Tony Hawk's Underground (Xbox)

The idea this time round is that you start off on the streets with nothing but your board to keep you company. Start skating around, pulling off tricks and sooner or later you'll be spotted; then you start to make your way up the boarding world. That's easier said than done, of course, with a bigger selection of tricks to learn and pull off. The upshot though is that the game presents a high quality, long-term challenge as you slowly make your way to the top.

Something that doesn't work quite as well is the ability to pick up your board and explore on foot. It's theoretically supposed to make things more flexible, but ultimately accounts for the game's few slower moments. However, ultimately Tony Hawk's Underground works spectacularly well. Its gameplay is sublime, the multi-player modes are dangerously addictive and it scores immensely in the value for money stakes too. Easily one of the most playable games on any console out there, it holds appeal for gamers at all levels of experience. --Simon Brew

The control system is as sleek and fluid as with other titles in the Tony Hawk's series, and the graphics, while not on a par with other extreme sports titles like 'Amped 2' are still very good.

The game is a new take on the well trodden Pro-Skater path where you don't just go around doing comps, but instead work your way up the world rankings.

However, in the game there are some very annoying bits, like the driving and walking: This ability to get off your board and explore holds the danger of turning THUG into a GTA type game, and is rather pointless.

The game doesn't have much replay value either, since the career mode is very linear, and the normal game modes (including 2player ones) are becoming very old-hat now they've been done 5 times.

The abscence of xbox live is annoying too, and could really have added an extra element to the game.

This game is still great fun though, but hopefully the developers will iron out the bad parts for the sequel.


one of the best exstreme sports title of the year.   February 18, 2004
 0 out of 2 found this review helpful

Review in Brief

The xbox version is better than PS2 because on PS2, game play is sluggish, no custamary musique, Graphics arn't as good as xbox.
You get total freedom in adventure, amazing levles, amazing goals plus great tricks.

longer version

This games great because Neversoft did a brave attemped on making this game different to the other predesecors. As you first go into story mode you then create your own character. The best new feature is undoutably that you can get of your board. You get a realistick storyline and a great sence of freedem. The missions are fun in this game, for example you have to jump over this big bridge. The cops are guarding the bridge. You have to hold onto the back of your mates car to jump over bridge. whilst a car is going quite fast you let go before the ramp and do an ollie on the rap and go flying over the bridge. Another great mission is where you have to get rid of a a car. You have to over heat car by going over something like 340. There's a ramp at the side of the river. You go over the ramp and you succesfully completed the mission.

You can create tricks. Whilst creating tricks it actually shows your character doing the trick on the menu screen(unlike the wonderfull ssx3). If your created trick is to hard to land the xbox will let you know when you go on to preview trick! You get a stealth mission in Moscow but because it's a scateboarding game it's no where near as good as Splinter Cell.

Bad points

game takes 2-3 days to complete(take 6 hours for hardcore fan of previouse games,but there is replay value)

Some new features are rubish, car missions

OVERALL

A masterpiece undoubtably. Thers tons of replay value. If you don't like scate boarding it's still wearth buying. If you don't agree you're missing out.


Best extreme sports game around   January 10, 2004
 2 out of 5 found this review helpful

tony hawks 5 has arrived with a new twist a stroyline.
tony hawks t.h.u.g is definatly the best extreme sports game around ive played dave mirra bmx, matt hoffmans bmx, aggressive inline and unfortunatley thrasher skateboarding and i have to say extreme sports games were getting duller by the minute untill this game came out.
altough the first few tony hawks games were fun they got boring after a bit just being dumped in levels getting high scores and stuff but t.h.u.g just blows them away u can get off ur board, drive cars and create a trick and if that wasnt enough u get to create a skater and make him or her a pro, as u progress the stroy unfolds with twists and a create a deck opton which is kool.

if uve played all the tony hawks games i suggest u play the sick difficulty to make the game last longer and to give you more of a challenge and also you can unlock some of the tony hawks 2 levels finally, unfortunatley u cant put ur face in the game like the ps2 version but the gameplay makes up for it cause its a class game.
so buy it and ull be satisfied that uve spent ur money well.


Amazing, but only 4 a week   January 4, 2004
 2 out of 11 found this review helpful

I bought this from amazon and wen it came i was realy exited i ripped open the box and began to create my sk8r 4 story mode. Now i had heard that the creat skater was really good and detailed but it was no better than THPS 4 but thats a minor fualt.
I got on and immediatly i loved it, by far and away the best game iv ever played, the graphics were smooth, the tricks innovative and i havnt even got on to the gettin off ur board! This is the best thing about the game and 2 b honest the only thing that sets its appart from its predessor (which im still tryin 2 complete.) I got into the game and the vast expansive, detailed levels and deep levels of interactive gameplay. The story was just setting itself up and the plot started to thicken as i got 2 the 1st comp. Neway i wont giv away the story just play the game and i garentee ul like it! But now i am gona sell becos i completed normal mode in just 3 days and i want the money to buy other games.

Overall its gr8 but in my opinion it is a bit 2 easy


Should get a 'best game' medal   December 22, 2003
 7 out of 9 found this review helpful

This game shatters all other tony hawks games to pieces. It has ground breaking graphix and a brilliant amount of fun on story mode. The controlls are very easy to use and even on the chunky controller. Really adictive, once you complete story mode it can get a tiny bit boring but there are four different hardness levels so it will not let the fun be broken. I loved starting off as a classic skater chick/dude and then becoming a pro and getting the best of Eric. Multiplayer is really good too and there are all different tipes of multiplay games which is unusual for other skateboarding games. Just another good point. I skateboard and i would say the phisics are really realistic, exept from that you don't have to push off that much, your board just starts rolling. You really should get this game.