push it. push it. Push, push, push, jump –
All four wheels are reunited with the pavement shining in a slap of crisp plastic and crisp wood.
Push, push, push, push, jump —
Another snap, a quick scream.
Push, push, shove, ju —
A devastating accident. The world turns upside down in an explosion of shimmering blacks and bright pinks. I let out a small laugh, adjusted the controller in my hands and leaned forward. Reset it.
push it.
In the hyper-cooled demo space at Summer Game Fest, Skate Story creator Sam Eng drew a flaming skateboard on his business card while I played his game, looked up from time to time to laugh at my mishaps, and answered my questions. described Skate Story as an attempt to capture the feeling he often gets while skateboarding, one moment invincible and the next completely vulnerable. Fragile like glass.
Skate Story it completely crystallizes this feeling. You play as a glass skater, a demon made of transparent pain, and your goal is to skate to the moon, eat it, and escape this hell. The game takes place in a series of surreal playgrounds in an underground world, offering long catwalks to gain speed, winding paths paved with deadly red shards, and open areas dotted with concrete ramps, gaps, and wax-covered ledges. The devil and his minions are your enemies, and their only weakness is your sweet tricks.
Skate Story It’s coming to PC, and I played the demo with a standard Xbox controller: press Y to jump on the board, A to gain speed, X to powerslide, and B to ollie. Holding A pushes the glass skater forward in a steady rhythm, holding B makes a higher ollie, and combining the trigger and bumper buttons with a jump does the trick. I leaned heavily on drums, kicks (left trigger + B) and grinds (near stick + B), but I also did a few moves that incorporated those inputs, plus a nudge of the right analog stick, changing positions.
As I wandered the underworld, I encountered various floating stone heads – some friendly, some vicious – and collected items to unlock new development areas by smashing my board to solve small puzzles. There was a shop with custom decks and parts for sale and wide open spaces to practice tricks. The show’s final boss fight with a giant stone philosopher’s head provided a concrete arena to perform tricks and deal damage with my rad skateboarding prowess.
Ideally, I want to play the game for a few hours straight at home and after a few meals, so I can perfect its mechanics, unlock upgrades and learn new moves. I crashed a dozen times in my 45-minute demo, often in the same spot multiple times and always with a spectacular, shattering bang — but the resets were quick and not too punishing. Once I found a state of flow, the crash was always more intense, pressing A to push and smoothly jumping over neon spikes embedded in the shiny black asphalt, risking and crashing, reaching peak speed and feeling completely free. Then I’d cut a chunk of concrete and the ride would end abruptly and harshly. In Skate Story, high sidewalk edges are as dangerous as bright red obstacles, and the game requires a constant buzz of situational awareness. Like skateboarding in real life, I’d bet.
Skate Story mechanical rhythm, VHS-filtered visuals and constant, low wow Glass skate wheels rolling on the concrete of the underworld. Strategy becomes impossible, and the only option is to feel your way through brutal, pearly landscapes. The game’s soundtrack is provided by New York artist Blood Cultures, and it’s a soothing, lo-fi vibe fest, like OlliOlli’s streaming music, but with a distorted edge. It feels like a perfect fit.
Skate Story It tempts you to get into peak mode early, only to banish that feeling for the rest of the game. It’s an incredibly engaging loop with room for success or failure at every push.
The underworld is much bigger than the language I explore Skate Storyof Summer Play Fest demo. The full game has over 70 tricks to learn, fresh gear to acquire, and a level system to unlock. Skate Story feels like a game that would easily eat up hours of my time. At least as easy as eating a bear.
Skate Story Coming this year (not 2023 as the top trailer suggests) On SteamDeveloped by Sam Eng and published by Devolver Digital.
Find out all the news from Summer Game Fest 2024 here!
