skate. (Retail) - Review it!

[B Leisle]

Picked it up today at EB. The look on the lady's face working the counter was something like this :eek:. I think because someone bought a game other than Halo 3 today. LOL

Took about 5 minutes to install onto the HDD. I only tried a little of the freeskate option, which allows you to select from 4 or 5 different default player models. It looks like the Pro skater skins are unlockable, and you can customize your skater when you select the Create A Skater.

I went to the Art Museum and freeskated for about 20 minutes (had to do some work today ;)) and it is truly incredible. I could probably spend a week just in this one little area and not find all the cool transitions and runs, let alone all the other main areas and the go-betweens. The voices of the other bots (pedestrians, other skaters, security guards, etc.) in the SP game are really well done, not to mention an awesome soundtrack. I actually got tackled by a security guard, it was pretty funny.

I'm not a skater, although I tried to be when I was a kid :p, and this game is a blast. The reviews that say you need to be a skater to enjoy this or that it's technically difficult make no sense to me. IMO, this gameplay is so much more enjoyable than the button-mashing, cartoony play in the Tony Hawk game. I just wish there were better MP action. Maybe EA will give us an update to better the MP aspect.

Being the first PS3 game to buy for myself, I'm thrilled!

I took this quick shot getting ready to roll down the ramp into the full pipe. Good times! (http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s68/B_Leisle/IMGA0414.jpg)

[Benkrishman]

Good to hear! What resolution are you running the game at? I played the demo and loved it, and will be purhcasing the game soon. The one thing that I didn't like was the demo seemed to have some slowdown to it, nothing that would interfere with the gameplay, but it got a bit annoying at times. My set is 1080i only, so I'm not sure if it was running 720p with a 1080 upscale, or running at full 1080p. is there any slowdown in the game you've noticed so far? It's not going to keep me from buying the game, or enjoying it, I'm just curious.

[B Leisle]

No framerate issues so far. Box says supported HD resolutions are: 480i/480p/720i/720p/1080i*. There's an asterisk annotation after the 1080i that below says: "Video output in Full HD 1080p requires an HDMI cable and a 1080p native display with an HDMI input supporting HDCP." So, if you have the supporting hardware, this should play in 1080p. My 50" Panny plasma is 1366x768 and I'm running in 1080i.

[Benkrishman]

Good to hear, I'm glad it's running smoothly. I got a chuckle out of 720i listed on supported resolutions though, haha.

[rahzel]

so i guess the game defaults to 1080i. the game is most likely rendered in 720p and upscaled to 1080i so i'm curious how it looks at 720p vs 1080i (R6 Vegas brings doubt to all games now).

[jhaines]

the game is most likely rendered in 720p and upscaled to 1080i so i'm curious how it looks at 720p vs 1080i
The demo looked like it was upscaled 960x1080 like Virtua Fighter 5 and Ninja Gaiden Sigma, not upscaled 1280x720 like Warhawk.

- Jer

[rahzel]

i'm not sure how good the scaling is in Warhawk (it defaults to 720p for me). but i heard VF5/NGS scale well, so i'm assuming thats a good thing?

edit: just tried warhawk at 1080i for the hell of it... its almost as bad as Vegas!

[jhaines]

i heard VF5/NGS scale well, so i'm assuming thats a good thing?
Upscaled 960x1080 looks better on a 1080-native HDTV than upscaled 1280x720 because the horizontal doubling doesn't introduce any pixel blur -- the image stays crisp. And 960x1080 still offers about 12% more pixels than 1280x720, so you don't lose any image detail overall vs. 720p.

That said, Warhawk looks just as good as any 720p source would look on a 1080-native set -- it just handles the upscaling for you instead of putting it off on the TV, and that's a great thing for people whose TVs can't accept a 720p signal.

- Jer

[rahzel]

960x1080 may have higher pixels, but it has considerably less vertical lines of resolution. i always thought R6 Vegas used the 960x1080 method and i was under the impression that the PS3 could only scale 960x1080 to 1920x1080 and not 1280x720 to 1920x1080? but then i wondered why R6 Vegas looks so bad at 1080i compared to other games that are scaled to 1080i.

i wish developers would just default to the resolution that looks best so we don't have to worry. if you have a set that only supports 480p/1080i, it will use 1080i anyway if you have 720p unchecked.

[Benkrishman]

Can't say for VF5 but both Ninja Gaiden Sigma and Warhawk look excellent upscaled to 1080i on my set. I've heard bad things about Rainbow six, but have not had a chance to play it, though it sounds like it's the exception, not the standard.

And thats not true rahzel, many games do not support 1080i output if regardless of whether 720p is checked. The devs must have 1080i output in mind, the ps3 will not scale on it's own.

[rahzel]

i was talking about games that support 1080i. ;)
Vegas seems to be the only exception (i know, i've compared 720p vs 1080i) but like i said, Vegas has me worried for every game, especially the ones that default to 1080i.

[speng9]

I am hoping the thread keeps on the review of SKATE and not derailed :)

I am seriously thinking about getting the game, the demo was a lot of fun.

[Benkrishman]

i was talking about games that support 1080i. ;)
Vegas seems to be the only exception (i know, i've compared 720p vs 1080i) but like i said, Vegas has me worried for every game, especially the ones that default to 1080i.


Ah, ok, I just misunderstood you. Sorry about that.

I just really hope developers pay more attention to the issue in the future, as it has limited the games that I buy. I was very happy to see that the skate demo played in 1080 for me, and looked great. Lets just hope EA keeps it up, NBA street and skate have set a good example for the rest of the company, lets just hope some of EA's other dev studios take a hint and implement 1080 support next year.

[B Leisle]

The cut movie when you create a new profile is pretty well done and humorous. The only negative is you can't skip it if you're creating another profile and don't want to watch it again.

Setup my profile - wow, talk about tedious. You select, stance, style, and gestures. Then you select build type (muscular, skinny, fat), skin color, hair style, hair color, eye/brow structure (double/single lid, shape, etc), cheek/nose structure, chin structure, facial hair, facial hair color, hat, shirt, pants/shorts, wrist wear, shoes, board/trucks/wheels, truck and wheel settings. All accessories like clothes and board stuff cost money, which you get around $250 to begin with, and some accessories are available and some are locked - presumably, they will be unlocked as you progress in career mode.

I noticed some slight framerate drops in certain areas, not exactly sure if it's due to anything or anywhere in particular. I've been roaming all over, so it will take more time to see if it's still noticeable in some areas.

I now realize why there's a warning in red on the box that says:
WARNING: IF YOU HAVE A HISTORY OF EPILEPSY OR SEIZURES, CONSULT A DOCTOR BEFORE USE. CERTAIN PATTERNS MAY TRIGGER SEIZURES WITH NO PRIOR HISTORY. BEFORE USING AND FOR MORE DETAILS SEE INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE PRODUCT.
I actually found myself with slight dizziness in some instances - mostly when the camera angle swung around rapidly due to a direction change. I know I'm sensitive to this; for instance, there's no way I can ride a merry-go-round with my kids, I'd yak, so this is not entirely surprising.

There is soooooooooo much terrain to explore. While the skate.ea.com website only shows the main attractions in each zone, there's just as much terrain in between. I went behind someone's house in the burbs and found an empty half-pipe pool in their backyard, then hopped over a wall and landed in a sweet, downhill luge pipe.

You can almost literally continuously ollie and be guaranteed to land on something. I rode a grind down a hill on the street curb for about 90 feet.....LOL.

Beware of the black sedan with the license plate "SKATE", he does everything possible to take you out. I was riding behind him and he slams on the brakes all of a sudden for no reason and I hear his voice say something to the effect of "damn skaters".

The only thing I'm not fond of so far is the camera angles sometimes make it difficult to navigate, particularly when making tight turns. That and sometimes I want to change directions, but my character continues to try and go straight ahead.

[Benkrishman]

From playing the demo I can see what you're saying about the camera angles, it's nothing that bothers me personally, but I can see how it would get to people.

But I believe all video games have that seizure warning on the back of the box, I'm not 100% though.


edit: Looks like I was wrong about that, I just checked the MGS2 and MGS3 boxes(only games I have at the moment) and neither have the warning, though I know I've seen it on many games.

