 Preview By: Andrew Joy |
Developer: | Toys for Bob |
| Publisher: | Activision | |
| Genre: | Extreme Sports | |
| ESRB: | Teen | |
| # Of Players: | 1-4 | |
| Online Play: | No | |
| Accessories: | TBA | |
| Estimated Release: | 11/14/2006 |
When you start Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam, you'll choose from ten characters, including Tony Hawk and your own custom avatar. The rest are all new characters, none of them from the usual myriad of pro skaters you’d find in these sort of games, and most of them are pretty much stereotypes from around the world. Offended or not, each skater has his or her own specific abilities you will need to exploit. For example, the basketball player-like Ammon excels at jumps, the burly jock Gunner at combat, and the Valley girl cheerleader Tiffany at balance. Using all of the characters right will help you earn Victory Points, which can be used to purchase in-game items that improve your characters stats. But apart from just interchangeable gear, players can also unlock new decks that will boost certain stats even higher. Both players and skateboards have their stats calculated in five different categories, a few I’ve already mentioned: Speed, Turning, Balance, Jump and Combat.
The ability to choose not only your skater, but also your board opens up a lot of possibilities for the multiplayer matches of Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam. While we do know for certain that the game will offer a chance to bomb the hills when all of your friends are together, we don’t know for sure yet if it will work with Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. However, just by looking at the signs, I’d say it is probably a safe bet. First off, Tony Hawk’s American Sk8land made quite the splash when it became the first third-party game to include the function on the Nintendo DS last year, so why can’t we expect this game to do the same? After all, even the upcoming Nintendo DS version of Downhill Jam will support it when it comes out, though they are being handled by different developers: Toys for Bob is doing the Wii version, while Vicarious Visions is handling the DS once again.
There is also a certain level of customization that lends itself to online play, through custom decals you can create and wear on your shirts, shoes and decks that also complement the art style. Though it will probably be a downer to some, Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam will have a much different art style than the more realistic Tony Hawk’s Project 8, which is coming to the other consoles soon as well. Similar to what we saw in American Sk8land, the style in this game will be more cartoon-like, with flashy colors, outlandish features and that sort of thing. However, given the Wii’s (dare I say) limited hardware, it is all for the greater good. By not taxing the system and leaving graphics whores out in the cold, first impressions of the game have touted its ability to run smoothly, often 60fps at 480p, which is certainly of importance in a racing title.
All in all, even though the Wii launch is growing closer, Toys for Bob certainly seems off to a great start with Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam. Its departure in both gameplay and appearance may not exactly appeal to current fans of the series, but the game was built from the ground up for the system and should be an excellent launch title, as well as a great game to show off what the Wii is capable of. In the coming months, we definitely need to learn more about the game, especially concerning any plans for an online multiplayer or even downloadable content (via WiiConnect24), but from the information available now this game should certainly make its way onto a lot of people’s Most Wanted lists.
Posted: 2006-08-18 17:46:31 PST