Software:Skate 2
| Skate 2 | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | EA Black Box |
| Publisher(s) | Electronic Arts |
| Series | Skate |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Sports |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Skate 2 is a 2009 skateboarding video game developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. The game was released worldwide in January 2009 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 after the spin-off title Skate It. It is the sequel to 2007's Skate and the third installment in the Skate series overall. A sequel, Skate 3, was released in May 2010.
Set in the fictional city of New San Vanelona, the single-player career mode follows a skateboarder released from jail five years after being arrested in the first game, Skate, who is tasked with popularising skateboarding in the city again after devastating earthquakes, avoiding security guards hired by the company "Mongocorp" who have bought most of the city's property. Players create their own character and perform tricks such as ollies and grabs to earn points. Tricks can be used to complete challenges, such as racing and trick contests, which earn the player money that can be used to buy clothes and property or bet on events. Up to four players can play against each other in the local multiplayer "party play" mode, and an online multiplayer mode allows players to connect to games over the internet and take part in various competitive or cooperative activities.
Skate 2 is playable on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S consoles through backwards compatibility.[1]
Premise
Skate 2 is set in the fictional city of New San Vanelona, where the player controls a skateboarder who has just been released from prison after being arrested 5 years ago in the first title in the series, Skate. Since spending time in jail, San Vanelona has been hit with an earthquake that occurred in the spin-off title Skate It, leaving the city in ruins.[2] Eventually, the city was rebuilt and renamed to New San Vanelona. The City Council and Chamber of Commerce have deemed skateboarding a crime and a corporation called "Mongocorp" have bought and rebuilt most of the city's property, skate-proofed everything and installed a private security force to prevent people from skating. Upon exiting prison, the player meets Giovanni Reda, a cameraman who films the player's character throughout the game and provides commentary.[3] The player is tasked with rebuilding their skater's career and popularising skateboarding in New San Vanelona again.[4]: 4
Gameplay

Skate 2 is a skateboarding extreme sports game set in an open world environment and played from a third person perspective. The player can gain points by performing tricks, such as ollies, flip tricks, grinds and grabs. A feature returning from Skate is the "Flickit" control scheme, which requires the user to move the controller's right stick in certain patterns to perform tricks using the skateboarder's feet.[4]: 2 [5] Points gained from a trick are based on multiple factors, such as its height, length and complexity. The player can perform multiple tricks at a time, which are then combined into a "sequence", scoring more points than individual tricks.[4]: 5 Performing multiple sequences starts a timer, and performing sequences within the timer creates a "line", which scores more points than performing individual sequences. Once the line timer runs out, the points gained from the line are added to the player's score.[4]: 6
In any of the game's modes, the player can save videos of their skater and edit the footage in the "replay editor", allowing different filters to be applied and speed of footage and the angle of the camera to be changed, among other things.[4]: 6 This footage could be uploaded to "Skate.Reel", an online service where players could view and rate other user created videos made in Skate 2. The player can also enter the "Create-a-Spot Editor", where they can create skating "spots" using a variety of ramps, rails and other objects. The player can skate on their own spots, and could also upload them to the "Create-a-Spot Browser", where they could set the spot's high score and challenge other players to download and beat it.[4]: 7 A graphics creator also allowed players to create custom graphics on the Skate website and download them in-game to display on shirts, boards and hats.[4]: 4 These online features have since been discontinued. Various downloadable content packs have been released for the game, such as a "Filmer Pack" that added more replay editor options to the game.[6]
Career mode
Skate 2's main single-player mode is the "career" mode. From the beginning of the career mode, the player can create their own custom character and have the ability to change their gender, hair colour and facial shape, as well as choose their clothes and accessories, customise their skateboard and change their skating style, among other features. The player completes challenges to progress through the career mode, such as racing against other skateboarders, doing photoshoots for magazines or entering trick competitions.[4]: 4 [7] Completing challenges rewards the player with money, which can be used to buy clothes and property such as skateparks, as well as bet on events.[8] Completing enough challenge events also gains the player sponsorships from truck, wheel or shoe companies, providing the player with free gear, entry to more competitions and extra money.[4]: 4