[rahzel]

i just realized the demo runs at 1080i by default. i guess i can test to see how it looks at 720p vs 1080i myself.

[Benkrishman]

i just realized the demo runs at 1080i by default. i guess i can test to see how it looks at 720p vs 1080i myself.

Yeah, definitely report back. See if you can notice any perfomance differences in 720p vs 1080i, I'd be interested to see if some of the slowdown experienced in the demo is still there in 720p, or if they run about the same.

[rahzel]

judging by the demo, the game is definitely scaled, but its one of the better scaled games. the textures at 1080i are slightly less sharp compared to 720p (like all the games that are scaled). most people probably wouldn't even notice the difference. other than that, overall sharpness and performance (fps) seem to be the same.

the reason scaled games are slightly less sharp is because like i said before, there is considerably less vertical lines of resolution at 960x1080 compared to 1280x720 so textures usually take a hit (albeit, not much).

in this case, i don't mind that they defaulted to 1080i (i wish they defaulted Vegas to 720p... i wonder what the f'ed up and why it looks so bad compared to other scaled games). but i still wish they would default to 720p if the game is not rendered at 1080p (if you have 720p checked).

[CoreyM]

Does installing it on the hard drive solve the load time issues the 360 version has when using session markers?

[jhaines]

960x1080 may have higher pixels, but it has considerably less vertical lines of resolution.
It has 3/4 as many pixels horizontally, but it has 50% more pixels vertically, so it more than makes up for it. The only side effect is that each virtual pixel is fatter than it is tall, so steeply inclined diagonals will look a little chunkier.

i always thought R6 Vegas used the 960x1080 method and i was under the impression that the PS3 could only scale 960x1080 to 1920x1080 and not 1280x720 to 1920x1080? but then i wondered why R6 Vegas looks so bad at 1080i compared to other games that are scaled to 1080i.
R6:V is the exception to the rule. I haven't personally seen it in action, but some have suggested that it might render to a 480p buffer, then upscale that to 1080i.

As for upscaling arbitrary resolutions, the PS3 can certainly do that, but it has to be accommodated by the developers instead of being done transparently in hardware like on the 360. Arbitrary upscaling takes more memory, because you have to have a source buffer and an output buffer in memory simultaneously, and that can take up a significant chunk of your resources when a 1920x1080 output buffer uses up 6 to 8 MB of space (depending on bit depth). They obviously had the space to spare to do it with Warhawk, but that's not always going to be the case.

The difference with the SDK-supported 960x1080 mode is that you don't need a second buffer -- the PS3 will apparently do the horizontal pixel doubling transparently at display time, so you only need to increase the buffer space by 12% over 720p, which would amount to less than 0.5 MB of extra space.

i wish developers would just default to the resolution that looks best so we don't have to worry. if you have a set that only supports 480p/1080i, it will use 1080i anyway if you have 720p unchecked.
Again, R6:V was the exception to the rule here. Most games that are 720p native but support 1080i will only kick into 1080 mode when 720p is unchecked. Ideally you'd be able to select resolutions on a per-game basis, but we're not there yet.

As for Skate, the demo looks like it's doing 960x1080 because it doesn't have the softness of dual-axis scaling and it's slightly chunky on steep diagonals. It also looks like the text boxes are scaled a bit sloppily in the horizontal direction, which would make sense with 960x1080's fatter pixels. The game still looks quite good, though -- far better than it would at 480p.

- Jer

[rahzel]

for the most part (in most cases), the horizontal resolution makes up for the lack of vertical resolution, but 1280x720 is just a much more natural resolution than 960x1080 for a 16:9 image so it always actually looks slightly sharper (albeit not much).

its true that Vegas is the only exception where the scaling results in a quite softer image. but even if the difference is minimal, i would much rather have it set to the visually better resolution by default. there are some games that support 1080i but default to 720p, so it is possible. you would think the developer would want to default to the best resolution possible. i'm sure Vegas got knocked for its visuals because of the visual quality at 1080i in some reviews.

i actually tried Warhawk at 1080i for the hell of it and its almost as bad as Vegas, menus and everything just looks softer. i agree skate looks great at 1080i, very comparable to 720p. like i said above, some textures just don't look quite as sharp, but other than that, everything seems to be identical.

[jhaines]

for the most part (in most cases), the horizontal resolution makes up for the lack of vertical resolution, but 1280x720 is just a much more natural resolution than 960x1080 for a 16:9 image so it always actually looks slightly sharper (albeit not much).
That doesn't make any sense at all. 1280x720 will look sharper on a 720-native HDTV, and 960x1080 will look sharper on a 1080-native HDTV.

i would much rather have it set to the visually better resolution by default.
Yes, but the "better" resolution depends on the native resolution of your TV.

i actually tried Warhawk at 1080i for the hell of it and its almost as bad as Vegas, menus and everything just looks softer.
Warhawk always works from a 1280x720 image, so it should look sharp on a 720-native HDTV, but softer on a 1080-native HDTV, just like any 720p source signal.

- Jer

[so's your face]

played the demo last night and LOVED it! if the demo is any indication, i might have to go buy this game tonight...

yes or no?

[WYSEGUY]

played the demo last night and LOVED it! if the demo is any indication, i might have to go buy this game tonight...

yes or no?

real games even better

[freestyle]

Does installing it on the hard drive solve the load time issues the 360 version has when using session markers?

Yes. The install is long (maybe 4-5 minutes)... but once in the game there is very little loading... Session markers are pretty much instant. Everything loads quick.

I have noticed a lot of framerate chugs when I get going particularly fast. .. it is a bit annoying, but not a total killer.

I'm pretty sure I've only played in 720p... I think that's what I left it in last I checked. But I'll have to test it out in both 1080i and 720p res to check...

Other than that, I think the game is REALLY solid... It really captures that aspect of skateboarding where you keep trying to perfect moves and tricks...

There is also a pretty fun online aspect to the game (only 4 players max though)... But there are different modes of play... you can freeskate with friends. There is chat support... And you have a little virtual "Sidekick" (thanks T-Mobile?) and you can actually have pretty good access to your friends list and send invites to people outside of the game... messages too. And in game you can receive invites and then jump directly into your friends games.

There are also some good film editor and clip saving that you can upload for the community to check out and even rate. (still clips too).

Good stuff.

[rahzel]

That doesn't make any sense at all. 1280x720 will look sharper on a 720-native HDTV, and 960x1080 will look sharper on a 1080-native HDTV.
not true... i've seen Ninja Gaiden Sigma on a 1080p native set running at 1080p and 720p, and the textures still look sharper at 720p. someone also posted pictures over at beyond3d in the old Ninja Gaiden Sigma thread if i can find it ill post it here later.

i know resolution doesn't directly translate to aspect ratios, but i still think 1280x720 is better suited for a 16:9 image than 960x1080 upscaled, meaning it will always look better than 960x1080 scaled. but it will definitely look better than 480p and comparable to 720p.

edit: here (http://forum.beyond3d.com/showpost.php?p=1026098&postcount=126)
yes i realize they're low res captures, but you still get the idea.

[Jaren613]

Wow, we really need to get off the resolution discussion in this thread. More posts about resolution than the game here!


Does installing it on the hard drive solve the load time issues the 360 version has when using session markers?

Most of the time session markers load instantly, like literally instantly. Once in a while though I still get some that take a few seconds to load.

This game is really awesome so far and I really can't even compare it to TH. The flickit! controls are revolutionary and have me wondering why this wasn't implemented years ago. It really gives you that feeling of full control in the game of both the board and your body. I have never skateboarded in my life, but I am an avid snowboarder and wakeboarder. My grinding experience on snowboards is where I get a good feel for comparison from real life to in game controls. I feel like I have complete control in a grind. I can grind for hours in this game and not be bored! Love it.

Anyway, graphics are good, nothing amazing, some of the lighting and textures do grab your eye though. The only real complaint I have so far is annoying framerate issues. I never really cared for a while as it never seemed to interrupt gameplay, but I found a spot last night that lagged the whole time, whether I was moving fast or not. It was in Old Town near a Owned spot, can't remember which one. I didn't know if it was near a transition spot or not, but that's what I passe dit off as.

Anyway, awesome game, well worth the $60!

