccer style team selection, behind the guy in the wheelchair. Ho hum

There are a number of modes, including the World Tour where you go on a wonderful and thoroughly unofficial circuit of mayhem in places such as Boston and Barcelona but it all starts in the skate park where you are put through your paces by the more experienced skaters who give a nice simple and easy to understand tutorial. At times less than easy to complete but essential to understand how the controls work and how to pull off the vast array of tricks required to build your character into the best of the best. From there on in you search for gaps as you proceed around the world.

Classic mode provides a blast to the past, with S.K.A.T.E and collect the tape, all fully playable on the World Tour levels and have their own twists and crenellations to cover and negotiate through often against the clock. Free Skate is just that a mode where you can devote time to practicing moves and perfecting routines, a common addition that still adds to things overall.

The editor remains and is as versatile as ever, with new options and a better and cleaner interface it pulls out more stops and allows the creation of some seriously difficult arenas to skate in. The real upside, a step upgrade from before in that practically everything can be customized, your skater, tricks, board graphics and so on. It is here that the dedicated will spend time as they try to create a unique persona.

Visually things are pretty good. Backgrounds are detailed, the skaters are fluid and everything moves at a decent clip, slowing down only for the most intense of action. There are problems, collision detection at times can be ropey, it is amusing to see your bod sticking partway into a building and the inside of said building being visible for a nanosecond but after the third or fourth time you really do worry f they checked this out. One treat is the focus mode where by hitting L3 you enter a slo-mo world of hurt.

Music is good if a bit repetitive and at times forgettable, nothing really stands out. Sounds are cute and right, one of the best is the sound of a board breaking as you clanger and 'freak out' doing immense damage to your board, passers by as you sling it like a discuss or anything else in range. Voice acting is good, people interact and offer advice on things but gets samey after a while but the sense of humour is evident and you can see that they are having fun.

And fun is evident throughout the gameplay. Throwing tomatoes, pulling tricks and creating vast amounts of mayhem as you do so. Controls are simple and a joy to use and again add to the fun of playing or even just meandering around. Everything is fluid and engaging, everything works and there are no real hiccups. The learning curve is both gentle and vicious. Gentle in that each trick and stunt and required goal follows on, vicious in that actually performing them can be an exercise in patience, determination and a willingness not to be beaten. This is the one flaw in THUG2, that to progress you need to be very, very patient.

There is a bucket load here. More than enough for any budding boarder to be happy with, even if it is only perfecting that latest trick ready to go forth and out-skate the enemy. Story mode will consume hours and then there s the need to find gaps that will keep people coming back. However those who have never played the series or are interested will find little reason to look at THUG2.

Overall, Tony Hawks Underground 2 is a fine game, that will appeal to those who will go and buy it but will not really entice those who are not. There is more breadth here than expected and yet it is still the core of the original games, with added bells and whistles. A must for fans and a possible pick up for those who are curious.

Chris Snook

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Review Summary:

Smooth and crunchy game of grinding and freaking out as you wend around the world in unofficial competition. A guaranteed buy for fans of skating or Tony Hawks in particular and worth looking at for those who are curious. However for those who the skater revolution passed by will be best avoiding as another lost cause.

Related Games:

Tony Hawk's Underground 2
for PlayStation 2

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