Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2, a remake of the first two games in the series, wasone of the most anticipated games of 2020despite the franchise having the life squeezed out of it for the past ten years. Part of the reason for the excitement came from the fact that developer Vicarious Visions was working on it, a team that had previously lovingly recreated theCrash Bandicootseries in 2017.
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Thankfully, after years of disappointing games including reboots and that strange plug-in board, fans of theTony Hawkseries finally have a great game to sink their teeth in to. As the franchise has always been filled with hilarious details, hidden messages in graffiti and billboards, and secret playable characters,THPS 1+2satisfies those itches with all of this and more.
10The Skaters’ Ages
This isn’t so much a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it detail, as it is hidden in plain site, but to notice this requires players to be very observant, especially as the skaters rarely face the screen. But just like in real life, Tony Hawk isn’t the spring chicken he once was in the series, and neither are the other skaters. The skaters are all their current ages in the game, which isone of the most exciting features about the game. The world is now 20 years removed from the originalTony Hawk’s Pro Skaterand Tony Hawk even said that it would have been the best filter ever to be immortalized 20 years younger, but in the end its a testament to the group of skaters’ commitment to the extreme sport.
9Alien Plushies
The skating series is no stranger to life forms other than human, as inTony Hawk’s Pro Skater,the final level Roswell finds an alien lying on a bed behind glass, and they have appeared in many games in the series since then. Now, in every level of both games, there are tiny alien plushies dotted around. They aren’t the as just an Easter egg though, as if the player finds every single one, they will unlock the Roswell alien as a playable character.
8Deleting A Custom Character Animation
One of the biggest gaming archetypes that has been tied to thePro Skaterfranchise since its inception, and has influenced manyother similar games, is the ability to customize and create players. Though one of the very few criticisms of the remake is how limited customization is, deleting custom characters features one of the best new animations in the game. If the player deletes a custom character, their face rots in to a skull and the jaw eventually swings off.
7Recognizing that THPS5 Killed The Series
The Tony Hawk games are beloved to millions of 90s kids, and even the ones that went under the radar are starting to get the recognition they deserve, such asAmerican WastelandandProject 8. However, there is one game that Tony Hawk fans can all stand united on, and that’s theabysmal Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5.
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Even the developers agree with the fans. If players look closely enough at a secret tape in the Downtown map, they’ll find that it says the start and end date of the Pro Skater series is 1999 to 2015, the latter being the year ofPro Skater 5’s release..
6COVID-19 References
5Banjo Champion
If you go in to The Hanger, you’ll find a bunch of old video game boxes laying around, and the boxes look a lot like the packages thatGuitar Herocame in. However, it isn’tGuitar Hero, and though the music gameis great in many ways, the fictionalBanjo Championis clearly making fun of the classic guitar game.
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The idea of making a playlist of songs that could potentially feature onBanjo Championis enough for this to be the one of the game’s best hidden treasures. Though it might be a joke,Banjo Championsounds like a hell of a lot of fun, and why should theGuitar Herospin-off end there; what aboutTriangle Fighter, or evenXylophone Victor? No?
4Matt Helsom Memorial Gymnasium
Matt Helsom, a prominent figure over at Vicarious Visions, the developer of this remake and many other beloved games, unfortunately passed away in 2019. The senior 3D artist was loved by everyone at the company and he had worked onSpider-Mangames,Skylandergames,Destiny, and the beloved remake of the originalCrash Bandicoottrilogy and its karting counterpart. Players can find the memorial over School II inTHPS2
3Officer Dick’s Rocker Animation
As unlockable characters have always beenfun hidden detailsin the series, the fact that Jack Black appears in the game hasn’t been remotely hidden, but his character, Officer Dick, is extremely hard to unlock. To play as Officer Dick, players must complete every Created Skater Challenge, of which there are 24. But once those are complete, Officer Dick becomes available and players might miss a typically Jack Black introduction. The actor uses his skate board as a guitar and rocks out, busting out moves that players would be hard pressed to believe the seasoned actor can still pull off.
2Missing Margera
In The Hanger, the map has been more spruced up more than any other level, as the place is kitted out with state-of-the-art helicopters and a much cleaner look than the original. On top of that, there are several references to Hawk’s older games, including the outliers that have become fan favorites. But interestingly enough, the cover ofTony Hawk’s Underground 2has erased Bam Margera from the cover, who was originally billed almost as much as Hawk himself. It may just be a licensing issue, but it looks like it will remain a mystery.
1Luminous Clothing In The Hangar
This is one of the smallest details, but at the same time one of the most visually impressive and alluring of the remake. When the player enters the secret room of the Hangar by grinding on the propeller in the halfpipe, the lighting of the room is UV, which means any white clothing or footwear the player is wearing illuminates. It’s one of the coolest hidden details in of the remake.
NEXT:10 Games To Remake After Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 And 2