[jhaines]

not true... i've seen Ninja Gaiden Sigma on a 1080p native set running at 1080p and 720p, and the textures still look sharper at 720p.
Well, you're entitled to your opinion, but it makes no rational sense, and it doesn't line up with my own experiences.

someone also posted pictures over at beyond3d in the old Ninja Gaiden Sigma thread if i can find it ill post it here later.
The only appreciable difference between the two pictures is that the 1080 one looks fuzzier, which suggests to me that the pictures are from a 720-native HDTV, since the game is razor sharp on my 1080-native system.

i know resolution doesn't directly translate to aspect ratios
Actually, resolution mapped to a specific physical shape defines the aspect ratio.

i still think 1280x720 is better suited for a 16:9 image than 960x1080 upscaled, meaning it will always look better than 960x1080 scaled.
Again, you're entitled to your opinion, but it makes no rational sense. A pixel of 960x1080 is slightly smaller than a pixel of 1280x720, even though its shape is different -- and images rendered at a TV's native resolution will always be more crisp than images rendered at a lower resolution and scaled up in a way that will add pixel blur.

If you render at 720 and upscale it to 1080, the textures will always look softer because everything will look softer. Because of this, a 960x1080 render is pretty much guaranteed to have crisper textures on a 1080-native TV than a 1280x720 render that's upscaled.

but it will definitely look better than 480p and comparable to 720p.
I can at least agree with you on that much. :)

Back to the Skate demo, I have to say that I've been coming back to it over and over again, and I enjoy it quite a bit. I haven't picked up a skateboarding game since THPS4 on the PS2, but I just might grab this one when it comes down in price or I hit a major gaming lull. The action is fun and the wipeouts can be hilarious...

- Jer

[rahzel]

The only appreciable difference between the two pictures is that the 1080 one looks fuzzier, which suggests to me that the pictures are from a 720-native HDTV, since the game is razor sharp on my 1080-native system.
well, if its fuzzier, not only will it not look as sharp, the textures will look worse too. and no, his set is 1080p native. but there is a thread at beyond3d saying NGS is actually 1280x720 native and somehow scales to 1080p (EDIT: nm, i guess Quaz was going by the NGS demo... the full release was most likely scaled from 960 to 1920). there are actually a few PS3 titles that are scaled in different ways, some actually using software scaling and some using the horizontal scaler. the horizontal scaler is actually a little more versatile than most of us thought. it can scale 960, 1280, 1440 and 1600 (in 320 increments) up to 1920 (previously i thought it could only scale 960). also, some PS3 games are actually scaling from 720 or even lower resolutions like 600p via software scaling. heres the thread (http://forum.beyond3d.com/showthread.php?t=43330) if anyones interested. it became very popular after this Quaz dude found out that Halo 3 is not 720p, but rather 640p. i personally think its a very interesting thread.


Actually, resolution mapped to a specific physical shape defines the aspect ratio
true, but sometimes there are tricks involved, like for DVD's/VCD's. they don't have the correct resolutions for 4:3/16:9 (720x480) but they have flags to tell the DVD player how to handle them to play on a 4:3/16:9 display. for some reason, i thought thats what you were getting at saying it doesn't make any rational sense.

Again, you're entitled to your opinion, but it makes no rational sense. A pixel of 960x1080 is slightly smaller than a pixel of 1280x720, even though its shape is different -- and images rendered at a TV's native resolution will always be more crisp than images rendered at a lower resolution and scaled up in a way that will add pixel blur.

If you render at 720 and upscale it to 1080, the textures will always look softer because everything will look softer. Because of this, a 960x1080 render is pretty much guaranteed to have crisper textures on a 1080-native TV than a 1280x720 render that's upscaled.
personally, i dunno why, but read through this thread. (http://forum.beyond3d.com/showthread.php?t=38027&highlight=mysterious+scaler&page=5) a few people do tests of which will provide a better scaled image, 1280x720 upscaled to 1920x1080 or 960x1080 upscaled to 1920x1080 and 720 gives better results.
my example with NGS although shows 720p looking sharper, is not an example of the 960x1080 horizontal scaling method (it apparently uses software scaling). thats all the proof i got i guess. if you have a 1080p native set and you say 960x1080 games look sharper than 720p, then i have no argument as my set is 720p native.

[B Leisle]

Ahem, could we keep the thread on track here? ;)

I've come across a few spots with framerate issues as well, but it typically only lasts about 1 or 2 seconds, then clears up.

I've noticed the delayed load times from markers only happens if you've played about 15 seconds or more after reloading the marker. I think the couple second delay happens because the game has the 30 second continuous video capture buffer, and once you go over a certain threshold, it gives the delay when reloading. Try it - load a marker, then reload it in <15 seconds, and your load will be instantaneous. Even then, the load time is not bad, at most, it's around 2 or 3 seconds.

Man, the Old Town area is a big air, grinding paradise. :D. I love that area. Starting up on top of the hills by City Hall, then grinding down anything and everything as you go down the hills is awesome.

Anyone know if it's possible to save videos or stills to a memory card? It's kind of a bummer the game only allows you to keep 8 video clips and about the same amount of stills (can't remember exactly how many stills). I find myself wanting to keep more vids.

I thought I pulled off some really nice moves on a few of those OWNED spots only to check the leaderboards online and see people with insane scores on them like in the 7,000 range. I want to see what the heck they did to get 7,000 points in one spot! :eek:

It would be greeeeeeaaaat if EA could get its act together with the skate.REEL website, it's still buggy. I thought I saw another website that you could use to view the vids but can't remember what it was called if my life depended on it. :mad: I thought it used some plugin that used EA's feed....

I can't reiterate how good the soundtrack is in the game - 67 tracks, with roughly 15-20 originals that are actually pretty good.

[jhaines]

well, if its fuzzier, not only will it not look as sharp, the textures will look worse too.
Well, "worse" is subjective -- pixel blur during upscaling can serve as a poor man's anti-aliasing. But the mere fact that the 1080 pic looks blurrier pretty much proves that it was taken on a 720-native HDTV, assuming the pictures were taken under the same conditions.

but there is a thread at beyond3d saying NGS is actually 1280x720 native and somehow scales to 1080p (EDIT: nm, i guess Quaz was going by the NGS demo... the full release was most likely scaled from 960 to 1920).
Both the demo and the final product run in 960x1080 if you have 720p deactivated in your display options. And after perusing that thread, it sounds like almost everyone in it has no clue what they're talking about.

there are actually a few PS3 titles that are scaled in different ways, some actually using software scaling and some using the horizontal scaler.
Almost all of the retail games that are 720 native but support 1080 do the 960x1080 mode. Warhawk is the only example I'm aware of where they implemented a software upscale of the 1280x720 buffer, and the difference is immediately obvious on a 1080-native set.

the horizontal scaler is actually a little more versatile than most of us thought. it can scale 960, 1280, 1440 and 1600 (in 320 increments) up to 1920 (previously i thought it could only scale 960).
Yes, this information was pretty well known already. The reason why 960x1080 comes up so much is because its resource footprint is the closest to that of 720p, so it can be used with the smallest difference in memory usage and performance.

also, some PS3 games are actually scaling from 720 or even lower resolutions like 600p via software scaling.
This is certainly possible, but I haven't personally seen any examples of it. It's easier to accomplish on the 360 because of the transparent hardware scaling of pretty much any buffer size to any output size, but it could be done on the PS3 in a manner similar to Warhawk's 1080 support, too.

i thought thats what you were getting at saying it doesn't make any rational sense.
No, I was saying that rendering in physically smaller pixels at a resolution that's an integer multiplier of a TV's native resolution really couldn't look less crisp than rendering in larger pixels that have to be upscaled in a way that's guaranteed to introduce pixel blur. A 720p upscale on a 1080 native set will always look a little soft because of that pixel blur. That's just cold, hard fact.

a few people do tests of which will provide a better scaled image, 1280x720 upscaled to 1920x1080 or 960x1080 upscaled to 1920x1080 and 720 gives better results.
"Better" is also subjective. As I said before, the blur induced by a 720 upscale can serve as a poor man's anti-aliasing, so you might decide that you like that result better than a crisp 1080 render -- but as I've pointed out several times, a 960x1080 render will always look more crisp on a 1080-native set than an upscaled 720 render.

if you have a 1080p native set and you say 960x1080 games look sharper than 720p, then i have no argument as my set is 720p native.
I actually have a 1080i-native set, but the principle still applies.

