Skate 2 Updated Hands-On
By
Shaun McInnis, Editor
We get our first details on Skate 2's story, improved video editor, and a handful of new game modes.
One thing the original Skate proved is that good controls and easy controls aren't necessarily one and the same. The whole concept of controlling your body with one thumbstick and your board's flicking motions with the other was something that felt very alien to a lot of players. But once you got it figured out, it became like second nature--a unique and rewarding challenge that opened itself up to a brand new way of playing skateboarding games. Unlike the first game, Skate 2 will find a mixed audience of "flick it" veterans and neophytes alike. Appealing to both of these groups is one of the biggest challenges faced by the team at EA Black Box as it seeks to avoid overwhelming newcomers while giving grizzled veterans the chance to pick up where they left off.
Achieving this task begins, as it so often does, with the introduction to the story. You're immediately told to get on down to Slappy's skatepark where, along the way, you'll encounter narrow alleyways and parking lots littered with obstacles. These obstacles will test your ability to pop big ollies, crouch under gates, and so on. You'll be able to zoom on through if you know what you're doing, but if not, the game will recognize this and hold your hand as it guides you through basic techniques. This should give experienced players the ability to get right down to learning the new moves, such as handplants and bonelesses, while those new to Skate can start small.
Once there, you're given a hint about what's happened in the five years between Skate and Skate 2. Apparently, your character has been in prison (the details of which are still unknown) and is now seeking to rebuild his reputation among his skeptical peers. It's not so much a matter of proving your skills because your mastery on a board has already been evidenced in the first game, but rather, proving your worth as a member of the skating community. In practical terms, this means you won't have to start from scratch--you'll immediately pick up as a well-known skater doing photography and sponsor challenges from the beginning rather than taking part in minor challenges with the locals.
With your skating abilities already well known throughout the city, you'll be given access to most of the exclusive skate spots right from the beginning rather than having to hold out for the biggest and best jumps at the end. But if hitting up the prime real estate isn't your cup of tea, you can also create your own skate spots. We talked about how you can move certain objects, such as picnic tables and rails, in our last preview, but now, we've been told that you can actually share the fruits of your labor in a new mode called Create a Spot. With Create a Spot, you can organize objects in a certain location, save the layout, and then upload that new spot to share it with friends online. A few of the options you're given include defining the boundaries of your spot and setting a point challenge to beat.
Visually, Black Box wants to complement your new abilities with improved bail animations. If you mess up on a grind and you're not going too fast, you'll simply run out of the grind instead of falling to the ground in a limp, lifeless mess. Occasionally, you'll see your skater attempt to brace for impact if he can get his hands out in time. And if you sense a move going awry while airborne, you can simply kick the board away before you land. But if you do wipe out often, you'll notice your skater gradually show more damage over time, such as torn clothing and bruised elbows.
This new ability to kick the board away will become the centerpiece of the new Hall of Meat mode. The first game tracked your damage by popping a skeleton diagram on the screen whenever you'd bite it hard, showing you the various bones you'd bruised, fractured, or broken. This time around, you'll occasionally find yourself invited to take part in a contest to see just how badly you can wreck your body. Typically, you'll fling yourself off a ramp, kick the board away, and then use the right stick to contort your body into any shape--from a cannonball to a torpedo. Damage will be shown with all new factors leading up to your demise, such as airtime, rotation, number of pedestrians hit, and so on. Of course, if all you want out of the game is authenticity--because most skaters actively try to avoid throwing themselves into certain death--Hall of Meat is completely optional.
In order to match its progress in improving the way you play the game, Black Box wants to improve the way you document it. The video editor has been spruced up so that you're given more control over your camera angles. Now, instead of just choosing from five or six different angles that are anchored to your character's movement, you'll have two new camera options. The first is the "follow camera," which is similar to the old system in that it's attached to your character, but now, you can customize the angle of the camera and the level of zoom by moving an invisible camera freely about the world. The other is the "tripod" camera, which allows you to set a fixed camera that remains still even as your skater passes in and out of the frame.
Just as with the original video editor, you'll be able to chop up your videos into different sections then assign unique angles, effects, and playback speeds using time markers. Of course, all of these enhancements would be aided exponentially by a more reliable and intuitive content-sharing hub than the one available for the first game at skate.ea.com. For its part, Black Box has promised that fixing this site is a big focus. Anyone who went through the painful registration and account-linking process when the game first came out will know exactly what we're talking about.
All told, Skate 2 looks like it's going to offer plenty of new material for fans of the original without weighing down those who are unfamiliar with how the game works. EA still remains mum on the release date, sticking to its original "sometime in 2009" announcement. We'll be sure to bring you new details on the game as soon as we get them.
By
Shaun McInnis, Editor
Shaun McInnis has always dreamed of an a open-world driving RPG based on Jack Kerouac's On the Road. Outside of video games, he enjoys photography and learning impractical coffee brewing techniques.
