Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 Remastered review: Grinds of Grindness

The original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 is the eighth highest rated video game of all time, according to Metacritic.

If you’ve never played the 2001 classic before, you might be surprised to see it rubbing shoulders with the likes of The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time, Grand Theft Auto IV, and Super Mario Galaxy. But anyone who grew up blasting ‘Ace Of Spades’ and tearing it up through a series of immaculately designed levels knows one thing to be true: Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 is as close to perfect as it’s possible for a video game to be.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 Remastered aims to recapture those halcyon early 00s days, with a number of smart improvements and new additions that ensure this is more or less the definitive package for Pro Skater fans.

Iron Galaxy Studios has picked up development duties from the late Neversoft, combining the third and fourth Pro Skater games into one bumper release, much like 2020’s Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 Remastered.

It’s an approach that served the first remaster well, given Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater and its sequel were largely structurally exactly the same; you’re dropped into a level with various objectives and given two minutes to strike them off a checklist.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 also adopted this arcade-style approach, and it’s just as you remember in the remaster. In the span of two minutes, you can choose to go for the high scores, collect all the SKATE letters, find the secret tape, or do something utterly ridiculous that’s unique to each level. I always enjoy finding the axe for the thin man in Suburbia, which leads to one of the strangest cutscenes and hidden areas you’ll ever experience in a video game.

This structure has always been a perfect fit for the Pro Skater games, which are all about perfectly portioned servings of slick, arcade heaven, soundtracked by some of the best punk, rock, and hip-hop around. Incidentally, we’ve lost a few of the standout tracks from the original games, but I’m glad to see newer artists like Turnstile, Fontaines DC, and 100 Gecs alongside Iron Maiden and Alice In Chains.

The original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4 eschewed the time-limit in favour of a more open approach. You’d skate around a level and take on missions at your leisure, which then activated a timer. The remaster, however, has opted to unify the two games by giving Pro Skater 4 that classic set timer and goal checklist.

It’s a largely harmless change that doesn’t impact too much, but it occasionally becomes clear some of the missions in Pro Skater 4 weren’t built for the more retro approach. Skating around Alcatraz looking through bins to find a key, for instance, doesn’t blend in as well with the two-minute timer.

Fortunately, if this timer really isn’t working for you, the option to turn the time limit all the way up to an hour is just one of a slew of accessibility options, making a pair of games that were always quite brutally high-score focused much more approachable, and giving everyone the chance to unlock each of the game’s levels. And what levels they are.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 Remastered is home to some of the finest levels the series has to offer, taking the meticulous design philosophy of the original two games and expanding it out marvellously. Forbidden spaces like airports, parking garages, and cruise ships sit alongside traditional skate parks, transformed into virtual playgrounds where every rail, surface, or ramp is converted into the chance for a sickening combo.

The substantial visual upgrade afforded by the remaster allows every level to pop like never before, with playful details and secrets hiding around every corner. These games are gloriously old-school in their design, and yet retain a completely timeless quality. It’s a delicious paradox.

Special mention has to go to the three brand-new parks Iron Galaxy developed specifically for this remaster, because I had to check more than once which levels were actually new. Water Park, the most publicised of the new batch, is a genuine highlight of the entire game — a nirvana of twisty slides to grind down, pools to drop into, and a pirate ship to conquer.

These new additions are seamless and, I hope, can be used as proof of concept for a potential Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5. I’m aware there is already a fifth game, of course, but Iron Galaxy — and you — would do better to forget about that one.

Throw in a slew of secret characters, gameplay mods, multiplayer modes, and customisation options that weren’t in the original games, and you have yourself a little slice of skateboarding heaven in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 Remastered. The birdman has done it again.

Pros: Immaculately designed levels, perfectly paced arcade-heavy skateboarding action, lots of fun secrets and accessibility options

Cons: Soundtrack missing some classics, THPS4 levels are lesser for the new mission structure

For fans of: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, Jet Set Radio, Skate

9/10: Exceptional

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 Remastered is available now on PlayStation 5 (version tested), Xbox Series X/S, and PC. A review code was provided by the publisher. Read a guide to our review scores here.