- Jer

[rahzel]

Both the demo and the final product run in 960x1080 if you have 720p deactivated in your display options. And after perusing that thread, it sounds like almost everyone in it has no clue what they're talking about.
trust me, at least 50% of the people in that thread know what they're talking about. Quaz was the one who discovered Halo 3 is 640p native and that particular thread got around to pretty much every gaming forum on the net and Bungie even replied to it themselves.

anyway, back on topic. how is the framerate in the retail game? the demo seemed OK but there were definitely some slow downs. also, IGN said the framerate is worse on PS3 but nothing to take away from the gameplay, while Gamespot says the framerate is terrible.

[jhaines]

I just picked up the full game yesterday and I'm enjoying it quite a bit. There are a few annoying things I keep running into (menus every time you botch a film challenge, no apparent way to browse your already-purchased clothing, framerate chugging in certain places), but the free-form skateboarding is great, the challenges are fun (so far!), and the wipeouts are often hilarious.

I was messing around in the Old Town with some huge drops off the road bridge, and I'm wondering if it's even possible to land those -- it looked like I should have stuck the landing several times, but I'd always wipe out instead... :confused:

It also looks like skate.Reel and arguably the entire EA Account system is completely horked right now -- there's only one PS3 Skate video online, and it's from September 5th...plus the account sign-in doesn't seem to work the way it should. Oh well.

- Jer

[aquasal]

( no apparent way to browse your already-purchased clothing, framerate chugging in certain places)

on your select menu there is the clothing / gear / board option to change see what you have w/o being in store - just below map middle row, frame rate issue Ive seen some minor ones , not to bad, but overall this is a very fun game , that mega compound is sweet - massive ramps / jumps! great wipeout material! - many broken bones, almost have those milestones covered ! lol

[defjukie]

You cannot land from insane heights in this game. You have to make a line if you want to come down from high altitudes.

[Cysquatch]

I just picked up the full game yesterday and I'm enjoying it quite a bit. There are a few annoying things I keep running into (menus every time you botch a film challenge, no apparent way to browse your already-purchased clothing, framerate chugging in certain places), but the free-form skateboarding is great, the challenges are fun (so far!), and the wipeouts are often hilarious.

I was messing around in the Old Town with some huge drops off the road bridge, and I'm wondering if it's even possible to land those -- it looked like I should have stuck the landing several times, but I'd always wipe out instead... :confused:

It also looks like skate.Reel and arguably the entire EA Account system is completely horked right now -- there's only one PS3 Skate video online, and it's from September 5th...plus the account sign-in doesn't seem to work the way it should. Oh well.

- Jer

Yea, the EA servers are jacked still. I was finally able to associate my PSN with EA but none of my videos are showing up. There's a bunch of videos online so its working for some (you need to sort by most viewed or highest rated to see more). I have some sick videos that I want people to see! Add me too btw: Cysquatch

Oh yea, I'm liking the game alot. Just hope the skate.Reel gets fixed soon.

[brakel]

I can't for the life of me figure out how to manual. I've completed quite a few challenges and videos and contests but can't seem to be able to manual. Quite frustrating. Love the game otherwise.

[jhaines]

You cannot land from insane heights in this game. You have to make a line if you want to come down from high altitudes.
It seems like you can drop from a lot higher depending on how steep the landing surface is -- I was just curious how far you could drop onto a flat surface without an auto-wipeout.

Yea, the EA servers are jacked still. I was finally able to associate my PSN with EA but none of my videos are showing up.
You can still view the videos through the game's own interface, but the web interface is screwed for now. Oh well...

I can't for the life of me figure out how to manual.
If you hold the right stick about 1/3 of the way between the center and either the up or down direction, you should get into the sweet spot. I can do it pretty easily in place, but trying to flip into a manual is kind of a pain.

I recently discovered the Hellavator and that whole drain pipe area in the Old Town -- cool stuff. Doing full loops in the tunnels is fun, or pretending you're street luging by doing a Coffin all the way down. And speaking of loops, has anyone managed to do the double corkscrew at the art museum in The Res? I can do a single loop, but I haven't managed to both aim and pump well enough to do the whole thing.

My PSN ID is jh2112, by the way, in case anyone wants to add me in the game...

- Jer

[ClevelandRob]

man, I'm not much of a gamer, but I'm having a blast with this demo! I might have to drop my first dollar on a PS3 game! I used to enjoy Tony Hawk, but I pretty much was a button masher... I feel a lot more in control with the flickit control. Like someone said above, I can't believe noone has ever thought to control a boarding game like this. Is EA working on a similar snowboarding game?

[B Leisle]

man, I'm not much of a gamer, but I'm having a blast with this demo! I might have to drop my first dollar on a PS3 game!
He he, this was the first game I got and I've had my PS3 since February. :D

I recently discovered the Hellavator and that whole drain pipe area in the Old Town -- cool stuff. Doing full loops in the tunnels is fun, or pretending you're street luging by doing a Coffin all the way down.
- Jer
I just found the Hellavator a couple days ago by leaving the Plan B warehouse, then skating up the whole dang pipe system. LOL . Holy crap, you can get some insane moves by dropping off the street down into the watergates to the left of the Hellavator. I hit something like 2,800 without the 3x combo score. You can only do about 1 push before dropping into the Hellavator area, otherwise you'll eat it when you land.

[aquasal]

lol most broken bones on mega ramp at xgame area - over 10 broken and rest all colors! , and the mega comound as well, massive air and major wipe outs. Ill add a few of you tonight - havent tried out MP yet.

[AS78]

I love the demo and I can't wait for a full version (it's due here in Europe on 12 october :eek: ).

[brakel]

If you hold the right stick about 1/3 of the way between the center and either the up or down direction, you should get into the sweet spot. I can do it pretty easily in place, but trying to flip into a manual is kind of a pain.- Jer

Thanks. I had to practice quite a bit but I got the feel for it now for the most part. It still took me like 10 tries to land in a manual for a photo challenge but I finally got it.

It is amazing to me how open and large the "world" in this game is. It's great for the times when you just feel like skating and goofing off.

[speng9]

Does it have 2 player split screen? That'd be interesting...

Speng.

[cadsystems]

Thanks. I had to practice quite a bit but I got the feel for it now for the most part. It still took me like 10 tries to land in a manual for a photo challenge but I finally got it.

It is amazing to me how open and large the "world" in this game is. It's great for the times when you just feel like skating and goofing off.

Are you referring to the Gap to the Street, Land in a Manual photoshoot? I'm having a heck of a time with that one. I can either do one or the other but not both for some reason. And then I did both one time but I think I took off from the wrong spot because it didn't register either one. I'm trying to figure out if I am supposed to ollie up on to the granite block then ollie off to gap the street and land in a manual. I managed to grind on to the granite and gap the street but I landed normally instead of manual. Then I had to go back to work so I will have to try again tonite.

[brakel]

Are you referring to the Gap to the Street, Land in a Manual photoshoot? I'm having a heck of a time with that one. I can either do one or the other but not both for some reason. And then I did both one time but I think I took off from the wrong spot because it didn't register either one. I'm trying to figure out if I am supposed to ollie up on to the granite block then ollie off to gap the street and land in a manual. I managed to grind on to the granite and gap the street but I landed normally instead of manual. Then I had to go back to work so I will have to try again tonite.

Yes, that's the one. Ollie up to the granite and grind the edge of the granite toward the street. Ollie off the granite to the street and land it in a manual. I finally just started practicing an ollie over the stairs and land in a manual. Once I was able to do that then I added the grind across the granite and ollie to the street and land in a manual.

[jhaines]

I managed to do a 540º quad kickflip off the top of the Hellavator drainage area and stick the landing. I also did a wallride down the entire side of the Hellavator without wiping out. I put videos of both up on my skate.Reel in case anyone's interested...

- Jer

[Benkrishman]

Can you link your skate.reel? I always love watching good Skate. vids.

[friendlyfeet2]

Perspective is a funny thing. I forgot just how bad skating games had gotten until I picked this up and saw just how good it was. The flick-it system is one of the most natural and smooth experiences I have had with a video game. Just the inclusion of this new system requires so much more realism. You can no longer ollie a foot before an attempted grind and magically get almost magnetically drawn to the rail, picnic table, whatever. This one feature alone has given me tremendous respect for this game. And that is just where it begins...

