Could be the greatest game of all time. Get it.
Every level has its own unique brilliamce about it, and having played it through 100% with every character i will never forget any of them. Each level has something about it that you will never forget, their own secrets to discover, from skating into a piece of wood that is holding up a tree that knocks over a fence to grinding along the top of a helicopter which opens up a secret section of the first level.
Each level has 10 goals. 3 are scores you have to achieve, one is find a secret tape, one find all 5 letters S-K-A-T-E, 4 unique goals for each level, and then the final goal is awarded for completing all goals and finding all cash icons. There is a good variety in the goals, and even the ones that seems similiar, like collecting 5 of a particular item, vary fantastically as each level is totally different.
There are also 3 competition levels where you have 3 rounds of 1 minute you get as high a score as possible from a set of judges.
Not only does each level hold many secrets, the game itself does also. Spiderman is unlockable, and there are a few other unlockable characters, as well as 2 secret levels. Every time you complete the game 100% with a character you unlock something else, and there are many cheats to unlock, from genuinely useful ones, like moon physics, or something less useful, but still great, like big head.
The soundtrack is probably the greatest licenced soundtrack ever. There are only about 15 songs, but years after playing this game, listening to those songs produces images in your head off wallriding the bells on School II, or looping the loop in the Bullring.
This game, for many years, was by far the greatest game i had ever played, beating Banjo Kazooie, but Super Mario Galaxy has knocked this off top spot in my opinion.
This game can be enjoyed for years. The graphics are dated but they do not get in the way, the gameplay is genuinely far greater than any Tony Hawks game since THUG 2, and it is very original, whereas the newer games have clearly made an attempt to take influence from open ended games like GTA with poor results.
This is the pinnacle of the Playstation, whether you like skateboarding or not, whether you even like games or not, this is one of the most immersive, wonderful, addictive game you are ever likely to play. Ever.