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thps4
If you're sitting there wondering what the heck will inspire you to play yet another iteration of the game, be prepared to be surprised yet again. When Tony Hawk 4 arrives on Xbox this fall, it will be the third version of Activision's top dog to arrive on the system. The Tony Hawk series has been on every system you can think of, which includes PSX, GB, GBA, N64, PS2, Xbox, and GCN. You ask yourself, why isn’t the same formula getting old? The simple answer is that Activision throws something fresh into every installment.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 has what you could call a RPG mode. Please don’t freak out, Squaresoft and Activison didn’t hook up and make skateboard kingdom. It’s actually the new career mode in THPS4, which plays similarly to your standard role-playing game. This mode includes brilliant environments and interaction with other characters. Each of the characters has some sort of story that adds to the objective. The photographer might ask you to pull a few moves for his photo shoot. The security guard might warn you that a couple of punks are skating on the property illegally so you will have to rush to the other side of town to warn your skaters. This interaction adds a whole new dimension to the series, not to mention plenty of replayability.
The old system has been refreshingly abandoned, so forget the two-minute time limit, that’s only there if you want it. In the same vein as Acclaim's recent surprise, Aggressive Inline, you remain in a free skate mode as you cruise around accepting challenges from bystanders. Each of the levels features 21 challenges, but none of them feel forced since you have to search for them. Nor do any of them feel common. While rehashes of old goals appear, Hawk 4 presents them in new ways. You will spell S-K-A-T-E, but the letters don’t appear until they’re assigned. If you fail, then they won’t appear again until you decide to restart the challenge. This time around, you will find competitions within the levels you are playing, and each round lasts 30 seconds instead of a minute.
This year’s version also includes a slew of new moves. To pull off a spine transfer you must successfully skate up on the side of a wall and down the other. Additionally, new combo goals require you to hit certain letters all in a row. Plenty of new moves will be included that you couldn’t pull off with previous versions. Developer Neversoft also plans to include a park editor and a skater creator in this version. Activision is yet to unveil its THPS4 Xbox Live status, if there is any online mode at all.
The first thing you'll notice about Tony Hawk 4 is that the graphics are tight. The textures have improved considerably. They seem to have "roughed up" the look of the game slightly. The environments look more tactile and varied. Where once there might have been a smooth sheet of concrete, there is a bumpy slab of imperfect asphalt. Bottom line, everything looks more real: the skaters, the animations, and the environments. The faces are better than ever, and the interface has a slick, more stylized look than last year's more utilitarian design. There are dozens of unique levels to skate on, some which includes a zoo and a college. The Xbox graphics will definitely be more buffed then the PS2 and GCN versions. It’s also very likely that player can create their own customizable tracks using play lists stored on their hard drives.
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4 will no doubt put a very fresh look on the series. The new RPG mode will add depth that no other sport games have seen. The loads of new moves being performed in new environments will no doubt be eye candy and a load of fun. The only question that remains to be answered is if THPS4 will be on XBOX Live online list. The graphics are great, the frame rate is buttery-smooth, the level design is mind-blowing. This new installment is due out in November for Xbox. XE will have more on this title in the coming months. http://www.xboxevolved.com/images/content/thps4/1.jpg
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Thanks for the info. I'm a big fan of the THPS series and I'm definetly looking forward to this one!
Cheers!