The enviroment feels huge, probably the best-feeling open world skating experience I have had...

The challenges are enjoyable ,but not forcefully linear...I really like the photo shoot challenges, being able to pick your best photo is more gratifying than I would have anticipated.

This is the kind of game I could play for hours without doing the challenges and it would still be a lot of fun.

This game isn't perfect however as I have noticed occasional framerate issues, but nothing serious...and I wish you could save a lot more stills and vids to share online. Personally, I think this is one of the coolest parts of the game and they should have focused on it more.

It is a great game though and as you can tell I am having a lot of fun with it!

[jhaines]

Can you link your skate.reel? I always love watching good Skate. vids.
I would, but the web-based system is all screwed up at the moment -- it won't let me access anything of mine. You can look at everything from the game's own interface, though -- just add me to your PSN friend list ("jh2112"), then click on me from the skate.Messenger interface and you should be able to see my media.

- Jer

[seanpatrickb]

I would, but the web-based system is all screwed up at the moment -- it won't let me access anything of mine. You can look at everything from the game's own interface, though -- just add me to your PSN friend list ("jh2112"), then click on me from the skate.Messenger interface and you should be able to see my media.

- Jer

Rush fan?

[jhaines]

Rush fan?
Yep -- just saw 'em last month. LOL... :)

- Jer

[aquasal]

is there a trick to landing those manual - flip to manuals? I can manual but when combo with other filps and stuff, it gets pretty pathetic! lol doing a photo shoot at plan b - manual up and across two boxes, w/ gap and another with that filp into manual down ledge and flip, seems to be my stopping point with these manuals and trick into and out of.....

let me send you my save game and someone can do it for me ! lol :(

[Hellsya69]

is there a trick to landing those manual - flip to manuals? I can manual but when combo with other filps and stuff, it gets pretty pathetic! lol doing a photo shoot at plan b - manual up and across two boxes, w/ gap and another with that filp into manual down ledge and flip, seems to be my stopping point with these manuals and trick into and out of.....

let me send you my save game and someone can do it for me ! lol :(

I am stuck at the same challenge and am ready to just give up. I can get the manual but as soon as i do I slow down to a crawl and dont have enough speed to make it off the second box. No idea what I am doing wrong so Ill take any suggestions.

[wierdo]

is there a trick to landing those manual - flip to manuals? I can manual but when combo with other filps and stuff, it gets pretty pathetic! lol doing a photo shoot at plan b - manual up and across two boxes, w/ gap and another with that filp into manual down ledge and flip, seems to be my stopping point with these manuals and trick into and out of.....

let me send you my save game and someone can do it for me ! lol :(
Practice manuals. A lot. You'll learn that if you wedge your thumb under the top side or bottom side of the stick in just a certain way you can pull it off (somewhat) reliably. ;)

Even once you get it down you won't hit it every time, but it is something that takes a lot of practice to get good at (for me, anyway)

I have the same problem in skate that I have in Fight Night. I do pop shove its and whatnot instead of kickflips or heelflips and vice versa. Constantly. Just like I throw hooks when I mean to throw jabs in Fight Night.

Edited to add: Hellsya69, don't push the stick so far up or down. There's a small range where you can hit the manual, too little and no manual, too much and your board scrapes the ground and slows you down immensely.

[aquasal]

I ll try that with the thumb, got better last night but the manuals when combo with tricks / flips are the stoppong point right now! lol came real close on one but the dam double box w/gap and double manual has me turning reD!:mad: lol luckily I have a game save with all done, pulled one that was was 85/90% done and finished rest my self so I one with all unlocked for fun! thank god! gotta get my fix of mega ramp maddness!:p

[Hellsya69]

Practice manuals. A lot. You'll learn that if you wedge your thumb under the top side or bottom side of the stick in just a certain way you can pull it off (somewhat) reliably. ;)

Even once you get it down you won't hit it every time, but it is something that takes a lot of practice to get good at (for me, anyway)

I have the same problem in skate that I have in Fight Night. I do pop shove its and whatnot instead of kickflips or heelflips and vice versa. Constantly. Just like I throw hooks when I mean to throw jabs in Fight Night.

Edited to add: Hellsya69, don't push the stick so far up or down. There's a small range where you can hit the manual, too little and no manual, too much and your board scrapes the ground and slows you down immensely.

Thanks for the help. Guess its back to trying over and over. :confused:

[jhaines]

Earlier today I did a quadruple grind across a bridge and a ledge and somehow managed to wallride a small tree on my way down...LOL! Still trying to figure out how that worked. :)

I have the vid in my skate.Reel, of course...

- Jer

[Cysquatch]

I am stuck at the same challenge and am ready to just give up. I can get the manual but as soon as i do I slow down to a crawl and dont have enough speed to make it off the second box. No idea what I am doing wrong so Ill take any suggestions.

Keep at it, you'll eventually get it. The toughest photo shoot for me so far is the "do two manuals and skate both crates" near the plan B warehouse. You have to ollie or nollie up onto the first crate landing a manual with enough speed to gap across to the next crate landing another manual with enough speed to get across the crate. I think it was a Thrasher photo shoot. That took me at least 100 tries over two days to complete.

I've just started playing online doing the own the spot challenges.
It's a good way to see all the spots you haven't owned in single player. Anyone know how to unlock the DC shoes mega complex or the xgames complex? I want to practice some big ass air!

[Cysquatch]

Earlier today I did a quadruple grind across a bridge and a ledge and somehow managed to wallride a small tree on my way down...LOL! Still trying to figure out how that worked. :)

I have the vid in my skate.Reel, of course...

- Jer

Nice! I'll check it out. I posted one of me in the pool with the diving board. I did some crazy trick over the board. check it.

[protoboard]

I wanted to rent this game and check it out but neither of the Blockbusters by me even carries it, what gives?

[brakel]

I'm trying to do the challenge "P-Rod tech to Hubba" where you have to do a nollie 360 flip trick to a grind. I'm assuming the "hubba" is the stone railing. I keep landing the 360 nollie pop shove it or nollie kick flip into an FS or TS but never a grind. It is really frustrating. Is there some trick to getting it to land in a grind?

[jhaines]

I keep landing the 360 nollie pop shove it or nollie kick flip into an FS or TS but never a grind. It is really frustrating. Is there some trick to getting it to land in a grind?
It's not any old 360º nollie trick -- it's the "nollie 360 flip" without any rotation of your body. Look in your trick book to see how to do it for your stance, then try it a few times from a standing position to be sure you're doing it right. As long as you do that specific trick and land on the hubba (yes, it's the stone railing piece) in any form of grind, you should beat the challenge.

The thing that's killing me at the moment is the Chalmers pro transfer challenge, where you have to transfer through the window at the DIY park between two very specific surfaces and get at least 600 points for your transfer trick. It's easy enough to go through the window, but if you have enough speed to make it over the window ledge then you'll either land in the middle of the pool or on a pool wall outside the intended section, so it doesn't count. The only time I've gotten credit for the transfer was when I accidentally hit the window frame and bounced off of it onto the right section of the pool wall, but that obviously didn't net me 600 points, so I was out of luck. I'm going to leave that one for later. :(

- Jer

[brakel]

It's not any old 360º nollie trick -- it's the "nollie 360 flip" without any rotation of your body. Look in your trick book to see how to do it for your stance, then try it a few times from a standing position to be sure you're doing it right. As long as you do that specific trick and land on the hubba (yes, it's the stone railing piece) in any form of grind, you should beat the challenge.

The thing that's killing me at the moment is the Chalmers pro transfer challenge, where you have to transfer through the window at the DIY park between two very specific surfaces and get at least 600 points for your transfer trick. It's easy enough to go through the window, but if you have enough speed to make it over the window ledge then you'll either land in the middle of the pool or on a pool wall outside the intended section, so it doesn't count. The only time I've gotten credit for the transfer was when I accidentally hit the window frame and bounced off of it onto the right section of the pool wall, but that obviously didn't net me 600 points, so I was out of luck. I'm going to leave that one for later. :(

- Jer

Thanks. Yes, I didn't realize there was a difference between a Nollie 360 flip and a Nollie flip 360! :p I just stood still and did a few nollie 360 flips in a row and then went for the trick and pulled it off.

