Pixel Sundays: Skate – Return of a Cult Classic & What skate. Really Offers
Welcome back to our latest Pixel Sundays article. Today we’re diving into the Skate franchise. For a long time, Skate was one of the most popular skateboarding series of all time. In 2010, Skate 3 was released and took the series to new heights — then everything went quiet.
Summary
- History of the Skate Franchise
- skate. – A Comeback with a New Approach
- First Impressions and Criticism of skate.
- Comparing with Previous Titles – What’s New & What’s Familiar
- Looking Ahead – Expectations & Areas for Improvement
- skate. – A Bold Restart with Plenty of Potential
skate. or “Skate 4” has been available in Early Access for just a few days now. That’s why today we’re looking back at the franchise and of course at skate. itself. We’ll see what the game does differently, what players can expect, where it struggles, and what the future of the franchise might look like.
History of the Skate Franchise
It all began in 2007 with the first Skate title developed by EA Black Box for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. It faced tough competition from Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, so it needed a unique approach. Skate distinguished itself with more realistic physics and its innovative “Flick-It” control system. Instead of pressing button combinations, players moved the analog stick to perform tricks. This innovation instantly made Skate a serious contender in the genre.
In 2008 a spin-off launched, bridging the first and second games. Released on Nintendo Wii, DS, and iOS, it used motion controls and touchscreen gestures to replicate the Flick-It system, opening the franchise to a wider audience.
Skate 2 arrived in 2009, set in “New San Vanelona”, a reimagined version of the original map after a disaster. It introduced expanded multiplayer features, new challenges and competitions. Skate 2 also refined its controls, making skateboarding feel even more authentic.
Skate 3 then shifted the setting to Port Carverton. The game introduced team and co-op features, allowed players to build their own parks, and expanded online options. The new “Hardcore Mode” made tricks more challenging but far more realistic. After Skate 3 came the long silence.
After Skate 3, a strong community kept the game alive with countless maps, mods, fan servers, and videos. Even though EA Black Box closed in 2013, the brand never faded from memory. And now, after all these years, we finally have “skate.” — let’s take a look.
skate. – A Comeback with a New Approach
Now, 15 years later, skate. launched in Early Access on September 16, 2025. It’s available on PC (Steam/Epic Games/EA App), PlayStation 4 & 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. The full release is planned for 2026. This time the game is free-to-play, financed through cosmetic content and a live-service model. There are no pay-to-win advantages — you can skate for free or pay only if you want to look cool. It also offers cross-play and cross-progression, so you can use the same account on multiple platforms.
The iconic “Flick-It” trick system has been modernized for current controllers. It’s now more precise and responsive and offers a wider variety of tricks. Huge pre-built ramps let you perform tricks across rooftops, halfpipes, and even jump from one building to another. You can also place ramps, rails, and objects in real time, build custom skate spots, and share them with others, creating a constantly growing dynamic sandbox.
skate. focuses on massive open skating with co-op sessions, challenges, and competitive events. Players can spontaneously form groups, start sessions, and test content together. A permanent internet connection is required — there’s no offline mode.
The game features a wide range of cosmetic items including new skaters, boards, outfits, and emotes. These items are purely cosmetic and don’t affect gameplay. There’s also a kind of battle pass — the “skate.Pass” — with various unlockable cosmetics. The game runs on multiple seasons and seasonal events. Each season brings new challenges, themed parks, decoration items, and special community events to keep players coming back long-term.
First Feedback and Criticism on skate.
Many players and media outlets have described the core gameplay as a success. The revised “Flick-It” control scheme feels precise and fluid. Tricks become noticeably more natural after a short learning curve. The open world of San Vansterdam offers plenty of space to explore, spontaneous sessions and community content. Players especially praise the ability to place ramps, rails and objects in real time, creating completely new lines. The seamless skating together with other skaters creates a lively, authentic atmosphere, like a real large-scale skate event.
