Get your skates on and jump back to 2002
There are so many games to choose from these days and different platforms that it can be overwhelming deciding where to start. And, sometimes you simply want to delve into an old favourite or a series you have heard great things about but never played. Nothing wrong with it, no judging here. In fact, I am definitely guilty of spending many hours playing the old timers as much as the shiny new stuff. So, in this particular section, I will take the time to play a game of the past which could range from the NES era all the way to the Xbox 360/PS3 generation and share my thoughts with a rating out of five.
If you followed the extreme sports craze of the early 2000s, you will be familiar with the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater (THPS) franchise. With popularity comes imitators. Mostly these can be ignored but occasionally there is the exception. This was the case with Acclaim’s Aggressive Inline, a more-than-competent in-line skating title and even after 19 years and three console generations it is still an enjoyable alternative to the classic Hawk’s entries.
Nineteen years is a long time. In some ways, the experience of replaying a game can be a time-capsule; the menu music usually being one of the first triggers of nostalgia. This game is no exception – hearing the scratchy DJ audio cues and ‘bumping’ theme instantly takes me back to wearing baggy jeans and listening to Limp Bizkit. Simpler times.
First released in 2002, it was developed by Z-Axis after the release of Neversoft’s amazing THPS3. The game features professional skaters to control – of course, chances are you won’t have heard of Taig Khris, Chris Edwards and Jaren Grob – and perform tricks and stunts around large open levels. This is where the game really stood out from its competition.
Replaying it now, I’m still impressed. The levels (for the time) are huge. They are mostly well designed and more interactive than any game that had come before. There are seven different areas but each has a unique style and even within each map there is massive variety. In the first level you will be grinding along the streets of a busy highway, then pulling off maneuvers inside a horror-movie studio set before smashing through the doors into a mad scientist’s secret laboratory. Sure, it makes no logical sense but it’s delightfully odd. The majority of the levels work really well, although I find the two areas with water surrounding them (the Boardwalk and the Cannery) to be really frustrating as landing in water will destroy any trick flow and not much fun after repeated fails.
The systems all work together well and the actual feel of the skating is fantastic and fluid. The tempatation to keep a large combo going at the risk of ‘bailing’ and losing points is overwhelming, with many moments of cursing and clenched teeth when you over-commit so your skater violently crashes into the side of a bus.
The main objectives within the levels range from the types familiar from previous Tony Hawks games such as score setting within a set time limit or performing a gap across two quarter pipes for a photographer. Some also involve wacky tasks such as finding and carrying escaped monkeys inexplicably for a chef or grabbing the back of a low-flying plane on the airfield level. There are also plenty hidden items scattered throughout to keep things interesting and the upgrade system for your skater is neat in that you only upgrade a specific area such as your speed, grinding ability, wall rides or spin skills by performing the skill more often.
Acclaim’s effort differs from Activision’s series further by ditching the traditional two minute time limit for each task to an unlimited free-roam style (incidentally, would be copied by the following Tony Hawk’s game). Additionally, Z-Axis introduced the ‘seamless transition’ ability which allows you to more easily connect air-tricks to street-level grinds and manuals, effortlessly allowing you to link it all into one massive trick. Of course, that initially gives the impression that the game is easy however this function is necessary as the difficulty curve is incredible. Once all the levels are unlocked you will find yourself revisiting early stages to see how to complete the initially inaccessible goals and still be mystified as to how to beat them. It can be frustrating at points and then rewarding in equal measure if you persevere with learning every inch of the dynamic maps.
Now, any extreme sports title of that time wasn’t worth its salt without a ‘kick-ass’ soundtrack and AI is no slouch with a mixture of rock and hip hop of that particular era with bands like Hoobastank and POD being a couple of the standouts. However, nineteen years later I honestly prefer to connect my phone to the speakers with a Spotify playlist on shuffle.
As far as extra modes go, they didn’t pull me in like the main objective-focused career mode.The relatively pointless free mode is simply a way to allow the player to roam the unaltered levels and perform tricks, there is a level-creator option which I personally didn’t find much fun and there is also a split-screen multiplayer mode however I sadly haven’t had a chance to give this a try again.
Verdict – Overall, coming back to Aggressive Inline was more engaging than I had envisioned. Although the recent Tony Hawks Pro Skater 1 +2 absolutely nailed the feel of those games and set the new standard, my hankering for a classic early-2000s era skating game was stronger than ever. Of course, it doesn’t quite live up to the best of the Tony Hawks games and graphically hasn’t aged particularly well but in its own right is still a fun game, innovative and slightly disappointing that it never got a sequel.
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