January 21st has been announced as the release date of the sequel of the very popular extreme sports game, Skate. The 2007 original surprisingly posted bigger numbers than Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground for both the XBOX 360 and the Playstation 3. EA Black Box and Scott Blackwood, the executive producer of Skate 2, are currently finalizing the sequel, which is to be released to the rest of the world two days after North America on the 23rd of January.
Skate 2 is set five years into the future from the events in Skate. During this time period, there have been very mysterious disasters which are identified in Skate 2 as earthquakes, which have nearly destroyed everything in the city. While under devastation, the entire city was evacuated. Unlike many of the skating areas in past games, EA Black Box took a different angle. The best skate spots in the city are not just accessible by skating there but are instead filled with security ready to arrest you for trespassing. Finding a way around these guys is just one of the new challenges in Skate 2.
The city, lost in ruins, will be known as San Vanelona. This name isn’t just something the producers pulled out of nowhere though. EA Black Box, which is based in Vancouver, noted that this city will have many architectural connections with three cities. San Francisco, California; Vancouver, British Columbia; and Barcelona, Spain make up the fictional cities name.
Some new things coming to the sequel have people on the edge of their seats. Everything in the tricks department from the original Skate has found their way into Skate 2. Not only are all those tricks available, but Black Box has announced that there are double the amount of tricks in Skate 2. Some of these new tricks include finger flips, lip tricks, crail slides, ollie norths, and footplants.
Not only does Skate 2 expand on what you can do on the board, but also what you can do off the board. The first option is only basic. This is the ability to not only create a male skater but also a female skater in this version. A more advanced ability you can now do in Skate 2 is actually get off your board similar to Tony Hawk’s series of games. Unlike the Tony Hawk series though, skaters in Skate 2 will have the ability to move objects that are placed on the ground to create extremely difficult lines. Nearly 100 objects will be moveable making Skate 2’s in game action similar to Hawk’s create a park.
A big positive from the first Skate, which had many people buzzing, was the ability to capture everything you do on camera and broadcast it over the internet for millions to see. This year, a new in-depth graphics creator has been included. This feature will be composed of the old graphics creator from the first Skate and will have many new features to choose from acting as if an $80 movie maker program was included in the game strictly for skating videos.
All in all, Skate 2 is one of the most anticipated games of early 2009. Although it doesn’t have the reputation the Tony Hawk series has yet, EA and the Skate series is not far behind. It seems as though EA has turned away from it’s “They will buy it no matter what because it is from EA†attitude and is really looking down into the hearts of gamers all over the world.
By: Primetime232