But so far, the reception hasn’t been all positive. Overall, the reviews on Steam are mixed with 59% positive reviews. Some players find the visual style too smooth or “arcade-like” and wish for the rougher look of the earlier games. The character design is also perceived as too generic. “Hall of Meat,” a Story Mode and some classic mission types are particularly missed. These features were a signature for many veterans and were absent at the Early Access launch. Some missions are highly repetitive or show little variation, which is noticeable in Early Access. At launch there were also repeated server outages, queues and bugs. A common bug showed missions as “all completed” even when they weren’t, which blocked progress.
Comparison to Previous Games – What’s New & What’s Familiar
Let’s start with what remains from the franchise’s roots. The cornerstone is still the trusted “Flick-It” mechanic, which stays the heart of the experience. Tricks are still performed via precise stick movements – just like in Skate 1–3 – making veterans feel right at home. As before, you can freely cruise through the city, discover spots and assemble your own lines. The franchise’s trademark sandbox approach remains intact.
The focus of the game continues to be the community, which has kept the franchise alive. There’s a strong emphasis on group skating, sessions, challenges and spot sharing. This evokes the online modes and community events of the old games, only now in a more modern form. Weight, timing and balance are modeled on Skate 1–3. The sense of speed and landings is meant to feel deliberately nostalgic to preserve the classic feel.
Now to what’s entirely new. The first thing you’ll notice is that the game is free-to-play. Skate 1–3 were traditional premium titles, but skate. is now free to play. Instead, the game uses continuous updates, a battle pass and cosmetic items. Career mode is gone, and you must be online at all times to play. The focus has shifted more toward seasonal events & cosmetic content. There are regular seasons, events and new cosmetic items designed to keep players engaged over the long term.
Looking Ahead – Expectations & Improvements Needed
Many fans hope for a story mode or at least mission-based narratives to provide more content-driven motivation alongside free skating. The missions in Early Access often feel repetitive, and players hope for more varied mission types, events and creative challenges for long-term motivation. The visual presentation of skaters and the city should become more diverse and authentic. Fans want custom outfits, livelier street scenes and distinctive skate spots. Players also expect better server stability, shorter wait times and faster bug fixes to prevent loss of progress.
Because the game is free to play, it’s crucial that no pay-to-win elements appear. Otherwise, heavy criticism will follow. The community now expects regular and content-rich updates and events. In the long term, the game may also arrive on other platforms such as mobile.
skate. – A Bold Restart with Plenty of Potential
The Skate franchise is back after a 15-year break with skate. – and it’s taking a bold new approach. The game stays true to its series roots with precise Flick-It controls and an open sandbox design, but also introduces modern free-to-play and live-service models. The Early Access version already shows great potential: crossplay, dynamic skate spots and community features create a lively foundation.
However, skate. still has its growing pains – repetitive missions, technical issues and missing classic features like story mode or “Hall of Meat” spark criticism. Whether this new approach succeeds long-term depends on how quickly and richly updates are delivered and how strongly the community remains involved. If that happens, skate. could not only match the success of its predecessors but take the franchise into a new era.
Hey, I’m Kilian, but online you’ll probably know me as “Tux1243.” I've been part of the team for almost two years now, always trying to keep you in the loop with the latest and coolest gaming news. I also have a huge passion for doing deep dives and detailed analyses of entire game series and franchises. I love getting to the bottom of things and exploring the little details and backstories that make game worlds so fascinating.
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Skate is a classic series, while f2p isn't my preferred method of bringing this back, really wish it had a story more, but free is free, can't complain.
What a great review of Skate's return! After 15 years, Skate (or Skate 4) feels like a brave and necessary relaunch, modernizing the classic experience with cross-play, cross-progression, and a focus on community and player-generated content.
It seems that since the launch of Tony Hawk's™ Pro Skater™ HD Remasters, skateboarding video games licences are all the rage. I don't want to miss that! :D
I'm glad you have the summing up the Skate game. Got some great memories with it, 4ssen
I've never played a Skate game, but I've been saying many clips lately... I don't know what to think of these games... _miguex