Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 (opens in new tab) lets you give life to custom skaters, and an in-game animation confirms that you can take it too.
The fully remade take on the first two THPS games came out today and players are busy exploring its stages for secrets and Easter eggs (which the originals had no shortage of). The winks and nods extend all the way to the user interface, as Reddit user HeyItsAK discovered when they went to delete one of their custom skaters.
You only have a limited number of slots for custom skaters, so prolific creators may need to delete some of their lesser creations. No harm in it, right? Well, after you pick which skater you want to delete and confirm your choice, you’ll be treated/subjected to a quick animation of their portrait being struck by lighting – leaving only a charred skeleton with a pair of eyes that blink in cartoonish disbelief before their remains crumble into dust. This leaves their slot free to fill in with another human sacrifice cool new skater.
Aside from being a moderately horrifying reminder of how you’re playing God in this fictional universe of skateparks and ska, it’s an unexpected funny touch. It’s also a fitting callback to original series developer Neversoft’s morbid sense of humor. If I never see another bouncy eyeball getting speared it’ll be too soon…
Our reviewer Ben Tyrer had plenty of fun playing it, calling it “both a nostalgic love letter to some of the best skateboarding games ever made and an exhilarating reminder that Tony could still have plenty more to offer than just trips back to the past.” Hit the link at the top of this story to read his full thoughts.
With Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 finally here, make sure to check out our guide to the best upcoming games (opens in new tab) of 2020 and beyond to see what’s up next.