Once you top the list of Tony Hawk’s protégé’s it’s time to take this puppy onto Xbox Live and battle it out with your buddies. It also supports two-player split-screen mode which is nothing new but does amount to a little bit of fun if your cable connection is down. Unfortunately Xbox Live does not allow you to play with your real life buddy on the same screen online. This aside the online multiplayer modes are really cool and add something new to the Tony Hawk series that we have not seen before. There are six different game modes to play: Trick Attack, Graffiti, Combo Mambo, Score Challenge, Combo Challenge and Walls. Trick attack is just your basic mode where the skater with the most points when the time runs out wins. Same goes for combo mode, score and combo challenge. The real online magic happens with the mode known as Walls. In this intuitive mode gamers are challenged to skate around, creating colored walls behind them, while dodging other walls created by other online skaters. This may seem simple, but after learning the levels it becomes a real game of skill and tactics. Throw in online leaderboards and the Xbox Live online modes are more than enough to keep Project 8 in your Xbox 360 for months to come.
Developer Neversoft went with an all new graphical engine this time around that features much more motion capture technology. This engine makes Tony Hawk’s Project 8 easily the best looking TH game ever created. It also gives the game a much more realistic feel which ultimately adds to the overall value of the game. All of the character models, from the ones you created, to Tony Hawk himself look very good and the amount of detail is astonishing. As I previously said the city landscapes are huge and the pull on the graphics is noticeable. Some clipping issues that are well known from the Saint’s Row title are here in all their glory. Even though I am not impressed with the level design, the lack of loading times amazes me. All of the colors and textures look next-gen and the way each of the characters move flows smooth and feels solid. With the new mo-cap engine Project 8 just looks better, all of the tricks look more realistic and TV like. The TH series has come a long way since the days of the Playstation 1 so it is good to see a new engine that both breathes new life into an old game but keeps the same feel that fans fell in love with years ago.
The sound department is average but includes all the classic skating sound effects you would come to expect from a Tony Hawk game. The voice acting is dull and sounds scripted and the lines that the skaters say are corny at best. Project 8 includes a really nice soundtrack though, that should keep your bouncing to the music throughout the game.
With an all-new graphical engine and a decent audio showing Project 8 rounds out to be a really nice game. If you can get over the repetitiveness of the level design and the insane difficulty of “sick” mode there are few things you will find to complain about in Project 8. Tony Hawk fans will instantly buy this game, other gamers I suggest you give it a rent. The solid single player experience and innovative multiplayer mode add up to one fun skating title. While there are a few gripes I had to mention I was overall happy with the new way this franchise is going and am excited to see what the Tony Hawk series will throw at me next.
