When Activision and Neversoft first released Tony Hawk Pro Skater, they created an instant hit in an otherwise dead genre. Since that time, Neversoft created many more games in the series and each version is far superior to its predecessor, both in gameplay and graphics. For this new game, Neversoft has decided to expand the storyline even more than in the Underground games, which makes it more fun than ever. Read on to find out more about this great game.

In Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland (T.H.A.W. as it is commonly referred to) is a combination of the gameplay from the Underground series as well as the classic Tony Hawk games. What I mean by this is the modes that are available on the outset. The modes are: story mode, classic mode, free ride, multiplayer, and Create-A-Mode. Free ride just lets players just goof off in the stage. In multiplayer you and a friend can play in a variety of games such as king of the hill, trick attack, graffiti, fire fight, and a new one this year is Pot O’ Gold. A player hold the Pot O’ Gold is the only one who can score, so other players must try to take it away from that player and see if they can score the most points first.

As in previous Tony Hawk games, creation plays a big role. You can create a character, graphics, park, and even tricks. Create-a-skater has more options than ever. Players can almost recreate a digital copy of themselves to play as throughout the entire game. They can add tattoos, eyes, skin textures, shoes, almost anything that you can think of is found to create the perfect digital “you.” Create-a-park is one of the most advanced level editors I have seen in a skateboarding game. Like previous create-a-park modes, players can make everything, from grinds to half pipes, from railings to even bigger and better gaps. It gives total control over to the player.

Do you have a trick that is not in this game? Well you can add your own tricks in Create-A-Trick mode. In this mode players determined how long the trick will be, the specific animations the character will do, and the things the trick involves. After they are done with the creating process players can name their trick. You can now make all your friends envious of you when you create the ultimate trick. It is really fun playing through the game and seeing a trick that you made being done and getting you high points. Last but not least is the Create-A-Graphic mode which allows you to create you own person logo to use as a graffiti tag, deck graphics, or even for your skater clothes. It is little touches like these that help make this game a classic because it shows that the developers really care about their audience and their natural craving for customization.

Have you been playing the Tony Hawk series since the first game came out and loved its classic gameplay with two-minute timers to try to accomplish the goals, or did you really love the story line of the Underground series with its free-roaming gameplay? Well if you fall into either camp or both then you will love Tony Hawk's American Wasteland, since it combines the best of both worlds in this game. This game offers a Classic Mode which lets players go though a variety of different levels, many from previous Tony Hawk games, and give you the classic gameplay of trying to get certain goals accomplished within the two-minute time period. It is refreshing trying to get skate, combo, and obtain the sick score within the two minutes and it brings back a lot of fond memories.

The other mode in this game is the Story mode and this mode will take up a lot of your time. Just like in the Underground game players take on the role of a runaway kid fro the Mid-West as they come to LA to become a famous skater. When they get to LA all of their stuff gets stolen and you met up with Mindy who will help you progress, give various tips as well as other things throughout the entire game. Players will get missions from various characters throughout the game. When you are playing through this game you will have to complete various sponsor challenges so you can get more status points to continue on in the game. You can also get cash at various places to get better skateboards and clothes. It is up to your skills to see if you have what it takes to become the best skater around.

The two biggest things about Tony Hawk's American Wasteland is that it is the first “Free-Roaming” Tony Hawk game and the inclusion of BMX bikes. You may be wonder what free roaming is all about, well unlike many of the other games, you are always greeted with a loading screen when you change levels. Well the city of Los Angeles is one huge level for players to skate in and they will not reach a loading screen while they are playing it. Being able to use BMX bikes in the game really helps any repetition that you might feel this game has. Using them in this game is not the Tony Hawk's American Wasteland main feature but more of an add-on to the gameplay and helps give it a change of pace.

The level of detail in Tony Hawk's American Wasteland is simply astonishing, nearly flawless from the character models to the varied levels in classic mode, and how great the game looks in story mode as well. Players can have choose from a myriad of tattoos, different faces, clothes, and even skateboards. The level of detail Neversoft put into each stage is astonishing, with great use of textures so no two levels look the same. Better yet in the story mode, everything is done seamlessly and going from one end of LA to the other is a blast.

The music for this game is one of the things I have always enjoyed about the Tony Hawk series, and this year is no exception. I really enjoyed jamming out to Black Flag, Alkaline Trio, Taking Back Sunday, and a variety of other bands while playing through this game. The sound effects are also top notch. During the course of the game players will hear bone crashing, board snapping, and skater groaning. As in real life, when skating on different surfaces different sounds are heard. All this can be heard through Dolby Digital Pro Logic II and it sounds great!

Tony Hawk's American Wasteland is rated T for Teen for blood, crude humor, language, suggestive themes, and violence. It requires up to 13 blocks on your memory card for game saves.

Gameplay: 8.5
If you have ever played a Tony Hawk game in the past you will feel right at home with this game. First you have a classic mode that feels just like the old games. Then you have a story mode, where you start as a skater that barely knows how to do anything and make him a star. The only thing bad about this is that the story is really short especially if you are a veteran Tony Hawk player, other than that this game is a blast to play.

Graphics: 8.5
Tony Hawk's American Wasteland has a really good look and feel to it. All of the levels that the players will go though are highly detailed. What is even better is all of the character models, including all of the pedestrians have a nice look and feel to them and are very well detailed.

Sound: 9.1
The Tony Hawk series has always been great in its sound department. The developers always have the latest music, realistic sound effects, and good voice-overs and this game is no exception.

Difficulty: Medium
There are a few different difficulty modes found in this game, and they range from very easy to extremely hard. The bottom line is that Tony Hawk's American Wasteland suits players of all skill levels and players will enjoy it regardless.

Concept: 8.7
As always I really like all of the things the developers do to help give this game a more person feel with all of the customization options available. This year the game was really fun since it combined the best of both THUG and Classic Tony Hawk games into one. So there is something for everyone in this game.

Multiplayer: 8.0
The multiplayer for this game is good like it normally is, but it is lacking online play that the other versions have. This is a shame because this really hampers this version of the game in comparison to the other ones.

Overall: 8.7
The Tony Hawk series is the best skateboarding franchise around, and the developers prove that time and time again with each new release and Tony Hawk's American Wasteland is no exception. If you are a fan of the series this game is a no brainier for you to pick up as soon as you can.