Extended youth in the infinite ride: skateboarding in electronic games

The release of the remaster of “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater”, in September 2020, is a rescue of the teenage memory of a generation of gamers

• Pablo Vallejos

One of the most disappointing scenes for the skater is when he is faced with storms that make the track unfeasible or, in other circumstances, when the volume of passers-by occupies areas of the obstacles, among other situations. The skater needs to be in motion, as it is in the choreographies between the body members and the wooden board that a harmony is born that translates into turns, fits, sweat and wind on the face. In 1999, it started selling a product that promised to satisfy the incessant desire for movement and offer a vast and versatile space, even for those who were at home and had never ventured on top of a skateboard: “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater”.

The electronic game for consoles and computers, bearing the name of the world skateboarding star in the title, would welcome a generation of lovers (practitioners or not) of the sport. It would also expand and democratize the notoriety of this universe. There, gamers could “become” American and award-winning athletes like Steve Caballero, Rodney Mullen, Kareem Campbell or Eric Koston, as well as customize characters and equipment. All with lots of music on the soundtrack and a fast fingering to perform the virtual maneuvers. The product itself, which had six editions released in its ten-year stretch on the market, became a symbol of a generation, not only because of the passage of time, but because it encapsulated a collection of memories in individuals — now adults — who spent hours listening the rock and rap songs that accompany the sessions (the two-minute circuits) and his most versatile maneuvers. A virtual, electronic ride (PEREIRA, AZEVEDO, 2018, p.4).

“At its most romantic, the skateboard is an extension of the user. At the very least, it’s a brush.” — McMahon (2020)

It may sound corny, in fact, but those who have lived the experience confirm it. McMahon (2020), a reporter for the NME website, reflects: “We’re not talking about a piece of wood, are we? In its most romantic version, the skateboard is an extension of the user. At the very least, it’s a brush. And there’s the style of life. Music. Politics. Clothes.” For the critic, who analyzes the trajectory of skateboarding in videogames, these components, characteristic of those who practice the sport, attract those who immerse themselves in electronic games. For those who didn’t skate, games about the sport were a kind of gateway, an introduction to this universe. “It introduced skateboarding to the masses,” says Chad Muska, a skater featured in “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater”, in an interview. For Rodney Mullen, also an athlete and character within the game, the title has “a place in the history of the sport”. The testimonials are in the video below.

“Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater” wasn’t the first or only one on the market. In the 90s, games prior to the digital age, leveraged and popularized by Sony Playstation, brought skateboarding as a possibility of interaction. The titles “720°” (1986), “ESPN Extreme Games” (1995) or “Top Skater” (1997), among others, would pave the way that developers Activision and Neversoft, along with other partner brands, would build with “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater”. It is curious to note, above all, the appreciation of the soundtrack in all these titles, often composed by musical groups such as Pennywise, Millencolin, Powerman 5000 or Less than Jake: lyrics laden with messages about independence, the streets, emotional bewilderment (albeit a sense of courage and bravery), together with the sound effects of wood, steel, concrete and pain in the falls evoked a multisensory experience even for those who had never known the feeling of standing in the “cart”. It was possible to feel like a young skater just a “play” button away.

In this logic, it is possible to say that the improvement of electronic games in the modern context of the 2020s is a playground (or a skatepark?) for games like “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2” to be released. This, in turn, is a remastering of the product launched in the 1990s and which presents, in its promotional trailers, a tone of voice and a nostalgic promise. It thus proves an “adultescent” feeling (PEREIRA, ROCHA, 2009, p. 20). Or else, as stated in an article in the supplement “Mais!”, by Folha de S. Paulo (1998): “being a teenager is a normal feature of modern adult life. It is a way of affirming the possibility of yet becoming another” .

Buying and playing titles like “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater”, regardless of which version it is, is to revisit a room in the adult’s unconscious that reminds one of the entertainments of young life; is to embody a skater who, entertained by the challenges of each obstacle (electronic) and rhythmed by the songs that vocalize his emotions and realities, just wants to have fun.

Skateboarding, in or out of electronic games, is like taking a ride in time.