As Skate 2 is set in an open world, the game's challenges can be found in its different locations. A map can be accessed in the game's pause menu, displaying challenges and locations in New San Vanelona and allowing the player to teleport directly to them. Challenges can also be retried from the map.[4]: 5 [9] Outside of challenges, the player can freely roam the game's environment. Certain areas in New San Vanelona are controlled by Mongocorp, called "Mongocorp zones".[10] Security guards patrol in these areas, and if a Mongocorp security guard sees the player skateboarding in a Mongocorp zone or the player angers a civilian anywhere, they will be chased until they escape the area. The player can be knocked off their board by people they're chased by, and if a Mongocorp security guard catches the player in a Mongocorp zone, any removed caps in the area are replaced.[4]: 6
The player's character has the ability to jump off their skateboard and walk around, allowing them to traverse areas that are hard to skate on, such as stairs. While on foot, the player has the ability to grab onto objects such as ramps and quarter pipes and pull them around, allowing the player to skate on them in different areas. While on a skateboard, the player can also grab on to cars and be pulled around by them, called "skitching". The player have access to an in-game cell phone, which can be used to access a list of contacts. Here, the player can request services such as pool draining, removal of caps from rails in an area or temporary security in Mongocorp zones. The player can also contact any professional skateboarders met in the career mode and challenge them to a "throwdown", a game of S.K.A.T.E. "Team Film Challenges" that can be started from the cell phone, where players perform certain tricks in order to get sponsorships.[11] The cell phone can be used to set "session markers", points where the player can teleport to quickly. Movable objects can be selected to be included in a session marker, resetting them to their initial position anytime the player teleports back to their session marker.[4]: 3 The player has the ability to manually make their player "bail", or fall off their skateboard. While bailing, the player can rotate their character and make them move into four different positions. In the career mode, bailing enters the "Thrasher Hall of Meat" mode, where the player is tasked with damaging their character as much as possible.[4]: 5 [12]
Freeskate mode
Skate 2's second single-player mode, "Freeskate", allows the player to skate around New San Vanelona freely as any character unlocked in the career mode. Freeskate mode also allows the player to control settings such as density of traffic and pedestrians, and whether Mongocorp zones are active.[10] The game also contains a local multiplayer mode, "Party Play", and an online multiplayer mode. In Party Play, two to four players can go against each other in one of three challenges.[4]: 8 The game's online multiplayer mode allows multiple players to freeskate in a certain location together over the internet. Players can propose "freeskate activities", competitive or cooperative challenges that can be played with other players, as well as invite friends to join their current game. A "ranked" mode allows players to play against each other in one of six different modes to win money and experience points, and an "unranked" mode allows players to play ranked challenges without affecting their experience points or winning money.[4]: 7
Development
Due to its commercial success of the original game, EA planned to make it as a franchise, as was noted by former EA president Frank Gibeau, saying that the sales of the first game "greatly exceeded" his expectations.[13] Skate 2 was officially unveiled in May 2008.[14]
Skate 2 was developed by EA Black Box and published by Electronic Arts. Scott Blackwood, the executive producer of the game, said that EA Black Box stayed true to the "authentic feel of the Flickit analog controls" but had given the player the ability to do "a lot more".[15] The developers noted that areas of New New San Vanelona have more distinct architectural connections with Barcelona, Spain, San Francisco, California, and Vancouver, British Columbia than in the previous title of the series. EA Black Box and Electronic Arts promised a "seamless transition from offline to online" gameplay and a set of new competitive modes for the game.[16]
A demo for Skate 2 was released for the Xbox 360 via the Xbox Live Marketplace and for the PlayStation 3 via the PlayStation Store. It featured a character creator and demonstrations of the career and party play modes, as well as the game's replay editor.[17]
Reception
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Skate 2 received "generally favorable" reviews from critics on both platforms according to review aggregator Metacritic.[34][35]
Official Xbox Magazine said the game had good control but will be too hard for casual gamers.[30] Game Informer said that Skate 2 accomplishes the impossible task of making old gameplay feel fresh. They said that while some new tricks were added, the game built upon the original and improved its formula.[20]
GameSpot said that the new content was welcomed but the walking and moving objects were clumsy at best.[7] IGN's US review praised Black Box for building upon their winning formula and keeping the gameplay fun. They explained that while the presentation is good, the story seems weak at times and the graphics are not as sharp as they could be.[9] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of all four eights for a total of 32 out of 40,[36] while Famitsu 360 gave the Xbox 360 version a score of one seven, two eights, and one seven for a total of 30 out of 40.[37]
During the 13th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Skate 2 for "Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design" and "Outstanding Achievement in Soundtrack".[38]
Sequel
A sequel, Skate 3, was released in May 2010. The third game in the series has a stronger focus on online team-based gameplay and content creation than the previous games.[39][40][41][42]
References
- ↑ "Celebrate 20 years of Xbox with over 70 new Backward Compatible Games" (in en-US). 15 November 2021. https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2021/11/15/70-new-backward-compatible-games/.