I only have one challenge available right now. It is the get multi then do an xxx point grind at the top of the big corner in the Plan B warehouse. I get the multi but then lose my speed making the turn to the big corner.

[jhaines]

Yes, I didn't realize there was a difference between a Nollie 360 flip and a Nollie flip 360! :p
Yeah, it's a little confusing until you get exposed to more tricks. I had to figure out the FS 5-0 / FS Tail thing on my own for the P.J. pro challenge, for example.

I only have one challenge available right now. It is the get multi then do an xxx point grind at the top of the big corner in the Plan B warehouse. I get the multi but then lose my speed making the turn to the big corner.
That one took me a while. If you get enough air on your setup, then follow through with a well-executed pump while transitioning into the corner section, you'll eventually get it.

I only have film challenges, that Chalmers pro transfer, and some pro S.K.A.T.E. challenges available now, and I've gotten all the coverage except for the cover shots on the two magazines. I've been wasting a lot of time on random tricking, though -- especially attempting crazy stuff, like gapping between buildings several stories up in the Downtown area. Managed to get 12 broken bones at the same time doing that... :)

- Jer

[brakel]

...I've been wasting a lot of time on random tricking, though -- especially attempting crazy stuff, like gapping between buildings several stories up in the Downtown area. Managed to get 12 broken bones at the same time doing that... :)

- Jer

LOL! I get distracted by cool little places to pull off tricks...which is good. It's what keeps me from getting too frustrated by some of the challenges. I think my "best" is 7 or 8 broken bones in one bail.

[Cysquatch]

Yeah, it's a little confusing until you get exposed to more tricks. I had to figure out the FS 5-0 / FS Tail thing on my own for the P.J. pro challenge, for example.

Yea, interestingly enough, the FS 5-0 isn't in the trick book. Had to figure it out through alot of trial and error but eventually got it. Now I have a bunch of video challenges which are a pain in the ass. Just finished the 1080 total degrees, 5 grabs, and 10secs of air which was pretty easy in PJ's pool.

[jhaines]

Now I have a bunch of video challenges which are a pain in the ass.
That's what I'm left with, too. I cleared out the pro S.K.A.T.E. challenges and finally nailed the Chalmers pro transfer (which is a lot less horrible if you start on the pool side of the window, BTW), so all I have available now are 9 nasty film challenges. I just need to find the right places to pull them off...

Speaking of the pro S.K.A.T.E. challenges, I had several lockups after completing a couple of those in a row. Thankfully my game saved each time before the lockup so I didn't lose anything, but it was still annoying. The only thing that would work was the PS button, and when I'd try to quit the game it would just sit there for a few seconds, then beep and reboot the PS3. Oh well.

I also think the setup of the S.K.A.T.E. challenge is wrong. It seems like if you're able to copy a person's trick, you should get the opportunity to set the trick on the next round -- but instead, you have to repeat or botch a trick for the control to ever change. This makes it ridiculously easy to win S.K.A.T.E. matches against the CPU, because you just have to hold on long enough for the CPU to bail, then you just repeat the same cycle of 4 tricks until the CPU screws up 5 times. Personally I kept mixing up my tricks, but in practice it seems like the CPU's mistakes are completely random, and aren't made more likely by setting tougher tricks -- they'll even bail on simple ollies if you give them the chance.

Oh, I also noticed that someone landed the ridiculous Downtown building gap I kept trying to do yesterday -- I saw it earlier today in the highest ranked videos. You catch some crazy air several stories up, then land vertically on the side of the other building, and apparently this guy was able to ollie off the wall and stick the ground landing instead of augering in like I kept doing...LOL. Guess I'll have to find some new insanity to pursue... :)

- Jer

[brakel]

I have also had a few freezes but I couldn't even use the PS button. Had to use the "wife" option to reboot (she sits closer to the PS3 than I do!). But it has only happened 2 or 3 times and it does still save the game. Annoying but not a game killer.

[Cysquatch]

That's what I'm left with, too. I cleared out the pro S.K.A.T.E. challenges and finally nailed the Chalmers pro transfer (which is a lot less horrible if you start on the pool side of the window, BTW), so all I have available now are 9 nasty film challenges. I just need to find the right places to pull them off...

Speaking of the pro S.K.A.T.E. challenges, I had several lockups after completing a couple of those in a row. Thankfully my game saved each time before the lockup so I didn't lose anything, but it was still annoying. The only thing that would work was the PS button, and when I'd try to quit the game it would just sit there for a few seconds, then beep and reboot the PS3. Oh well.

I also think the setup of the S.K.A.T.E. challenge is wrong. It seems like if you're able to copy a person's trick, you should get the opportunity to set the trick on the next round -- but instead, you have to repeat or botch a trick for the control to ever change. This makes it ridiculously easy to win S.K.A.T.E. matches against the CPU, because you just have to hold on long enough for the CPU to bail, then you just repeat the same cycle of 4 tricks until the CPU screws up 5 times. Personally I kept mixing up my tricks, but in practice it seems like the CPU's mistakes are completely random, and aren't made more likely by setting tougher tricks -- they'll even bail on simple ollies if you give them the chance.

Oh, I also noticed that someone landed the ridiculous Downtown building gap I kept trying to do yesterday -- I saw it earlier today in the highest ranked videos. You catch some crazy air several stories up, then land vertically on the side of the other building, and apparently this guy was able to ollie off the wall and stick the ground landing instead of augering in like I kept doing...LOL. Guess I'll have to find some new insanity to pursue... :)

- Jer

Was that the video where he lands it with a wall ride? That was insane!

[chokeslam]

I'm really enjoying skate. The learning curve is somewhat steep but very rewarding. The controls are awesome and will make sense to anyone who's ever skated before. The POV of the game is frustrating sometimes because your player often blocks your view of obstacles, NPC's, etc. Framerate can go pretty low when you're going really fast with stuff going on around you. The aliasing totally sucks and is really my only complaint about the graphics. EA really needs to do something about the aliasing in their games :mad:. Soundtrack is pretty good- Black Flag, Devo, David Bowie, Cheap Trick, Nirvana are the highlights. Replayability is very high, what with it being an open world skating game and all. Highly recommended. :)

[Cysquatch]

I'm really enjoying skate. The learning curve is somewhat steep but very rewarding. The controls are awesome and will make sense to anyone who's ever skated before. The POV of the game is frustrating sometimes because your player often blocks your view of obstacles, NPC's, etc. Framerate can go pretty low when you're going really fast with stuff going on around you. The aliasing totally sucks and is really my only complaint about the graphics. EA really needs to do something about the aliasing in their games :mad:. Soundtrack is pretty good- Black Flag, Devo, David Bowie, Cheap Trick, Nirvana are the highlights. Replayability is very high, what with it being an open world skating game and all. Highly recommended. :)

This game introduced me to Band of Horses. Although not expected on a skateboarding game, its a great song and great album. In fact, they have a new album coming out tomorrow that i'll be getting.

Oh yea, Tommy Guerrero is amazing.

[jhaines]

Was that the video where he lands it with a wall ride? That was insane!
Yep. I could land the wall ride, but I never managed to transition from that back to the ground without bailing. That trick got me my largest drop, too -- I think it was just shy of 60 feet.

I managed to do one more video each from the Mag and Thrasher, and that unlocked the sponsor video goals, which are always easy (5000 points with no other conditions, which is a joke to do in a half pipe), and those got me the cover shot goals. Those were straightforward, so I moved on to the Mega Jam and the X Games, which were also surprisingly easy...so now I've pretty much finished the game.

After beating the big events, the remaining film goals returned, as well as one jam for the Mag that I never got around to, so I guess I'll keep plugging away at those. Maybe having access to the Mega and X Games parks will make those film goals easier. I also have a few "ownable spots" to find yet, so there's still more to do. And screwing around in different spots is still a lot of fun, so I expect to get a fair amount of mileage out of this game yet...

- Jer

[protoboard]

Anyone know a link to a video of this large drop/wall ride you guys are talking about?

Also, it seems when I log in at ea.com/skate, it never seems to work, so I cannot find any of my own videos. Anyone know how to solve this issue?

