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The remake of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 has finally been released and we’ve played it extensively on almost every platform it’s available on.
At the turn of the century, the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater games were a phenomenon: The first two installments in the series were among the seven best-selling games in 2000 (cumulative sales figures from Japan, the US, the UK and Germany), selling around the same amount of copies each as Sony’s sequel to the already established racing simulation Gran Turismo. The two follow-ups also ranked among 2001’s and 2002’s ten best-selling games in the US. For THPS, it would take until the fateful year of 2020 to reach those numbers again. Once the remakes of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 were released almost five years ago in September 2020, fans of the skateboarding game series finally had a reason to ramp up their excitement again. After all, the first failed remake, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater HD from Robomodo (2012), and the last installment in the series, THPS5 (2015), were anything but successful and alienated even die-hard fans who had proven their patience in Tony Hawk Ride (the game with the skateboard controller, which was just as flawed as some Kinect games) and the like.
A long redemption arch
The remake of Tony Hawk’s Skateboarding (the European title of the first game) and Pro Skater 2 sold one million units within two weeks – that’s twice as many copies as THPS5 sold over its entire lifespan. The modernized version of all levels, robust controls, and sleek visuals were exactly what we’d been waiting for all these years. The following year, PS5 and Xbox Series X players welcomed the addition of a 120 Hz mode and both games were made available to play on-the-go for the first time, albeit with significantly dumped down graphics and frame rate on Nintendo Switch. For years, fans asked for the levels from THPS3 and THPS4 to be added to Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 – after all THPS HD also added THPS3’s levels via a download option. Instead, Activision decided to rename the remake’s development studio Vicarious Visions to Blizzard Albany and assigned them to work on Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and Diablo IV. Thus they suffered a similar fate to Neversoft, the original developers of the Tony Hawk’s series. After hammering out numerous Guitar Hero games, they were eventually merged with the CoD studio Infinity Ward in 2014 and vanished from the face of earth. Over the years, namesake and ten-time X Games gold medalist Tony Hawk has continually advocated for the continuation of the remakes and Activision ended up commissioning the Chicago-based studio Iron Galaxy Studios to develop Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4, which was released last Friday for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch 2 and Nintendo Switch and it’s included with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass. The reimagining of the two classic sports games is priced at €49.99 (standard edition)/ €69.99 (Digital Deluxe Edition). The latter includes Doom Slayer and Revenant as bonus skaters, exclusive decks, additional songs and Create-a-Park items.
Career mode – a lot has changed since THPS4
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 features 19 levels, the tried-and-tested single- and multiplayer modes with cross-platform play making its debut in the series and 31 professional skaters – the most in franchise history (Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 included 24 pros). All nine levels from the third installment in the series are included—from the dark and cramped foundry (included in the pre-order and Game Pass-exclusive demo), to the Halloween-themed suburbs, a sprawling snow-covered skate park in Canada, and a bustling airport with grindable rails scattered to the four winds, to three competitions in Rio, Skater Island, and Tokyo as well as THPS3’s secret level—every location you played continuously back in 2001 ist in the game. The heart of the game is career mode, where you can freely explore each level, but also the classic 2-minute sessions, in which you’re tasked with collecting S-K-A-T-E letters, destroying pumpkins, impressing fellow skaters with high-scoring tricks, or quickly delivering a ticket to your friend before the flight departs without triggering an alarm. The levels are closely aligned with the originals, but they feel much more lively and are filled with all sorts of small details.
Things are a little different with THPS4: Neversoft decided to abandon the tried-and-tested time-limited single-session structure. Instead, players were able to freely explore each level and pick up quests from non-player characters scattered throughout. Iron Galaxy Studios didn’t adopt this structure, instead they turned the stop watch back on and added objectives, and removing the NPCs. Depending on your taste, you may prefer one over the other – both ways work exceptionally well. Iron Galaxy Studios managed to turn these seven locations into classic THPS levels and without prior knowledge of this dramatic change, you wouldn’t guess so. Avid fans of the series will miss two levels, as Chicago and Carnival aren’t included. In addition, the once daytime London level now takes place at night, and the elephant in the van turned into a cosplayer. Zoo was turned into a competition level, and these animals also had to make way for numerous halfpipes and rails. Three new levels have been added: a huge, dilapidated, abandoned water park, a multi-set movie studio, and a rather interestingly designed secret level that you unlock at the end of the THPS4 campaign. The new content blends seemlessly into the old. We’re only allowed to get onto the big slide after reopening an arcade in Water Park, and in the thematically fitting sewers below Movie Studio, we are able to skate with a certain bonus skater – it’s Pizza Time! In addition to completing tasks, you can master constantly newly added challenges or find stat points, money, and Iron Galaxy logos for a secret skate shop.