- ↑ Roper, Chris (August 4, 2008). "Skate 2 Hands-on". IGN. Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/08/04/skate-2-hands-on.
- ↑ EA Black Box. Skate 2. Electronic Arts. Level/area: Slappy's. "Giovanni Reda: You want to check the replay? I'm always filming."
- ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14 Skate 2 Xbox 360 Instruction Manual. Electronic Arts. 2009. http://epix.xbox.com/shaXam/0201/36/81/368176d7-1a3f-47a3-b1b7-df7175a088cc.PDF?v=1. Retrieved 2015-05-25.
- ↑ McInnis, Shaun (August 4, 2008). "Skate 2 First Hands-On". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/skate-2-first-hands-on/1100-6195352/.
- ↑ Goldstein, Hilary (February 18, 2009). "Skate 2 DLC Hands-On". IGN. Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2009/02/18/skate-2-dlc-hands-on.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Calvert, Justin (January 20, 2009). "Skate 2 Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/skate-2-review/1900-6203393/.
- ↑ Roper, Chris (October 3, 2008). "Skate 2 Updated Impressions". IGN. Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/10/03/skate-2-updated-impressions.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Roper, Chris (January 19, 2009). "Skate 2 Review". IGN. Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2009/01/19/skate-2-review.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 EA Black Box. Skate 2. Electronic Arts. Level/area: Freeskate menu.
- ↑ Skate 2 PlayStation 3 Instruction Manual. Electronic Arts. 2009. p. 7.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Parkin, Simon (January 23, 2009). "Skate 2 (PS3)". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/skate-2-review.
- ↑ Sinclair, Brendan (February 12, 2008). "New Burnout, Skate on the way". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/new-burnout-skate-on-the-way/1100-6185908/.
- ↑ Brudvig, Erik (May 12, 2008). "Skate 2 Made Official". IGN. Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/05/12/skate-2-made-official.
- ↑ Roper, Chris (August 1, 2008). "Skate 2: Welcome Back to San Vanelona". IGN. Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/08/01/skate-2-welcome-back-to-san-vanelona.
- ↑ Roper, Chris (September 11, 2008). "New Skate 2 Details". IGN. Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/09/11/new-skate-2-details.
- ↑ Goldstein, Hilary (January 7, 2009). "Skate 2 Demo Hands-On". IGN. Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2009/01/07/skate-2-demo-hands-on-2.
- ↑ 8BitBrian (January 26, 2009). "Destructoid review: Skate 2 (PS3)". https://www.destructoid.com/destructoid-review-skate-2-119064.phtml.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Edge staff (February 2009). "Review: Skate 2". Edge (198): 93. http://www.edge-online.com/magazine/review-skate-2. Retrieved September 5, 2017.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 Reiner, Andrew (February 2009). "Skate 2: A Sequel Of A Different Caliber". Game Informer (The GameStop Network) (190). https://www.gameinformer.com/games/skate_2/b/xbox360/archive/2009/09/22/review.aspx. Retrieved September 5, 2017.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Barton, Heather (March 2009). "Skate 2". GamePro: 79. http://www.gamepro.com/article/reviews/208608/skate-2/. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
- ↑ Morse, Blake (January 22, 2009). "Skate 2 Review (X360)". Game Revolution. http://www.gamerevolution.com/review/42710-skate-2-review.
