Review: Stick Skater
by Staff Writer
May 17, 2010
Overview
Stick Skater provides the simple side scrolling casual endless fun or Run! or Canabalt, but intertwined skateboarding to the mold. Instead of tapping to jump over or break through obstacles you are laying down intricate tricks to get past obstacles. You skate in a 2D side scroller as a skating stick figure in famous skate areas including Hollywood, DogTown, Carlsbad, Wilshire, and Love Park.
Features
The game features 30 levels across five different areas. Each level has trash cans to jump over, ramps to take, and rails to grind all with a unique theme. There are five coins to collect per level, and your score is based on coins collected as well as tricks thrown down. There are two types of controls for either basic or advanced. Both modes feature a button to push off and increase your speed, and basic mode just gives another button for tricks with random ones on press. The advanced mode has you slide across the button in one of eight directions to use a different trick.
The Good
The game is simple fast paced fun as you would imagine by combining skating with the quick action of Canabalt. You will need to press the speed button a whole bunch, and have very quick reaction time to keep jumping throughout the course with so many different obstacles. Everything comes at you fast so you need to be ready, and there are multiple sections that require consecutive tricks to get through. You will need to grind, then jump off a grind to a little area before jumping again to avoid a trash can. The game is so fast paced there is no time to think, and instead you need to react, and it's extremely enjoyable to do so. Every level is designed differently so no level plays the same though there are only a few different obstacles.
The game is set up with multiple checkpoints through a level which are absolutely essential with some of the complex stretches. Without checkpoints you wouldn't make it through the first few levels before tossing the game away in frustration. Also included are five coins you try to collect which are worth a big bonus at the end.
Regarding scoring, the more you do the more you earn, and then you can compete on the online high score table. Another good feature is continue, where if you lose all you lives you can start back up from your most recent checkpoint rather than starting back at level 1. Your score resets, but you at least get the chance to decide if you want to stick with the more difficult levels or go for a high score.
Now this isn't a game to compete with Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 or Skate It, and instead just gives you a simpler way to have fun with skateboarding on the iPhone. It's not a 3D skating sim, but just a quick distraction with 2D skateboarding tricks.
The Bad
The controls are good, but not great and occasionally you will lose by not picking up the trick you tried to do. This can get especially frustrating once you reach the higher levels where timing is so very important. The controls also require use in only two spots rather than being able to tap anywhere like the typical horizontal casual endless.
The game is simplistic in almost every way from the depth of the game, the visuals, and the sounds. Every level is practically the same except the obstacles are positioned different, but there are only a few types of obstacles. On top of that it's very repetitive just tapping to push, and even the eighth different swipes for tricks become stale quickly.
The game is designed at a relatively basic level. The app only provides a stick figure with eight different trick animations. The levels only change by having a different murky background with practically no detail, and different skinned trash cans and grind rails. The game is extremely basic in the sound department with no background music leaving just the sounds of skateboard wheel and the extremely annoying scream when you crash.
The online high scores are also extremely basic with it only showing the very top, and your most likely very low ranking. There aren't multiple tables or achievements or any of the other things that seem standard now.
