eGames 08: Skate It Preview

Wii Feature | Balance Board It.

When Skate came onto the scene about a year ago, the gaming world was surprised and pleased as for the first time in a long time, a skateboarding game without the words 'Tony Hawk' in the title was not only decent, but better than the franchise featuring the most recognised name in the skateboarding world. With an inevitable sequel firmly on the horizon, the Wii is getting its own version of the title which features numerous ways to play, one of which utilizes the balance board which has, for the most part, been gathering dust under our collective couches since the hype for Wii Fit has died down. So, does the balance board work as a skateboard, or does Skate It continue with the recent Nintendo trend of making you look a bit silly without much of an incentive to progress through the game?

We can't see this ending well...

It's worth mentioning that the balance board and Wii remote combination isn't the only way you can play Skate It; you can also use the standard Wii remote on its own, or the remote and nunchuk combo. We got the opportunity to give the game a crack using the balance board at eGames over the weekend, and while we got off to a rocky start, things did start to fall into place a little bit (as opposed to our in-game character falling on his face a little bit). There will be no real-life Ollying taking place with the balance board; if you've ever used it before, you'll know that it's a heavy peice of hardware that won't be leaving the floor. Experienced Wii Fit-ers will also be aware that jumping on the balance board is a bit of a no-no, so Skate It relies on button combinations on the Wii remote combined with your slight shifting of weight to determine your speed, jumps and movements.

You'll be falling on your face a lot when you first jump on the balance board, because the sensitivity takes some time to really get the hang of. After some several minutes with the game though and working out just how much lean is required to pull off your more basic tricks, things start to work reasonably well. You can just cruise around the skate parks pulling off tricks and having a merry old time, or there are plenty of challenges available for you to try out, similar to the successful formula used in the first Skate. Pulling off tricks for photo opportunities and showing off your mad skills earns you points and story progression, so once you've gotten the hang of the controls, this is what you'll spend the majority of your time doing. While the balance board is certainly a competent way of playing Skate It, we're not exactly sure it's the most enjoyable way to play it; we'll have to wait and see when the game ships in the next couple of weeks.

Pfft... show off.

You have to wonder whether the inclusion of balance board support was one that was seriously thought out and planned, or one that's merely trying to use the flat white Wii peripheral as something other than a personal trainer, just because. It will take you about fifteen minutes or so to find your coordination with the balance board, and we're told several hours before you are able to master the variety of tricks - which is either a good or a bad thing based on your perspective. Much like Wii Fit, you get that lovely burning feeling in your legs after only a short session with the game, as you try your best to olly and pull off grabs without face-planting. The impression that we get is that most fans will just stick to the standard way of playing with the Wii remote and nunchuk - which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but does further throw into question just how useful the balance board will be in the long term. Perhaps Shaun White Snowboarding will make things a bit more clear.

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