Skate Story Review – Surprisingly delightful for a story set in the underworld

Skate Story is likely the last skating video game we’ll see in 2025, and it’s one of the most unique that I have ever played. 

Launched globally on Dec. 8, Skate Story adds an unexpected flavor to the genre. Of course, I got an early taste with the demo, but the full game offers the entire campaign, along with some additional features. 

While the basic gist might be all about doing the sickest kickflip, there’s more to this one than meets the eye. 

The secret sauce is in the story

Skate Story does both the words in its title justice, but let’s start with the story. It’s unclear whether you’re a hero or villain, because rising as a demon certainly hits different. Oh, and you also need to swallow the moon to escape, and yes, there’s no typo in that statement. 

Your journey begins with your transformation from a frail shadow to a reincarnated demon with your favorite skateboard by your side. However, skating in the underworld is forbidden, but if you don’t skate, you can’t escape.

Your primary task is to follow the Rabbit, who serves as your trusted companion. While the bunny shows the way, you’ll come across mysterious symbols and interesting characters. While the core story is relatively linear, you can get the same task done in different ways.

The initial story chapters will teach you about the tricks you can perform, and there are plenty. You’ll get basic ones at first, like the Ollie, that are simple one-button options you can combine with other tricks. 

Skate Story might put a lot of emphasis on the story, but the skating part is just as fun. I also loved the Underworld’s design. The nine different layers feel unique and allow you lots of scope for how you want to skate. Every path (even while you’re completing the story) allows for different approaches. 

Many spots allow you to Ollie over obstacles or simply glide right past. The choice is yours as you race towards the next doorway. How you manage to reach your destination isn’t very important.

The core gameplay loop is thus: skate across different layers of the Underworld, complete various tasks, and build yourself up until you can swallow the moon. There are plenty of tricks to learn and master, and you’ll want to master them, because that’s how you damage enemies. The more complex the trick, the more damage it deals.

You’ll have to pay attention to the challenges in front of you, then decide which tricks to perform, and then time those correctly, too. It’s a lot, so there’s a sense of satisfaction every time you pull off a successful move. 

The controls feel intuitive, and when you get into a sticky spot, the game allows you to dodge failure fairly easily. Skate Story has an amazing auto-save feature with frequent saves, allowing you to pick up from before an accidental collision easily. In a world where so many video games punish you harshly for failure, Skate Story allows you to bounce back quickly.

On the surface, Skate Story is a simple game where you skate to destroy enemies and solve puzzles with the sole objective of escaping the Underworld. However, there’s plenty of depth and a decent amount of replayability (if you want to solve the same chapters with different tricks). 

There’s also a bit of customization offered by the Souls that you earn while completing the chapters. You can use them to purchase different stickers to customize the look of your board. I would have appreciated it if there were a way to remove the stickers and start fresh, so that’s a slight blemish for me.

Visually, the game really stands out. There’s an incredible psychedelic feel throughout every chapter and location. The prismatic glass design for the main character is great. The same can also be said about the general world design. Whether it’s a fellow demon, the Rabbit, or a gate, Skate Story really is a feast for the eyes. 

I usually don’t pay much attention to music in games, but Skate Story has one of the best soundtracks I’ve experienced in a while. This holds across all chapters, and I loved how the tempo builds up tension. I highly recommend using headphones as the music is worthy of its own album. 

My only gripe with Skate Story was the length, as the main campaign can be finished in a single day. That said, not every video game has to be a grind. Despite being short, I enjoyed every minute skating through the Underworld.

Skate Story is a sweet little adventure that presents a fantastic story from the point of view of a demon. This isn’t your evil incarnate from horror movies; instead, the demon just wants to free himself from the Underworld to skate and consume the moon in the process.

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