69 comments
I've got skate and I can't wait for a new one, they're doing all the things i wan't except i haven't heard if they will have new multiplayer modes and will have all the multiplayer modes in party play. They also need to allow 2 people on on machine and tv play with each other and online against other players.
Can't wait, I'm gettin a ps3 in a few weeks skate will be the first game i'm getting, I'm sure i'll pick up Skate 2 also.
to guppieface: trade in your "few games" except for Skate. Then collect some cans, mow some lawns, ask your folks or something to come up with the rest of the cash necessary for Dead Space. I know you said you didn't want to use any money but you gotta pay to play if you wanna keep Skate to hold you until Skate2
i want to trade in skate and a few other ones at gamestop so i dont have to pay cash for dead space, but i am reluctant to because i dont know how long itll be until skate 2 comes out.... what should i doooooooo
this game is looking great so far.but 2009? think about it guys.if it was 2009 then why are they bringing out gameplay vids with developers controling them out NOW.there is so many trailers aswell.it cant be 2009.me and all my friends think EA are going to suprise us with an earlier realease date than expected.think about it.IT'S NEARLY F****** CHRISTMAS.why bring it out next year when they could sell loads of copys for christmas/all im sayin is...IT DOESNT MAKE SENSE
games gunna be awsome and ppl need to chill bout tht backflip stuff god damn who cares ive seen a dude do a frontflip of a 3 foot ledge it can be done it just rarely happens
Skate.2 is gunna be sick! Team REIGN's all over this game when it drops! ~cheers~ Rhekaan
aceball69 just another kid who played tony hawks and thought you can do a 720 in the street lol
im going to kick this games ass just like i did the last if you know anything bout skating these games are easy
oh and wroledan, you need to quit typing on this site cause what you say makes no sense. . . really? skaters cant do backflips? really, wroledan? come on...
The First game was awesome and there is no dought this will be, and not to sound like a Tony Hawk fan, but I think they should make create your own park. The first games skate parks all had something I wanted to change. But a create your own park mode would kind of take the realness out of Skate.
Shut up wroledan, you're just sad cause the PS3 sucks. Xbox 360 games are way better and much more stable. It also has, according to reviews, better graphics than the pS3. This game looks so kickass! I'm saving up already!
well its sounds awesome i cant wait to play already, i have doubt, how its going to be played on xbox live???
wroledan i think you are a dick blaming it on a perfectley good game because of your lack of willpower so stfu and get a life
yeah,Skate basically wrecked my Xbox360..I will play Skate first thing in the morning until Im about to go out and skate with my friends then when I get home at night I still play it and there goes the 3 red lights.So I got a PS3.
They should add more realistic spots like in the first game with the Hubba hideout and Wallenberg 4.They should also add a feature where your skater can land a big drop like pressing a button in the right timing coz many skaters like to go big..And also the lip and stall tricks should be legit and not as a grind that don't move,many people encountered the bank to fence spot in the suburbs and you just can't stall or lip trick it which was dissapointing.This next game looks promising,I just hope EA focus on the realism and fun stuff and not on the wacky stuffs that is just garbage and annoying.
the ps3 version better be good,i hate it when frame rate drops,i hope they pull out the stupid tricks like backflips coz nobody can do that is street skating and they should make different styles for every skater,like motion capture,the only style that looks correct in the previous game is Jason Dill's and yet there is some flaws,EA should know that each skaters have different style that makes them unique,like Gino Ianucci and Marc Johnson.
epic win. So buying this when it comes out. The original was so much fun to play. The moving objects thing looks okay, but the flinging around your skater to create insane bails looks so great. I will be big in the Hall of Meat!
The first game was great, and it looks like they're really taking measures to improve the game the second time around. I admit I'm really interested in the whole ability to make your own spots by moving objects. So simple, and yet it feels like a feature that should be in every skating game. I can't wait until this comes out. Hopefully they'll bring it out in January.
looks even better than 1 and i had high hopes for it lived up to them even though the dodgy framerate did dampen the experience on PS3,still looking forward to it more than any other game next year apart from HAWX that is.
YAY,can not wait. well actually i can because there are a heluva lotta games coming out this month, and season.
i hope they put more random skate parks throughout the city this time! the Etnies outdoor park looks pretty sick kinda has the beach park feel to it but last game we had very few skate park choices and this one i hope will give you more opportunities to find more hidden parks and spots!! and im hoping for a better soundtrack this time around!
this game is gonna be bomb..and pruno ps2...ps2 sucks and the first skate was awesome, but nice excuse
really does look promising. I didn't get the first one because I knew the follow up would be much better. near console launch games usually suck.
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Game Info
- Release Date: Jan 21, 2009 (US)
- ESRB: TTitles rated T (Teen) have content that may be suitable for ages 13 and older.
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