Training Regiment
If you’ve been having a blast with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2, you aren’t the only one. The game has garnered critical acclaim, revitalizing the series for the first time in over a decade and showing the competition precisely how a remake should be executed. This isn’t just a fresh coat of paint on an old-wooden horse. It’s a supremely faithful reimagining of a world I fell in love with twenty years ago. And that means – as if I just opened my fourth-grade time capsule – I get to experience all the quirks and peculiarities of a by-gone era.
I won’t lie. For the first few days of my THPS 1+2 career, I was awful. Were these games always this hard? Or have things now simply become too easy? Either way, here are a few tips and tricks for the uninitiated that I wish I knew before I started.
Max Out Stats Before Your First Run
Once you get started, it won’t be long before you’ll notice the customization options for the pros are quite limited. Other than preset outfits that have been created, there’s no option to edit their clothing. Plus, their boards, trucks, and wheels must be of the brand that sponsors that particular skater. And without first collecting points, you can’t adjust their stats to max out the things you care most about.
But there’s something you can do about that last one. If you want to have something like max air or max grind balance right off the bat, create a skater first, and then go to the stat pool. You’re able to subtract points from the categories that don’t matter to you, and add them where you see fit. Use this to create a monster vert or street specialist before your first run.
If You’re a Purist, There’s a Setting For You
It’s funny to imagine a skateboarding game without manuals. But the original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater was exactly that. Introduced in the second game, the manual changed the way levels could be approached by players. Eventually, reverts and wall plants would be added to the mix, creating a moveset that gave players the ability to chain massive combos more easily than ever. Some believe this took much of the skill required out of the THPS series.
For those purists out there that have always pined for the early days, THPS 1+2 lets players turn off all of the bells and whistles that came with the later games. Just deselect manuals, reverts, and anything else you’d like in the menu, and then bring your A-game.
There’s No Shame in Cheating
On the flip side of the most hardcore version of THPS 1+2, any newcomer to the series will be happy to know that an extensive list of cheats is available to make use of. Want to turn off bails? How do infinite manuals sound? These are great for getting a handle of the maps, and getting inside of hard to reach places to find those pesky hidden tapes. Just don’t neglect your balancing practice.
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