Goals made their way into Create-a-Park
For the first time, Create-a-Park lets you add goals such as “Collect C-O-M-B-O” to your creations and share them online across platforms. Community-created parks already include renditions of parks from previous games and cut levels from the remake such as Chicago. They can also simplify your journey to complete the more sophisticated challenges in order to unlock new equipment such as a ten million points combo. Visually, the custom parks look a bit bland for the most part compared to the official levels. A range of mods can make the game more accessible to new audiences such as perfect rail balance which allows us to get some collectibles way easier. There’s no key binding option on consoles, therefore you need to use the system menu on Nintendo Switch 2 every time you want to assign the original GameCube controller layout to your brand spanking new Nintendo Switch Online GC controller which doesn’t feature any rumble with this game.
Tried-and-tested controls
Speaking of controls: Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 plays essentially the same as its predecessor. Features gradually introduced throughout the series, such as manuals from THPS2 (riding on the front or back wheels without having the other axle touch the ground), reverts from THPS3 (a rotating motion of the board to switch between fakie and regular after exiting a half/quarter pipe), and spine transfers from THPS4 (switching between two adjacent half/quarter pipes) are all there. Skaters are beautifully animated, and with a little practice and muscle memory required by THPS, you’ll have significantly more control of the board than in the clunky THPS5.
You can pick and choose to skate with present-day shooting stars like Lizzie Armanto, Yūto Horigome, Margielyn Didal, and Riley Hawk, alongside veterans like Kareem Campbell, Leticia Bufoni, Bob Burnquist, and Elissa Steamer. We’ve come a long way from the days when the latter was the only female character in the game. The appearance of Felipe Nunes, who lost both legs and developed his own techniques to perform tricks without prosthetics, helps provide a platform for adaptive skateboarding. You can also create your own character and have access to a much larger selection of decks, helmets, shirts, and shorts than if you just went with a pro like Tony Hawk—but then you’d miss out on his tape. You can unlock a unique tape—a montage of tricks—for each skater, which greatly increases the game’s replay value. By completing objectives and winning medals, you unlock new levels and collect stat points and money. With stat points you can improve your speed, rail balance or your ollie, and the amount of points you collect with one skater are available for all characters. Money nets you cosmetics, including mods like a Rocket League-style tail and new graphic filters, which could give the game an 80s look, and also up to three new skaters: Michelangelo from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the pro skaters Andy Anderson and Bam Margera – a trio that is otherwise rarely mentioned in the same sentence. While the latter only found his way into the game after an outcry from fans, we remain hopeful that his appearance will have a lasting positive effect on his future. Another secret skater can be unlocked by keeping an eye out in each of the levels.
Multiplayer and soundtrack
We can join up to seven other skaters online across platforms, competing for score and combo challenges, graffiti or the all-new HAWK mode. In this mode, each player distributes these four letters throughout the level, and the others are tasked with finding them within a short time limit – arguably the most accessible mode for newcomers. Some modes are reserved for local two-player split-screen play, such as Loser, in which you create a word and net a letter for each time you can’t be the score of your opponent’s line until one player completes said word. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4’s multiplayer works very well, in stark contrast to its predecessor’s online mode, which deteriorated quickly to the point where the Activision website indicated green lights for all platform servers, but it is pure RNG if you are actually able to connect. We barely experienced any connection drops or crashes in our numerous hours of play. Only the original Nintendo Switch doesn’t support cross-platform play with Xbox, PlayStation and PC players.
Music plays a significant role in the Tony Hawk’s series. While Activision retained a whopping 22 songs from the originals in the remake of the first two installments, with the exception of three, and added 37 brand-new ones, only ten of the iconic skateboarding anthems made the spine transfer from the original games to the remake (six from THPS3 and four from THPS4) – a meager haul. While the game’s soundtrack once again consists of 59 songs, 80 percent of which are new songs by IDLES, 100gecs, Lupe Fiasco, Jeff Rosenstock, and many more. They blend in seemlessly, it’s nevertheless unfortunate that so many iconic songs like T.N.T. (AC/DC), Express Yourself (N.W.A.), Drunken Lullabies (Flogging Molly), and Blitzkrieg Bop (Ramones) are missing. Another peculiar decision was made by swapping out individual bands’ songs with a different one of them, including Iron Maiden (The Number of the Beast -> 2 Minutes to Midnight), The Cult (Bad Fun -> New York City), and Sex Pistols (Anarchy in the U.K. -> Holidays in the Sun). Streamer mode, available on all tested platforms, also features a great selection of music. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 offers a fantastic soundtrack, but preservationists and purists will likely not be completely satisfied with it.