[cadsystems]

It's not any old 360º nollie trick -- it's the "nollie 360 flip" without any rotation of your body. Look in your trick book to see how to do it for your stance, then try it a few times from a standing position to be sure you're doing it right. As long as you do that specific trick and land on the hubba (yes, it's the stone railing piece) in any form of grind, you should beat the challenge.

- Jer

I'm having a real hard time with this one. I can do all the Nollie tricks except for this one. My character is goofy footed and it says to push up at an angle swing down a quarter then diagonal across to do the nollie 360 flip. most of the time it does a fakie or some kind of nollie pop shuvit. I think i might just skate around and practice that until I get it down every time.

[brakel]

I'm having a real hard time with this one. I can do all the Nollie tricks except for this one. My character is goofy footed and it says to push up at an angle swing down a quarter then diagonal across to do the nollie 360 flip. most of the time it does a fakie or some kind of nollie pop shuvit. I think i might just skate around and practice that until I get it down every time.

Just stand still and do it over and over until you get the feel for it. I did that while sitting there ready to do the challenge and as soon as I had a feel for it and was pulling off the right trick most of the time, I went for it. Half the time it might not be the right trick but if you practice for a while you should be able to get it often enough to complete the challenge.

[aquasal]

you do it in spot and then one push and roll to hubba to do it, took some time, have to finish that dill challange with the flip to manual and then ride the kink or something...freaking suc at manuals with tricks! lol:mad:

online is a blast but a little laggy at times...

[cadsystems]

you do it in spot and then one push and roll to hubba to do it, took some time, have to finish that dill challange with the flip to manual and then ride the kink or something...freaking suc at manuals with tricks! lol:mad:

online is a blast but a little laggy at times...

That one took me a while as well. Finally got it after about 300 tries.

[brakel]

I'm sure the designer of Skate had some kind of idea of what order would make sense to do the challenges in but after the challenge talked about above (took me at least 60 attempts) I did a gap photo challenge at the art museum (any trick) that took me 3 attempts and then a photo challenge at the warehouse area doing a manual gap to manual from one dumpster to another that took me 4 tries to pull off. Those were much more pleasing and satisfying than trying soooo many times to pull that other challenge.

[jhaines]

Anyone know a link to a video of this large drop/wall ride you guys are talking about?
The web system isn't really working at the moment, but if you go to the "online" section in-game and look at the highest rated videos, the one we're talking about is by "DaGod420" or something along those lines.

I only have 2 Thrasher film goals left -- the "get 5500 points in a no-skate zone" one and the "90ft. grind plus some high point score" one. I can almost get the no-skate goal in that area under the bridge in the park around the lake (between Downtown and the Old Town), but it's very inconsistent and I can only get close when I can manage to do one grind after another for the whole 30 seconds without screwing up or getting caught. Is there a better no-skate zone to attempt this in? Is there one with a half pipe somewhere that I'm missing...?

For the other goal, is there a half pipe somewhere near the end of a long grind on a downhill slope? I can't think of anyplace off the top of my head.

I've also noticed one place in the middle of Old Town where I can hear skaters and music, and I see a couple of closed doors into the area, but I haven't found any way in. Does this only open when you've finished the game 100%...?

- Jer

[jhaines]

Well, I managed to finish those last two films -- I finally got the 5500 point no-skate zone one in the same place where I'd been repeatedly trying to do it (I think I wound up with 6800 points in the end), and I did the 90 foot grind one at the top of The Res, on the road that leads down to the top of the Mega Park. (Grind on the rail on the left side of the road with some tricks, do the powerslide, then finish off on the next rail on the left side without losing the 3x multiplier.) I also found the last couple of "Own The Spot" areas and beat them, and I cleared out my trick book.

After doing all that, I still don't have access to the mystery skate park in the Old Town (if you go up the stairs left of Slappys, west one block, then north, it's on the right across from a billboard that says "don't get caught...in the dark"). I think the only things I have left to do in the game are to escape 50 chases and spend 3 hours in no-skate zones, so I'll be completely stumped if it doesn't unlock at that point...

- Jer

[cadsystems]

At what point is the X-games unlocked? Or is that only online?

[jhaines]

At what point is the X-games unlocked? Or is that only online?
After you receive the cover shot on Thrasher you'll gain access to the X Games challenges.

- Jer

[jhaines]

I managed to wallride my way over the fence into that mystery area in the Old Town, but there's nothing in there, and the game just teleports you back to the street as soon as you touch down. Strange, since that's the only place I've encountered that plays skating music but doesn't have any way to access it. Guess it's a dead end.

I found out a trick for successfully landing really high drops -- if you're in a grab and you switch over to grabbing with the other hand right before you land, as long as you hit the ground while you're in the middle of switching hands you'll stick the landing. I put up a couple of new videos showing what I've been able to do with this.

I also finally got my PSN ID linked to my EA profile after some back and forth with EA customer service, but it looks like the uploaded videos still never make it to the skate.Reel website -- you can only access them in-game. That's a bummer.

- Jer

[protoboard]

I managed to wallride my way over the fence into that mystery area in the Old Town, but there's nothing in there, and the game just teleports you back to the street as soon as you touch down. Strange, since that's the only place I've encountered that plays skating music but doesn't have any way to access it. Guess it's a dead end.

I found out a trick for successfully landing really high drops -- if you're in a grab and you switch over to grabbing with the other hand right before you land, as long as you hit the ground while you're in the middle of switching hands you'll stick the landing. I put up a couple of new videos showing what I've been able to do with this.

I also finally got my PSN ID linked to my EA profile after some back and forth with EA customer service, but it looks like the uploaded videos still never make it to the skate.Reel website -- you can only access them in-game. That's a bummer.

- Jer

What did they have you do to get your PS3 ID linked? Even after you were able to successfully log into the skate website you still can't see your video's on there?

[jhaines]

What did they have you do to get your PS3 ID linked?
They told me that they tweaked some settings in my account, and I should try linking it again. That didn't work, so they said they tweaked some more things and I should try it one more time. That time I was able to link it.

Even after you were able to successfully log into the skate website you still can't see your video's on there?
Unfortunately, no.

- Jer

[Deaddy]

Good game. Horrendous frame rate problem. Lots of aliasing. Skate.reel STILL does not work for PS3 as far as I know. Being limited to 8 replays is extremely frustrating. I'm focusing on the negatives but Skate is still a great game and I've been playing it practically every day for the last 3 weeks, just finished. I really enjoyed it in spite of its several issues.

[brakel]

I just opened up the art gallery. Just curious how far along am I? Half way, less than, more than? Thanks!

[jhaines]

I just opened up the art gallery. Just curious how far along am I? Half way, less than, more than? Thanks!
It's hard to say, since you can do the challenges in so many different orders, and I'm not sure what triggers that pro "follow me" which unlocks the art gallery.

The best measure is to look at your coverage progress for The Mag and Thrasher. Once you've gotten the cover shots on both magazines, you should have unlocked all of the challenges in the game -- so if you average your coverage progress on both magazines, you should have a rough idea of how far along you are.

Sadly, I'm finding that this game doesn't have much life left after finishing it. When I go looking for spots to attempt crazy stunts, I either can't find a way to get where I want to go, or the game just teleports me back to the nearest street when I'm getting too far away from where it thinks I should be. With the insane stunt angle cut off, all that's left is seeing how long I can hold a manual for, which is getting pretty boring...LOL.

I hope that the sequel to this game gives you more freedom to go places beyond street level, so you can create your own crazy gap or line challenges without feeling like you're on a leash (albeit a loose one). That said, I've enjoyed the game a great deal, and I think it was well worth the $60.

- Jer

[aquasal]

what would have been nice is as you unlock the places they hold - weekly events or something at ramdon for just money or prizes- to keep the career feeling going maybe..

[cadsystems]

Anybody been able to manual on to the box, then flip trick to the other box, land in a manual and skate the box. I almost do it and somehow manage to blow it in the end. Why are manuals so important? I hate them. But love the game, and also how do you do that one trick where you traverse onto the trailer?

[jhaines]

Anybody been able to manual on to the box, then flip trick to the other box, land in a manual and skate the box.
Yep -- just get up to full speed almost parallel to the box and follow through with as few adjustments as possible. Some alternate approaches were discussed earlier in the thread, too.

