Tony Hawk's Pro Skater is the first game in a now extensive series of 10+ games that are still being created and released to this day. It was first released for the Playstation on September 30, 1999, and later ported to the Nintendo 64 and Sega Dreamcast. "Primitive" by today's Tony Hawk control standards, this game utilizes flip tricks, grab tricks, grinds, and special tricks, which can be done on street ramps, vert ramps, rails, and all sorts of other objects.
Game Objectives
- Emulator used: Mupen64 0.5 rerecording v8
- Aims for fastest time
- Genre: Sport
- Brings back 2000's memories
- Rips your childhood apart
Here are the three main tricks used in this run:
Grinding
Grinding usually adds to your speed. This is why I jump many times on the same rail to reach optimal speed. Upward rails give speed faster than downward rails for some reason.
Wallriding
While wallriding, you can jump a second time to reach higher areas.
Jumping
Jumping keeps most of your speed. I abuse this technique a lot in this run.
Comments
Finally, this run is done! I'm glad I can add a new title to the list of N64 TASes. I put a lot of effort into this, despite the fact that this is the first completed TAS of the game; it came out just as good as I expected.
I chose to skip 4 tapes to reach the ending credits as fast as possible, instead of going for 100% requirements. But remember, pro skaters get all golds...
Character Choice
I used Tony Hawk for great justice! After some investigation, it turns out that all characters behave exactly the same. Also, loose, medium or tight trucks don't change anything in the N64 version of the game. I don't know if this is true for the Playstation version of the game as of yet.
Stage by Stage Comments
Warehouse Woodland Hills
I re-did this stage about 40 times, always finding improvements here and there. In the end, because of some weird jump trick [dead link removed] I found, a whole new strategy was created, which ended up saving a second.
School Miami
Here is where Spider-Waffle's help came in handy. By wallriding on the left wall, I was able to land directly on the awning where the secret tape is, and barely obtain the pro score tape. It saved a lot of time compared to the SDA run.
Mall New York
Again, Spider-Waffle gave me a lot of tricks and ideas to try. I was able to obtain the secret tape, the "A" letter, and break the directory without wasting time or backtracking.
Skate Park Chicago
Grinding on the ramps to the right is way faster (thanks Spider-Waffle!). Performing a "Madonna" gave me enough points to get 3rd place in each round. Only the first two rounds are necessary to obtain a medal (this is also true for the other two competitions).
Downtown Minneapolis
There were four main strategies for Downtown Minneapolis. It was pretty close, but the one present in the run is the fastest.
Downhill Jam Phoenix
The big time-saver here is the "Fastplant" to the secret tape. Using this TAS-only strategy saved a lot of time. Also, landing in the water to respawn in front of the valve after getting the "E" letter (like in the SDA run) was 2 seconds slower.
Burnside Portland
Doing grinds with quick tricks for big multipliers went well here.
Streets San Francisco
Spider-Waffle's strategy was greatly used here once again. Not much to say. I obviously did a "900°" to make girls wet, with style.
Roswell New Mexico
Grinds, grinds, grinds, fun, bronze medal, etc.
Comparison Table
Here I compare the times I got in each stage with Discombobulator's (author of the SDA run) times.
Since there weren't any better/TASed Tony Hawk's Pro Skater run, those were my goals to beat.
| Levels | Nahoc's in-game time | Discombobulator's in-game time | Time saved |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warehouse Woodland Hills | 18 seconds | 26 seconds | 8 seconds |
| School Miami | 9 seconds | 22 seconds | 13 seconds |
| Mall New York | 33 seconds | 53 seconds | 20 seconds |
| Skate Park Chicago | 3 and 3 seconds | 8 and 5 seconds | 7 seconds |
| Downtown Minneapolis | 32 seconds | 54 seconds | 22 seconds |
| Downhill Jam Phoenix | 37 seconds | 1 minute 2 seconds | 25 seconds |
| Burnside Portland | 4 and 4 seconds | 12 and 12 seconds | 16 seconds |
| Streets San Francisco | 21 seconds | 44 seconds | 23 seconds |
| Roswell New Mexico | 5 and 6 seconds | 9 and 9 seconds | 7 seconds |
Special Thanks
- Spider-Waffle: He gave me many, many tips and a lot of advice. He kept giving me new ideas to try and luckily, they worked quite often! Huge thanks to him.
- sonicpacker: He encouraged me and gave me feedback throughout the run.
- Discombobulator: His SDA run gave me a nice goal to beat.
Suggested screenshots
[dead links removed]
mmbossman: Claimed! And accepted! I spent so much time on this game as a kid, it's awesome to see it absolutely shreded.
Nahoc: Processing!