Grind Time- Skate 3 Review

Now in its third chapter, the Skate franchise is no longer the wunderkind upstart known for challenging Tony Hawk’s annual iteration. With the preeminent skater’s series struggling to remain relevant, Skate 3’s greatest struggle isn’t prompted from a rival publisher, but rather from the mounting expectations of a growing legion of fans. Building upon its predecessor’s commercial and critical success, Black Box’s latest title pulls off a particularly tricky stunt: managing to outshine its already solid precursor.

Skate 3 commences with an impish live-action sequence which skillfully foreshadows the goal of the title. Forgoing the characteristic career building objective of similar games, players are tasked with building both a skating team and a successful board building business. As such, both offline and online competitions place gamers a part of a larger squad, where accomplishment is measured by an increase in sales. The change embeds the game with a both a necessitated sense of camaraderie, and occasional frustration when a CPU-controlled teammate delivers a pathetic performance.

Generously, there’s a wealth of additional activities for individual skaters. Players may engage in events as varied as Follow the Leader (requiring players to shadow a skating pro), Own the Spot (racking up the highest score in a particular area), photo opportunities, and races. One of the more light-hearted activities challenges skaters to produce a devastating wipeout, breaking as many bones as possible. While each pastime activity is compelling in a solo setting, Skate 3’s challenges are elevated when confronted by an assembly of online participants.

The title also makes a number of small, but shrewd adjustments. Omitting both the bothersome security guards and unlockable areas of Skate 2 is a welcome addition which allows players to explore the landscape without interruption. The developers also removed (in the single player game) the exasperating S-K-A-T-E trials of the previous game, which required participants to faultlessly mimicked executed by rivals. One of the title’s strongest additions is the inclusion of skate.feed, a social networking tool which allows players to follow their friends’ latest creations- from video clips to board graphics. While the game’s park editor has been given a solid increase in functionality, placing a piece with precision can still be tricky.

The game’s control method remains unchanged, remaining gratifyingly responsive. Players control their on-screen protagonists with the left analog stick, while flicks of the right stick initiate board tricks ranging from ollies, kickflips and grinds. This a few hours of practice, players will be tricking off surfaces like a pro, although maneuvering around brain-dead pedestrians remains a continual contest.

Visually, Skate 3 presents players with two perspectives: a distinctive, low-slung, camera view that the series is known for, as well as a higher angle that recalls the Tony Hawk series. While the elevated vantage point allows players to accurately survey their surroundings, its altitude isn’t as convenient when evaluating grind surfaces. Although Port Caverton is a border’s paradise with a perpetual supply of half-pipes, ramps, and rails, observant players may spot the sporadic low-res texture that soils the sense of immersion. Additionally, absorption is weakened by the title’s framerate. Even with a full harddrive install on the 360, players will notice the intermittent refresh-rate anomaly. On the PS3, the framerate fluctuates even more, conspicuously dipping in areas is specific areas of the city and custom skate parks.

While Skate 3‘s bounty of entertaining pursuits will keep solitary skaters amused for hours, the title’s dexterous multiplayer component is sure to captivate clusters of competitors. By refining an already accomplished game, each new performance by the Skate team threatens to impose the Tony Hawk series into a forced retirement.