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 Vasconcellos, Eduardo (January 22, 2009). "GameSpy: Skate 2". GameSpy. http://ps3.gamespy.com/playstation-3/skate-2/947637p1.html.
- ↑ "Skate 2 Review (PS3)". GameTrailers. January 25, 2009. http://www.gametrailers.com/gamereview.php?id=6784.
- ↑ Romano, Natalie (February 3, 2009). "Skate 2 - PS3 - Review". GameZone. http://www.gamezone.com/reviews/skate_2_ps3_review.
- ↑ Hopper, Steven (January 22, 2009). "Skate 2 - 360 - Review". GameZone. http://www.gamezone.com/reviews/skate_2_360_review.
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 Gerstmann, Jeff (January 26, 2009). "Skate 2 Review". Giant Bomb. https://www.giantbomb.com/reviews/skate-2-review/1900-105/.
- ↑ Shea, Cam (January 19, 2009). "Skate 2 AU Review (PS3)". IGN. Ziff Davis. http://www.ign.com/articles/2009/01/19/skate-2-au-review.
- ↑ Shea, Cam (January 19, 2009). "Skate 2 AU Review (X360)". IGN. Ziff Davis. http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/946/946196p1.html.
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 Korda, Martin (January 20, 2009). "Skate 2". Official Xbox Magazine. http://www.oxmonline.com/article/reviews/xbox-360/s-z/skate-2. Retrieved September 5, 2017.
- ↑ "Review: Skate 2". PlayStation: The Official Magazine (17): 68. March 2009.
- ↑ Alan, Chad (March 19, 2009). "Skate 2 (Xbox 360) Review". 411Mania. http://www.411mania.com/games/reviews/99659/Skate-2-(Xbox-360)-Review.htm.
- ↑ Jones, Scott (January 26, 2009). "skate 2 (X360)". The A.V. Club. https://www.avclub.com/skate-2-1798215583.
- ↑ 34.0 34.1 "Skate 2 for PlayStation 3 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. https://www.metacritic.com/game/skate-2/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-3.
- ↑ 35.0 35.1 "Skate 2 for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. https://www.metacritic.com/game/skate-2/critic-reviews/?platform=xbox-360.
- ↑ "The Famitsu Thread of 6 February 2009 (Page 3)". NeoGAF. February 4, 2009. http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=14642337.
- ↑ "Famitsu 360 loves Star Ocean 4 (score inside plus others)". PlayStation Universe. January 28, 2009. http://www.psu.com/forums/showthread.php/179319-Famitsu-360-loves-Star-Ocean-4-(score-inside-plus-others).
- ↑ "D.I.C.E. Awards By Video Game Details Skate 2". Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. https://www.interactive.org/games/video_game_details.asp?idAward=2010&idGame=1087.
- ↑ Robinson, Andy (September 15, 2009). "EA unveils Skate 3". Computer and Video Games. http://www.computerandvideogames.com/223370/ea-unveils-skate-3/. Retrieved September 11, 2017.
- ↑ Wicks, Bradley (February 15, 2016). "Skate 4 info potentially leaked on Australian website". Pixel Dynamo. https://www.pixeldynamo.com/news/gaming/2016/02/15/97469/skate-4-info-potentially-leaked-australian-website/.
- ↑ Yin-Poole, Wesley (January 28, 2016). "Almost every comment on EA's Instagram is 'Skate 4'". http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2016-01-28-almost-every-comment-on-eas-instagram-is-skate-4.
- ↑ Bakker, Raymond (September 16, 2016). "Skateboarding park The Berrics campaigns for new Skate game". Zero Lives. https://zerolives.com/article/bAy2nqOB/skateboarding-park-the-berrics-campaigns-for-new-skate-game.
External links
- Skate 2 official website
- MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.
Features
Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This lengthy approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]
Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.
History

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]
In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]
On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]
In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]
See also
- IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/.
- ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/.
- ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1.
- ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
- ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521.
- ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media.
- ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned.
- ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner.
- ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames.
- ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games.
- ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/.
- ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/.
- ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/.
- ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/.
- ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames.
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