Fragging is Not a Crime

I've been playing videogames ever since Pong (Atari, 1972) so, for me, my interest in gaming predated my interest in skating. What relationship do they have in my life? They are my life. I once read that what you enjoyed doing when you were a kid can, oftentimes, develop into a solid career path. This has definitely worked for me, because for the last 10 years I've been designing videogames for a living. I got my start at Nintendo, then moved to Valve Software, and I am now designing games at Retro Studios. So much for the theory that sitting in front of the TV playing games is a waste of time.

Could you talk a bit about skating and gaming as subcultures? How are they different and how are they similar?

Skateboarders belong to a brotherhood of individuals who share a common bond. I was (and am) part of a subculture in which participants have the feeling that they are part of something larger, and perhaps politically minded, that just feels right.

A brotherhood can also form with some team-based online games, like Counter-Strike or Team Fortress (Half-Life mods). Players work closely together, as a team, to achieve a variety of goals. They practice together constantly to develop strategies and tactics that allow them to rise above their competition. Players come together to support their community and help it grow, but there is less of an overarching element of social change or awareness present.

One thing that both subcultures share is the fact that many outsiders (some parents, religious groups and politicians) view both skating and videogames as deviant.

What are skating games doing well?

There have been well over 100 skateboarding games released since 720š in 1986, but honestly, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater (THPS) is what I play... religiously. Every instalment. Period. So this question then becomes, "What is THPS doing well?"

THPS does so many things well, but most importantly, it captures the fundamental feeling of what an actual skate session is like. The developers, Neversoft, are skaters themselves and this allowed them to create an in-formed and well-crafted game that captures the spirit of skateboarding. They captured the feeling of sessioning your favourite spot; repeatedly trying to land a certain trick, finding new ways to do old tricks, learning the terrain, using the terrain in new ways, and just plain dorking around. That is what skateboarding is about, and they nailed it.

In skating, there is a certain zen-like feeling when your mental capabilities and your physical capabilities form a synergy and you land a trick. You have to think through the move in advance and then follow through with the actions. This must have been very difficult to portray, but they did it, and without the obvious addition of a physical component. In THPS, the button presses become the physical element. The player must use pre-planning, visualization, timing and follow-through to land a trick just right.

The trick system, as a whole, is approachable and robust, with intuitive controls and predictable results. There is a feeling in skating, as in many sports, of being "in the zone." Sometimes in a contest or even just skating a drained pool alone at 2 am, a skater gains a fluidity of motion and state of mind that enables him or her to just stick every trick. It's a great feeling, and the closest counterpart in THPS is the combo system. This feature lets the player link tricks together, in sequence, to form an impressive (and higher scoring) combination move. It doesn't perfectly mimic being in the zone, by any means, but it was a brilliant addition to the game.

The game also scores big in the area of customization. I appreciate Neversoft's continued effort to allow players the ability to customize the game. Players can create a look for their in-game skater that includes clothing, accessories and the skateboard itself. Yeah, it sounds like Barbie Super Model, but it really adds a lot to the game. You can even scan in your own face and apply it to the model. My in-game counterpart, djflippy, looks just like me.

There is one area where the game actually exceeds what is possible in the real world, and that is in the number and calibre of tricks available. For instance, in the real world I can't pull a 900 on vert ramp. I will never pull a 900, no matter how much I practice. I am simply not at that skill level. In THPS, I can pull a massive tweaked-out 900 that is just sick. That is a huge benefit of videogames; they let you do the impossible.

Tags: design , Half-Life , interviews , Karl Deckard , Metroid Prime