Why are manuals so important? I hate them.
They're the only way to maintain a sequence across flat stretches, because otherwise all 4 wheels would be touching the ground. I believe strung-in manuals can keep your score rising in Best Trick challenges.

and also how do you do that one trick where you traverse onto the trailer?
I can't tell which one you're talking about here.

- Jer

[cadsystems]

They're the only way to maintain a sequence across flat stretches, because otherwise all 4 wheels would be touching the ground. I believe strung-in manuals can keep your score rising in Best Trick challenges.


I can't tell which one you're talking about here.

- Jer

Landed the box to manual, gap to next box land in manual. Took me a couple of tries at lunch.

The next one I was talking about I read wrong. I thought I had to jump on top of the trailer, then step up to the edge and get 300 points, but what it really meant was skate under the trailer, step up to the ledge and make 300 points. That was much easier.

[_Avarice_]

I just finished a difficult challenge, only to have the game lock up because EA's servers were having a problem!

After finishing whomever's wall ride-and-jump-a-gap trick, the game goes into its usual loading screen to confirm the new unlocks, then it freezes and says, 30 or so seconds later that EA's servers are unavailable. I had to back out of the game entirely. Now I expect this in an online multiplayer match, but needing to be on the internet for a single player campaign is ridiculous!

I don't want to be at the mercy of somebody else's internet problems if I want to play a one-player game. What fool came up with this scheme?!

EDIT: Re-booted game and successfully performed trick again. "Unable to connect to game session. Please try again." WTF? :mad: My game session is right here, on my own goddamn Playstation. Not online.

EA, you are wasting my time and nothing makes me more :mad:

[_Avarice_]

Okay, this has now happened four straight times. I have absolutely no idea what to do. The trick in question is the Butsekis (or something to that effect) wall-ride. After successful completion, it freezes for about a half-minute then says there is an error connecting to EA's servers. It lets me proceed to the new unlocks screen, press "X" once, and then I'm on a final screen where I'm prompted to press "X" again to continue. However, pressing "X" does not work here and the game is, in effect, locked-up.

Has anybody else experienced this? I'm about one more rant away from E-baying this POS....

[protoboard]

Okay, this has now happened four straight times. I have absolutely no idea what to do. The trick in question is the Butsekis (or something to that effect) wall-ride. After successful completion, it freezes for about a half-minute then says there is an error connecting to EA's servers. It lets me proceed to the new unlocks screen, press "X" once, and then I'm on a final screen where I'm prompted to press "X" again to continue. However, pressing "X" does not work here and the game is, in effect, locked-up.

Has anybody else experienced this? I'm about one more rant away from E-baying this POS....

If you are not playing online, then don't sign in when the game first boots up. When it says connecting to EA nation, press CIRCLE and is it will not log in.

[_Avarice_]

If you are not playing online, then don't sign in when the game first boots up. When it says connecting to EA nation, press CIRCLE and is it will not log in.

But it will still record my completed challenges and what not? If that's the case, what is the use of connecting to EA's servers at all when playing a single-player career campaign?

I appreciate the tip, nonetheless!

[cadsystems]

Anybody know the spot to hit the 24' jump, score 3500 points and grind, fliptrick manual? I tried a couple of areas and I can get 2 out of the three just about everytime.

[protoboard]

Anybody know the spot to hit the 24' jump, score 3500 points and grind, fliptrick manual? I tried a couple of areas and I can get 2 out of the three just about everytime.

Going down the hill up the street from Regs...once you have speed going, a high ollie will usually net you a 24' jump. It doesn't mean 24' down, it means 24' long. so when you are on the steep part of the hill you can just ollie at full speed.

[Brian]

But it will still record my completed challenges and what not? If that's the case, what is the use of connecting to EA's servers at all when playing a single-player career campaign?

I appreciate the tip, nonetheless!

After I completed the trick, it connected to the EA servers then came back with a coupon code for some sneakers. I don't think you're missing out on much if it doesn't connect.

BTW, since this is the review thread, I'd say this is the best game I've played on the PS3 so far. The graphics are substandard for this generation, but the gameplay is great, and the sheer size and detail of the playable area is impressive. Makes me really look forward to the next GTA.

-B

[_Avarice_]

After I completed the trick, it connected to the EA servers then came back with a coupon code for some sneakers. I don't think you're missing out on much if it doesn't connect.

BTW, since this is the review thread, I'd say this is the best game I've played on the PS3 so far. The graphics are substandard for this generation, but the gameplay is great, and the sheer size and detail of the playable area is impressive. Makes me really look forward to the next GTA.

-B
Oooooh, that's even worse...I'm being frustrated by a real-time marketing ploy?! I already bought the damn game, stop trying to sell me crap!!

I'll be disabling all of Skate's internet-related features from now on. EA is innovative all right; they keep finding new and improved ways to disappoint me :rolleyes:

[cadsystems]

If you are not playing online, then don't sign in when the game first boots up. When it says connecting to EA nation, press CIRCLE and is it will not log in.

Thanks for the tip. I finally pulled it off. I'm still working on finishing, I wish I had more time to play it. I hope there will be some downloadable areas to open up the game a bit more instead of having different boards/wheels/clothes/etc. I like how wide open it is already but it would be cool to have some other areas to go to, like a rough neighboorhood kind of like a no skate zone but you get mugged or something.

[cadsystems]

After you receive the cover shot on Thrasher you'll gain access to the X Games challenges.

- Jer

I finally accomplished this. Only thing that sucks is I have to go move my DC office this week and won't get to play until Sunday, thought about taking my PS3 with me, but not sure if I want to go through the hassle.

[_Avarice_]

Besides the fact that this game is one big commercial, EA has really done a fine job with this title. It can be eternally frustrating at times, but it's always fun.

With the next iteration, I hope they can achieve a rock-solid frame rate and possibly offer some camera angle options.

[freestyle]

A buddy of mine captured some gameplay footage, for those of you still on the fence.

http://www.mediafire.com/?8tmxg23kusz (MOS - no audio)

[cadsystems]

Ok, so I'm stuck. I can't pull off the 360 Flip to a FS Crooked to save my life and or my marriage. I can get the 360 Flip about 10% of the time but I always end up doing some other kind of grind instead of the FS Crooked. This by far is the most irritating challenge so far. Been trying for about a week.

[brakel]

Ok, so I'm stuck. I can't pull off the 360 Flip to a FS Crooked to save my life and or my marriage. I can get the 360 Flip about 10% of the time but I always end up doing some other kind of grind instead of the FS Crooked. This by far is the most irritating challenge so far. Been trying for about a week.

I've finished everything except for 2 videos and this one was one of the more difficult ones to do. Practice the 360 flip until you are getting it at least half the time. If not, it will take you forever. Look at the trick book and practice landing in an fs crooked. Then just run up and down that bench doing 360 flips to fs crooked and you'll get it. I'm sure I did like 50 runs before I got that one.

[cadsystems]

Anybody find away to unlock everything so I can just play the game? I'm getting tired of trying to do that one trick?

[Brian]

I think it took me around 100 tries to get that 360 flip trick. The good news is that it takes about 5 seconds per try. I got it by lining up with the lowest part of the bench about 10 feet away at a 45 degree angle. This will get you enough speed to hit with one push. The trick for me was to land the 360 flip with the front edge on the bench, which counts as a fs crooked. This takes millisecond timing, so push, flip, reset, repeat.

[cadsystems]

I think it took me around 100 tries to get that 360 flip trick. The good news is that it takes about 5 seconds per try. I got it by lining up with the lowest part of the bench about 10 feet away at a 45 degree angle. This will get you enough speed to hit with one push. The trick for me was to land the 360 flip with the front edge on the bench, which counts as a fs crooked. This takes millisecond timing, so push, flip, reset, repeat.

Thanks. That is a good tip. When you lined it up did you stay on the same side as where it originally starts you from? I will try this at some point this weekend.

[cadsystems]

Thanks. That is a good tip. When you lined it up did you stay on the same side as where it originally starts you from? I will try this at some point this weekend.

Finally! That was a great tip. It still took me about 45 tries after that tip. So now, my next dilemma. Where is the best place to skate in a no skate zone and pull off 6 grinds and get 4000 points. I usually can pull of the six grinds but my point totals are lacking. I usually can get more points in half pipes.