If you have any idea what an ollie is, or a 50:50 grind, or a heel-flip (or — if you grew up in the 1980s, an acid drop or boneless), then you should buy True Skate right this minute. Seriously. I’ll wait.
Why? Because — despite some v1 limitations — True Skate is the closest you’re going to get to a dead-on skateboarding sim in 2012. The only things missing are the security guards to come and harass you, and bad fast food.
True Skate is less of a game and more of a simulation. There are a few missions, but they’re pretty dull when compared to the real meat of the game, which is a big, skatepark-shaped sandbox. Think of a mission-less Grand Theft Auto, only with skating (and without hookers) and you have it.
Controlling the board is as you’d expect. Ollie by tapping the tail and then sliding a finger up the board (or just tapping the middle or front of it). Once airborne, you can kick-flip and heel-flip, land on rails and lips to grind and slide, skate ramps, pools, pop little tricks on the flat and generally shred the place.
It is amazing fun.
Unlike Touchgrind’s top-down view, the behind-the-shoulder camera lets you see where you’re going, and the game is played in portrait mode, which seems odd for about two seconds until you actually play.
What else? The graphics are great, the sound is authentic, and there’s no music. No music?! That’s right — you can listen to your own with the SFX laid over the top.
True Skate is dangerously addictive (I just spent 20 minutes in it after popping over to check the music function), and costs just $2. Oh, and did I mention that there are points for tricks and combos?
Source: App Store
