Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD first step in series return

The sales success of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD may make the Hawk into a phoenix. Robomodo CEO Josh Tsui spoke with Gamasutra about how the downloadable title is the first step in the dormant skateboarding franchise's rise from the ashes.

The timed Xbox Live Arcade exclusive sold 120,000 copies in its first week of availability, Robomodo told Gamasutra, and is set to go live on PlayStation network and PC later this year. Tsui said the smaller scale of the project, which met a lukewarm critical reception, made it an easier pitch to a still-hesitant Activision. Robomodo was the primary developer behind both 2009's Tony Hawk Ride and 2010's Tony Hawk Shred, peripheral-based entries in the franchise which were found to be lacking by many critics.

The return to the franchise's roots was bound to disappoint some whether they wanted more changes or fewer, Tsui said, but the smaller-scale downloadable update was meant to show the franchise had comeback potential. "The prospect of a fuller game is definitely on the table -- it's just a matter of when and how," he said.

"We were given the right amount [of resources] based on the scope of [Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD], but obviously we would always want more to go bigger," Tsui said. "I don't think hits these days look the same as they did back in 1999 or 2000, so it would be great to see the Tony Hawk franchise do interesting things on a variety of platforms."