Skateboarding Sim Revival: Crucial Facts About its Upcoming Return
The highly anticipated Skate 4, the third-person sports and tricks game from Full Circle, is set to enter early access at the end of summer 2025. This exciting news was announced in a recent blog post, which revealed that the game will be a free-to-play (F2P) title with aggressive monetization, requiring players to maintain a persistent internet connection.
Skate 4's always-online requirement is a key feature that supports multiplayer and live content, similar to popular games like Fortnite. The game's city, San Vansterdam, is a living, breathing massively multiplayer skateboarding sandbox that can accommodate up to 150 players at once in a server.
In terms of monetization, Skate 4 will not include pay-to-win elements, locked areas, loot boxes, or gameplay-altering advantages that can be purchased. Instead, the game will generate revenue through ongoing content monetization. This approach has been criticized as "hyper aggressive" by early testers, causing some disappointment among fans of the original Skate series.
Despite this, Skate 4 promises an immersive skateboarding experience with four main activity concepts: Challenges, Pop-Ups, Community Events, and Throwdowns. The game will also feature a unique 'Flick-It' control system, which requires a controller to play on PC.
The development of Skate 4 is being handled by Full Circle, a studio formed by EA. Key figures in the project include Dan McCulloch, the head of Full Circle, previously the general manager of Xbox Live, and Laura Miele, EA's Chief of Worldwide Studios, who is championing Skate 4. Deran Chun and Chris "Cuz" Parry, both from Black Box, the original Skate developers, are also part of Full Circle's creative leadership.
Parry, who was credited for the authenticity of the original Skate games, is particularly excited about the project. The next playtest for Skate starts on July 2, 2025.
[1] GamesRadar+. (2023). Skate 4 Announced for PC and Consoles, Coming in 2025. [online] Available at: https://www.gamesradar.com/skate-4-announced-for-pc-and-consoles-coming-in-2025/
[2] IGN. (2023). Skate 4 Is Always Online and Free-to-Play, Says EA. [online] Available at: https://www.ign.com/articles/skate-4-is-always-online-and-free-to-play-says-ea
[5] PC Gamer. (2023). Skate 4's monetization is 'hyper aggressive', say early testers. [online] Available at: https://www.pcgamer.com/skate-4s-monetization-is-hyper-aggressive-say-early-testers/
- Fans of the original Skate series are excited about the upcoming Skate 4, a third-person sports game from Full Circle, despite criticism of its aggressive monetization model.
- The development of Skate 4 is overseen by key figures such as Dan McCulloch, previously the general manager of Xbox Live, and Laura Miele, EA's Chief of Worldwide Studios.
- Players will be able to immerse themselves in San Vansterdam, the living, breathing city in Skate 4, which supports up to 150 players in a server and offers several main activity concepts like Challenges, Pop-Ups, Community Events, and Throwdowns.
- Gadget enthusiasts and technology lovers will be eager to try out the unique 'Flick-It' control system for Skate 4, which requires a controller to play on PC.
