14 DAY TRIAL // When the gaming world takes notice of the skating world, it does so big time. After Activision revealed that a new entry in the Tony Hawk franchise was in the making for the Nintendo DS and that another game in the franchise would be released next year, Electronic Arts brings now news on its breakout skating franchise, called Skate, which many hold in higher regard than they do any of the Hawk games.
The first game announced is called Skate It and is actually a reworked variant of the original Skate game designed with the Nintendo DS and the Wii in mind. It will take full advantage of the way the two systems work, mainly when it comes to the control scheme, to create a deeper skating experience. The Wii Remote will be used to control the skater, while the Balance Board is supported to mimic the movement of the man on the skate. All the tricks seen in the original game will be available on the Wii port.
On the DS, the stylus will be used to control the action and, while the system might need a bit of getting used to, the developers say that it will allow the player to perfectly simulate a skating run on a course with designed stunts.
Scott Blackwood, Executive Producer on the Skate series, said that "We knew it would be an exciting challenge to bring the soul and feel of skateboarding to the Wii and Nintendo DS. With fresh new designs and gameplay components built from scratch, we've been able to, once again, capture the true experience of skateboarding in a completely innovative way".
Electronic Arts is also letting gamers know that a true full-on sequel is in the works, called Skate 2. It will be available on both the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360 but the company released no more details and no estimated release date. It will probably arrive around the same date as the new and re-imagined Tony Hawk game from Activision.