Cross-play yay, cross-progression nay
Cross-platform progression is currently only possible within Xbox (Game Pass Ultimate) and PlayStation ecosystems, and even here with restrictions. For example, Xbox Series X automatically downloads our save data which we created on PC via the Xbox app from the cloud and vice versa, but on PlayStation, transferring the game save is only possible in one direction from PS4 to PS5. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 is sold as a cross-gen edition on PlayStation by default, meaning you can play on PS5 and PS4, and the same applies to Xbox One and Series X|S. After activating the game digitally for Nintendo Switch, we received a 100% discount for the Switch 2 version on eShop. There are reports that this can be done by purchasing both the standard and Digital Deluxe editions on Switch, but to our knowledge, this has not been officially advertised yet. In addition this would make purchasing the Switch 2 version, which is only available in the more expensive Digital Deluxe edition, obsolete. However, inserting a game cartridge for Switch does reportedly not qualify you for this discount. While the Switch version, even with the cartridge, requires a game download (approximately 20 GB), on Switch 2 the game is only available as a download code in the box in retail stores (38.2 GB).
Performance on PC and consoles
We had the opportunity to try out Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 on almost all platforms – on PC and Xbox Series X with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, on Nintendo Switch and Switch 2, and on PlayStation 5 Pro and PlayStation 4 via the console’s backward compatibility (we disabled enhancements for PS4 games in the system settings). We were only unable to review the Xbox Series S and Xbox One versions, but going by past releases they should be roughly on par with PS4. Unsurprisingly, the game performs best on a contemporary gaming PC or laptop. At the highest graphics settings, texture and shadow are a lot sharper, and levels load significantly faster than on consoles, at least with a fast SSD. Even an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070, which by today’s standards would probably be considered a mid-range GPU, is sufficient to handle runs consistently smoothly at over 60 frames per second in 4K using Nvidia’s Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) upscaler in quality mode. On a comparable RTX 4080 Laptop GPU, we can play some levels like Water Park smoothly, even at our gaming laptop’s native resolution of 2,560 x 1,600 pixels, but in levels like Los Angeles, where there’s a lot going on, we’re able to experience significant frame rate drops. Using DLSS quality mode, we almost double the important “1% low frames”—the lowest frame rate at one percent of the measured time—from 57 to 100 fps compared to the native resolution Temporal Anti-Aliasing (TAA), and the average frame rate can be significantly increased from 90 to 140 fps. Even with AMD’s integrated Radeon 780M graphics chip, we were able to roam Downtown LA at a relatively stable 60 fps. Though, to achieve this you have to reduce the level of detail to the game’s lowest settings and use ultra performance mode of AMD’s FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution) upscaler, which corresponds to a native resolution of around 853 x 533 pixels. On a 14-inch screen, this is hardly noticeable, and so this pair of remakes is a well-optimized for different kinds of PC setups, though apparently it isn’t selling particularly well on Steam, probably because it is included in PC Game Pass (as well as Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for Xbox Series X|S). One drawback of the PC Game Pass version is that PlayStation 5 controllers can’t be used. While there are other games that don’t support DualSense on PC Game Pass, the number of games making use of the Sony controller and PlayStation button prompts increases, like this spring’s smash hit Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
Level: Water Park, Single-player in Free Skate, Gaming-Laptop with Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 Laptop GPU (1600p, native/TAA, highest graphics settings) / AMD Radeon 780M iGPU (1600p, FSR: Ultra Performance, lowest graphics settings)
Download of the left screenshot | Download of the right screenshot
On consoles, the experience is similar to its predecessor in some respects, but there are also disadvantages for last-gen players. Perhaps the biggest shortcomings are experienced by players on the first Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4. On Switch, even the remakes of the first two installments were capped at 30 fps, unlike all other versions. This remains to be true on Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4, but Switch also has to contend with significant ghosting, which we haven’t experienced on any other platform. Furthermore, even 30 fps aren’t maintained consistently. It is commendable, however, that the game looks and performs similarly in local two-player mode, in online mode with up to eight players, and in both docked and handheld mode. While the PlayStation 4 version, like its predecessor, displays a smooth 60 fps in single-player, the online mode is limited to 30 fps—half the frame rate of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2. This may be due to the technically more demanding cross-platform play, but that puts players on a potentially significant disadvantage, especially in competitive modes. We noticed slightly increased input lag in local split-screen mode, just like on Nintendo Switch 2—both are locked to 30 fps.
