Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3

When Activision and Neversoft first released Tony Hawk Pro Skater, they created an instant hit to an otherwise dead genre. Since that time, Neversoft created two more games in the series and each version is far superior to its predecessor, both in gameplay and graphics. Since Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 (THPS3) has been released on the PlayStation 2 and GameCube, Neversoft added a few extra bonuses to the Xbox version since it was a few months late.

In THPS3, you will play as a skateboarder with goals that must be completed within a time limit. These goals will range from collecting the letters to form the word "SKATE", trying to impress NPCs by performing big scoring tricks, and getting a certain high score. Throughout the game there will be three competitions where the skater must impress the judges to win a medal to progress in the game. Each level has five stats that can be used to increase your characters attributes, and also contains a hidden deck, which makes the game more varied to accommodate the tastes of different players.

Tony Hawk 2 introduced the "manual", which allowed more combos to be strung together for an ultimate high score. THPS3 further revolutionizes the series by adding in a trick called the "revert," which is a 180 degree spin that is performed after coming down a vert ramp or a lip trick. This trick allows players to string together more combos to acquire an insane score.

Tony Hawk series has always had exceptional controls, which is why it is so acclaimed. Beginners can pick up the controller and start playing like a veteran in an hour. Players will be given the option to change each trick to suit their own preferences. The controls are even further enhanced since the players can now move the camera into any position they feel comfortable with.

Neversoft goes the extra mile to make sure that their games have plenty of bonuses, and Tony Hawk 3 is no exception. Each skater is fully customizable, allowing the gamer to choose which shirt, pants, elbow pads, and a myriad of other things. The skateboard is customizable as well, allowing different color wheels and various grip tapes. Create-a-skater is even more in depth than in the previous game, offering more options to create the perfect skater. The game also offers a more fleshed out create-a-park editor as well. The gamer will be provided more options and a bigger area to create the ultimate skate park; it also comes with some pre-built parks.

The game moves at a blistering sixty frames per second throughout most of the levels. Each level in a different location and some of them are based off real life skate parks. The level of detail Neversoft put into each stage is astonishing, with great use of textures so no two levels look the same. Each level contains numerous pedestrians and other obstacles to avoid, making the game even more challenging. In the Los Angels level alone, cops are chasing robbers; skaters can cause an earthquake, which will change up the level drastically, and some cars will try to run the skater over. All this interactivity helps the distinguish the Tony Hawk series even more since other extreme sports games leave the gamer feeling "alone" in the levels.

The sound used in the game has gotten even more realistic. As in real life, when skating on different surfaces different sounds heard. When skaters pass pedestrians, they will comment and critique how they have been skating. Tony Hawk has always been lauded for having a splendid sound track, and part three is no different. Players will be able to skate to the music of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alien Ant Farm, Motorhead, and many others. If that music is not to the players liking they can make use of the Xbox hard drive and compile their own music.

Multiplayer in this game is fantastic since there are so many different options to choose from. Players have the option of choosing from these modes: Trick Attack, Graffiti, HORSE, King of the Hill, and Slap. Trick Attack skaters see who can execute the best tricks and obtain the most points. Graffiti is where you "tag" a landmark by doing a trick off of it; for your opponent to steal it, they will have to do a better trick in that same place. HORSE is where skaters do a trick and the next player tries to surpass it. In King of the Hill skaters race to the crown and see who can hold on to it the longest. The newest addition to multiplayer is Slap! in which skaters score points by knocking other players down. The one major thing that helped make THPS3 even more popular was taking the ability to play people on-line from the Xbox version.

Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 is rated T for Teen.

Gameplay: 10
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 is the most complete extreme sports game to date. The game is easy to control and most importantly, fun! The replay value on this game will easily last until the next incarnation of Tony Hawk become available.

Graphics: 9.3 
The level of detail is simply astonishing, nearly flawless from the character models to the varied level environments. The only thing amiss is an occasional slowdown typical to graphical intensive situations.

Sound: 9.8
Magnificent sound effects and soundtrack while also allowing players the laudable ability to create custom soundtracks.

Difficulty: 9
Beginners can go into the tutorial mode and learn the basics of the game. As the gamer advances through the game the goals become progressively

Concept: 8.9 
The game does not make the huge leap in innovation that Tony Hawk 2 made from Tony Hawk 1. While small tweaks have been added such as interactive levels, more is needed to further expand the Tony Hawk universe.

Concept: 8.9
Although this game offers a multitude of multiplayer modes, there is no online playing like the PlayStation 2 version. Instead gamers have the option of connecting four Xbox systems over a LAN (Local Area Network).

Overall: 9.6
Any fan of the genre owes it to themselves to buy a copy of this game. While the lack of an online mode does detract from the playability of the game, the new level and secret skater, which is not found in any other version, definitely help make amends.