Remember when the Tony Hawk games were good? Like, you know, really really good? Now you can re-live those glory days on your iPhone or iPod touch — Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 is now available on the App Store for download.
Activision hooked me up with a copy to check out, and I spent about an hour playing it on my iPhone 3GS last night. The game runs smooth, and looks nearly identical to the original (or at least what I remember of it). Everything appears to be intact, from the level challenges to the legendary skaters waiting to be upgraded and customized to your playing style.
The experiencing isn’t perfect, though. While I’m digging the fact that I can play it on the go, the game’s touch-screen controls leave a bit to be desired. This has less to do with the software and more to do with the hardware; Pro Skater requires fast, precise d-pad and button presses, and that’s just not something you’re going to get on the iPhone/Touch screen. Pulling off tricks wasn’t an issue, but lining up my skater to hit jumps and start off combo lines was a bit (no pun intended) touchy.
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 will run you $9.99, which is a little pricey by App Store standards. But given how much content is here and provided you can stick with and master slightly unwieldy controls, it just might be worth it to pick it up.