Level: Water Park, Single-player in Free Skate
Download of the left screenshot | Download of the right screenshot
Level: Water Park, Single-player in Free Skate
Download of the left screenshot | Download of the right screenshot
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 performs vastly differently on the Switches: While we’re greeted with blurry visuals and an inconsistent frame rate on the first Switch, the brand-new Nintendo Switch 2 offers high-resolution visuals and 60 fps – both in single-player and online mode. However, some effects have been turned off. For example, we couldn’t find any birds in Water Park on PS4, Switch, or Switch 2, whereas upon spawning feathers rain down on us on all other tested platforms. While it’s a huge step up compared to Switch, the Switch 2 version retains a similarly soft image to the lowest settings on PC, i.e. our 780M iGPU setup. While the image is a bit sharper on PS4, you’ll have to deal with half the frame rate when going online.
Level: Water Park, Single-player in Free Skate
Download of the left screenshot | Download of the right screenshot
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 looks remarkably similar on Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 Pro. We didn’t notice any noticeable differences in resolution, even in close-up. PS5 Pro enhancements could therefore be limited to keeping the frame rate even more stable. Both consoles, like base PS5, offer a quality mode with a maximum of 60 fps and a performance mode with up to 120 fps. We didn’t notice any drops in frame rate on either system. As soon as we activate the 120 fps mode on the PlayStation 5 Pro, we are greeted with screen tearing, almost every time we start a run. This can recur sporadically over the course of the run and can be quite annoying at times. We recently experienced something similar on Xbox Series X in Stalker: Legends of the Zone Trilogy – Enhanced – which, by the way, hasn’t been fixed to date (July 15th, 2025), despite numerous updates from GSC Game World. We’ve also read reports of screen tearing in performance mode on PlayStation 5. Iron Galaxy Studios should address this issue, as it puts the PlayStation 5 version at a disadvantage compared to those playing on Xbox Series X. Aside from this issue, skating in 120 fps mode is very enjoyable and, thanks to the high dynamic range, it can even have a positive effect on your score, although this high frame rate is limited to single-player. Upon close inspection, the image in quality mode is considerably sharper than in performance mode. However, the difference between modes is far less noticeable in motion and at a normal distance from the TV. Both PS5 Pro and Xbox Series X are able to display split-screen multiplayer at 60 fps without any noticeable visual downgrade. The Xbox version seems to have a higher contrast than on PlayStation, but this may also be due to the Xbox’s support for Dolby Vision.
Level: Water Park, Single-player in Free Skate
Download of the left screenshot | Download of the right screenshot
Loading times on consoles are generally quite fast, but noticeably slower on Nintendo consoles. On the original Nintendo Switch, you’ll have to wait a long time to fill up the online lobby due to the lack of cross-platform play and then stay patient for a considerably longer time than on Switch 2 to load into the level. Even on launch weekend we waited up to 15 minutes to join a lobby with a few Nintendo skaters. Meanwhile, Switch 2 and PS5’s DualSense provide the best rumble in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4.
| Framerate caps | PS5 Pro | PS4* | XSX | NSW2** | NSW** |
|
Single-player – Fidelity mode Single-player – Performance mode |
60 fps
120 fps |
60 fps
N/A |
60 fps
120 fps |
60 fps
N/A |
30 fps
N/A |
| Online Multiplayer | 60 fps | 30 fps | 60 fps | 60 fps | 30 fps |
| Local Multiplayer | 60 fps | 30 fps | 60 fps | 30 fps | 30 fps |
*via PS5 Pro backwards compatibility **docked and handheld modes
Conclusion
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 is a great remake of the 2001 and 2002 skateboarding games, featuring modern visuals, slick controls, a comprehensive and diverse selection of levels, pro skaters, and music. While fans will sorely miss individual levels and a lot of songs, the new content blends seamlessly with the old. Create-a-Park has been meaningfully enhanced with the ability to place objectives, and cross-platform play ensures you’ll always find an open session—unless you’re on the first Nintendo Switch. While this version is significantly inferior to all other consoles in terms of graphics and performance, the Switch 2 version, which was only announced a short while before the game was released, turned out well and in some respects it’s even superior to the PS4 version. Screen tearing in performance mode on PS5 needs to be fixed, and cross-platform progression would be a nice feature to avoid having to start from scratch every time you change platform. Overall, Activision and Iron Galaxy Studios have put together a great package with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 for both veterans and newcomers. Before working on the next remake pair, likely Tony Hawk’s Underground 1+2, a contemporary version of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 for Switch 2 would be greatly appreciated. Until then, you can find us online coloring ramps and hiding letters in impossible places.
Activision provided us with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4 for PlayStation 5 Pro, Nintendo Switch, and Switch 2, and Xbox gave us access to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. While we captured the screenshots uncompressed for comparison purposes, we had to compress them slightly for this post due to space constraints (90 percent image quality). All other screenshots were captured on PS5 Pro in performance mode and compressed to Full HD resolution.
